Ossian Bingley Hart (17 January 1821-18 March 1874) was the Republican Governor of Florida from 7 January 1873 to 18 March 1874, succeeding Harrison Reed and preceding Marcellus Stearns.
Biography[]
Ossian Bingley Hart was born in Jacksonville, Florida in 1821, the son of city founder Isaiah Hart, and he moved to a farm near Fort Pierce in 1843 and became a lawyer in Key West in 1846 and Tampa in 1856. He practiced law before becoming involved in Republican politics and serving on the state Supreme Court and as Governor from 1873 to 1874, passing limited civil rights legislation and attempting to mend the state's finances. He died in office in 1874.