Photo of Peter Tomasello Jr. and members of his family at the unveiling of his Florida House Speaker portrait (1959)

Peter Tomasello Jr. (1900 – November 17, 1960)[1] was a politician in Florida. He was elected to serve in the Florida House of Representatives in 1928,[2] and served until 1940.[3] He served as Speaker of the Florida House from 1933 to 1935.[1][3] He had first stood for the speaker of the house position for the 1931 session but lost to Clay Lewis Jr.[4]

He was born in 1900 in Pinewood, Santa Rosa County, Florida.[5] His father immigrated from Austria and worked his way up in the limber business.[6] Jr. had a lumber mill.[7]

He had served as a private in the Florida national guard in World War I achieving the rank of sergeant before retiring from service.[5]

He was a candidate in the 1936 Florida gubernatorial election where he came third out of thirteen.[3] He met with gambling interests.[8][9]

He died in a private hospital in Forest Park, Georgia November 17, 1960, he had been living in Forest Park for 14 years.[3] He was survived by his wife Elizabeth Tomasello (née Carter) and his son Jerome Tomasello.[3]

References

  1. ^ a b "Ex-Speaker of the House celebrated with portrait in the chamber – Tallahassee, Florida". Florida Memory. Retrieved 24 January 2021.
  2. ^ "Here is the roster of new solons in ligislature". Tallahassee Democrat. 17 December 1928. p. 3. Retrieved 24 January 2021.
  3. ^ a b c d e "Peter Tomasello dies in Georgia". The Orlando Sentinel. 18 November 1960. p. 3. Retrieved 24 January 2021.
  4. ^ "Whitaker to head Senate". The Tampa Tribune. 7 April 1931. p. 1. Retrieved 24 January 2021.
  5. ^ a b "Good Political Timber (Peter Tomasello Jr.)". Tallahassee Democrat. 2 June 1933. p. 4. Retrieved 24 January 2021.
  6. ^ "Peter Tomassello". www.flaglercountyfamilies.com.
  7. ^ "The Southern Lumberman". 1960.
  8. ^ Ogden, Christopher (11 November 2009). Legacy: A Biography of Moses and Walter Annenberg. ISBN 9780316092449.
  9. ^ Cockburn, Alexander (1988). Corruptions of Empire: Life Studies & the Reagan Era. ISBN 9780860919407.
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