Nathaniel Glover, Jr.

On April 11, 1995, Nathaniel Glover, Jr. made history by being elected as the first African-American sheriff in Florida in more than 100 years. Sheriff Glover served two terms and retired from the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office on June 30, 2003. 

Nathaniel Glover was born on March 29, 1943 in Jacksonville, Florida. He is married to Doris J. Bailey and has two children, two grandsons and one granddaughter. Sheriff Glover received his childhood education from New Stanton School. He graduated from Edward Waters College with a bachelor of science degree in social science before receiving his master's of education degree from the University of North Florida. He is a graduate of the 130th Session of the FBI National Academy and a graduate of the 1989 class of Leadership Jacksonville. In 1995, Edward Waters College presented Sheriff Glover with an honorary doctorate of law degree.

Sheriff Glover began his law enforcement career with the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office on November 12, 1966. In 1969, he became an investigator in the detective division. He was promoted to sergeant in 1974 and headed the hostage negotiation team from 1975 to 1986. He served as chief of services from 1986 to 1988, and was then appointed deputy director of police services. In 1991, he was named director of police services, one of the top three positions in the department.

During his first term in office, Sheriff Glover donated approximately $250,000 of his pension benefits to a college scholarship fund for deserving low-income children in the Jacksonville community. 

In 1999, Sheriff Glover was awarded the FBI director's Community Leadership Award. He was honored for "his untiring efforts to combat crime through community involvement and to effect positive changes in the criminal justice system." 

In 2003, Sheriff Glover served as co-chair and then chair of Mayor Peyton’s transition team after opposing him as a run-off candidate in a heated mayoral race.

Sheriff Glover has received the Liberty Bell Award from the Jacksonville Bar Association and the Law and Spirituality Award from the Catholic Lawyers Guild. He is the past recipient of the Martin Luther King Humanitarian Award granted by the Jacksonville Jewish Community and the Sallye B. Mathis Award for outstanding community service from the Jacksonville Branch of the NAACP. The Mental Health Association of Northeast Florida presented him with the Community Service Award, and the Arthritis Foundation selected him as the Community Leader of the Year in 2002. Sheriff Glover was chosen to participate in the White House leadership conference on youth, drug use, and violence. He has also received the outstanding alumnus awards from the University of North Florida, Edward Waters College, and Leadership Jacksonville, Inc.

In November of 2006 Sheriff Glover was introduced as a special advisor to the president of the University of North Florida. The sheriff’s role at the university is to promote higher education, college recruitment, and dropout prevention. He also serves as a special envoy for higher education to Florida Community College at Jacksonville, JacksonvilleUniversity, and Edward Waters College. 

Sheriff Glover remains involved in many community activities. He is president pro-tempore of the trustee board, St. Stephen AME Church; a member of Omega Psi Phi fraternity, Fraternal Order of Police, and the Brotherhood of Police Officers. He serves on several boards including Nemours BrightStart! Community Advisory Council, Fresh Ministries, Hope Haven, and The Bridge of Northeast Florida. Sheriff Glover also serves on the board of trustees of The Police and Fire Pension Fund and Edward Waters College.