By Staff
Special to the Advance
Jesse Ernest Jackson, former Flomaton mayor and state senator, dies at age 89.
He was born to Ernest H. and Jessie White Jackson on Aug. 14, 1914, in Flomaton. Except for three years spent in Peterman (1936-39), he lived in Flomaton all of his life. A graduate of Flomaton High School, he excelled in both football and baseball. In 1936 he married Pearl Jones Jackson. From this union issued one son, Robert H. Jackson. After the death of his first wife, he married Ruth Locklier Jackson in 1964.
Through the years, Jackson distinguished himself in religious business, civic and political circles, at both the local and state levels. He was a continuous member of First Baptist Church of Flomaton since 1939, serving as deacon, Sunday school teacher, Sunday school superintendent for 20 years, chairman of trustees and chairman of numerous building and pulpit committees. He was a past moderator of the Escambia Baptist Association and served for many years on the Board of Trustees of Mobile University.
For many years he was in the retail business, owning stores in Flomaton, Atmore, Greenville and Chickasaw, Ala. and Fort. Walton, Fla. He was president of the Tri-City Chamber of Commerce and chairman of the Flomaton Industrial Board. He served as a director of the Guaranty Life Insurance Co., chairman of the Board of Directors of United Bank in Flomaton and on the Board of Directors of Altus Bank in Brewton.
Active in community affairs, Ernest was chairman of trustees of the Flomaton School Board. He was on the Board of Directors of the Gulf Coast Council of the Boy Scouts of America. He also served as trustee of the Mt. Meigs Industrial School in Montgomery and was a director of the Fort Morgan Historical Commission. A long-time member of the Lions Club, he served as district chairman. For many years he served on the Escambia County Hospital Board.
Ernest was actively involved in politics. He served as mayor of Flomaton as well as three terms on the city council. He was state senator for the 25th District from Escambia and Baldwin Counties and became the only senator to secure two junior colleges for his senatorial district (Brewton and Bay Minette). For his efforts, the Brewton Chamber of Commerce named him Man of the Year. A long-time support of Gov. George Wallace, he was one of the governor's statewide campaign managers on several occasions and served as Escambia County coordinator during the Wallace administrations.