Richard Keith Call was born in 1791 in Prince George County, Virginia, United Statesl; the third of four children. His father, William Call, fought in the Revolution, and his uncle, Richard Keith Call, friend and aide to Washington, was a charter member of the Order of the Cincinnati. His father died while Richard was a mere lad, and his mother (Helen Mead Walker) soon afterward moved to Kentucky.
As in most pioneer families, the Call children had little actual schooling, but after their mother's death (August 1810), Richard attended an academy in Montgomery County, Tennessee, which he left in 1813.
In 1813 Call joined an expedition against the Creeks; and later in the same year volunteered under Jackson. In January 1814, although his whole company mutinied and went home, Call (third lieutenant) served in the ranks until the end of the campaign. This incident and his courage were the basis for Jackson's deep attachment to him. Shortly afterward Call joined the regular army with the rank of lieutenant. For gallantry in Jackson's operations about Pensacola and in the battle of New Orleans he was soon promoted to captain and later became a member of Jackson's staff. He fought in Jackson's campaigns of 1818 and 1820; negotiated with Gov. Jose Masot at Pensacola in the former year; and in 1821 arranged with Gov. Jose Callava for the transfer of West Florida. In 1821 he resigned his commission to practise law in Pensacola, but in 1823 he was appointed brigadier-general of militia. The same year, while a member of the municipal board of Pensacola and of the first territorial council, he was appointed delegate to Congress, succeeding Gen. Joseph M. Hernandez.
Returning to the territory in 1825 (his successor in Congress being Joseph M. White, who also defeated him as delegate in 1832), Call removed to Tallahassee, and besides his town house acquired a large plantation on Lake Jackson. In 1829 Jackson sent him to Havana to obtain the documents relating to land grants, surveys, and claims taken thither by the Spaniards in 1821. After his return to the United States he was frequently consulted about these matters and in one case, argued before the Supreme Court, was associated with William Wirt. In 1832-34, he built the third railroad in the United States--the Tallahassee-St. Marks--and as a feeder to it founded the town of Port Leon. He was active in the Indian troubles during the period 1826-42. In 1836 (while governor during his first term, 1836-39), the War Department, at his request, authorized him to conduct a summer campaign; but notwithstanding the soundness of Call's plan and the care exercised by him, the campaign was not a complete success, and Call was superseded in the command. Heatedly, Call accused the War Department of injustice and discrimination; which caused Van Buren, in 1839, notwithstanding that Call had been reappointed governor for three years more, to rescind the appointment. Call retaliated by turning Whig: and after the Harrison-Tyler victory was reappointed governor (1841 - 44). During his terms the most important issues, aside from the Indian hostilities, were those of the banks and statehood. When the banks failed and Florida repudiated the "faith bonds" issued by the territory, Call was greatly disturbed. He declared for statehood in 1837, but this was not obtained until 1845, although the St. Joseph convention (1838 - 39) drafted a state constitution. His defeat by a small margin in the first state election caused him to withdraw from active politics. In the Baltimore convention of 1856, he refused nomination for the vice-presidency, and himself nominated Donelson. Being an ardent unionist, though a slaveholder, he attempted unsuccessfully to save Florida from secession; but stood with his state, offered his services to the Confederacy, and was grieved because his military experience was not availed of.
He he was elected to the Florida Territorial Council and as a Delegate to the U. S. Congress from the Florida Territory. In the mid-1830s, he developed two plantations in Leon County, Florida, one of several thousand acres. In 1860 he held more than 120 slaves and was the third-largest slaveholder in the county.
He was a member of the U. S. House of Representatives from Florida.
He was a man of great integrity and sincerity and was highly regarded as a lawyer and orator. He was somewhat obstinate, loved his friends and hated his enemies with true Jackson fervor, and did not hesitate to challenge when he considered his honor impugned.
He married Mary Letitia Kirkham (died 1836) of Nashville.
