Born in Fargo, Georgia,[1][2] Drew was educated in the public schools of Florida,[3] and received an LL.B.

[3] On June 10, 1927, Drew married Edith Turner of Cleaton, Kentucky,[4] with whom he had one daughter, Melanie.

[3] While maintaining his private practice, Drew was active in governmental affairs, serving as a member of the State Game and Fresh Water Fish Commission,[3][5] member and secretary of the Board of Pilot Commissioners for the Port of Palm Beach,[5] and a member of the committee whose work resulted in the continuous statutory revision system which became effective in 1941.

Following this succession, he chaired the newly formed Committee on Judicial Administration of The Florida Bar.

[5] When Florida Supreme Court Justice Roy H. Chapman died suddenly in 1952, a state bar poll named Drew as one of the most qualified attorneys for consideration for the seat,[4][3] and Governor Fuller Warren subsequently appointed Drew to the court.