Bradford County, Florida Genealogy
United States 
Florida Bradford County
records.
Guide to Bradford County, Florida ancestry, family history, and genealogy birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.
| Bradford County, Florida | |||||||||
| Map | |||||||||
 Location in the state of Florida | |||||||||
 Location of Florida in the U.S. | |||||||||
| Facts | |||||||||
| Founded | December 21, 1858 | ||||||||
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| County Seat | Starke | ||||||||
| Courthouse | |||||||||
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Contents
County Information
Bradford County, Florida Record Dates
| | |||||
| Birth | Marriage | Death | Census | Land | Probate |
| 1875 | 1830 | 1875 | 1868 | ||
County Courthouse
Bradford County Courthouse
PO Box B;
Starke, FL 32091-1286;
Phone: 904.964.6280
Formerly New River County Name changed to Bradford 6 Dec 1861;
County Clerk has marriage records from 1875,
probate and court records from 1892
and land records from 1876[2]
History
Named for Captain Richard Bradford who was killed in the American Civil War's Battle of Santa Rosa Island.
Parent County
New River County was created on December 21, 1858 from Columbia County by an act of the Florida Legislature. December 6, 1861 New River County was divided into two counties. The new county was named Baker County and New River's name was changed to BRADFORD County in honor of Captain Bradford who was killed in the Civil War.
In the 1860 New River population was 3,820 In 1861 the population was virtually halved by the carving of Baker from New River. The 1870 Bradford County's population was 1,325 people and the decrease was not due to a massive migration away from the area, but due to Bradford having been split into several Counties.
County seat: Starke [3]
Boundary Changes
For animated maps illustrating Florida county boundary changes, "Rotating Formation Florida County Boundary Maps" (1821-1997) may be viewed for free at the MapofUS.org website.
Record Loss
1865 -- Courthouse burned and many records were damaged.
1875 -- A second courthouse was burned in 1875.
For further information on researching in burned counties, see the following:
Places / Localities
Populated Places
Brooker | Hampton | Lawtey | Starke| Clayno | Graham | Hampton Beach | Heilbronn | New River | Pleasant Grove | Sampson | Saxton | Theressa
Neighboring Counties
Alachua • Baker • Clay • Putnam • Union
Resources
Cemeteries
| Tombstone Transcriptions Online | Tombstone Transcriptions in Print | List of Cemeteries in the county |
| Findagrave.com | Family History Library | Findagrave.com |
| FLGenWeb | WorldCat | Billion Graves |
| FLGenWeb Archives | interment.net | |
| Tombstone Project | ||
| Billion Graves |
Census
For tips on accessing Bradford County, Florida Genealogy census records online, see: Florida Census.
1860 Federal Census Slave Schedule
The 1885 Florida State Population Census includes sex, age, relationship, occupation, place of birth of each family member and parents; also census for agriculture, and mortality.
Population
The following information was provided by the U.S.Census Bureau.
- 1860 --- 3,820
- 1870 --- 3,671
- 1880 --- 6,112
- 1890 --- 7,516
- 1900 --- 10,295
- 1910 --- 14,090
- 1920 --- 12,503
- 1930 --- 9,405
- 1940 --- 8,717
- 1950 --- 11,457
- 1960 --- 12,446
- 1970 --- 14,625
- 1980 --- 20,023
- 1990 --- 22,515
- 2000 -- 26,088
Church
Church records and the information they provide vary significantly depending on the denomination and the record keeper. They may contain information about members of the congregation, such as age, date of baptism, christening, or birth; marriage information and maiden names; and death date. For general information about Florida denominations, view the Florida Church Records wiki page.
Court
Land
Land and property records can place an ancestor in a particular location, provide economic information, and reveal family relationships. Land records include: deeds, abstracts and indexes, mortgages, leases, grants and land patents.
See Florida Land and Property for additional information about early Florida land grants. After land was transferred to private ownership, subsequent transactions were usually recorded at the county courthouse and where records are currently housed.
Local Histories
Local histories are available for Bradford County, Florida Genealogy. County histories may include biographies, church, school and government history, and military information. For more information about local histories see the wiki page section Florida Local Histories.
Maps
- 1821-1997 Maps of Florida
Military
- Florida State Military Files USGenWeb
- Florida state pension records from various wars Pension Transcriptions USGenWeb
- Florida Casualties in the Korean Conflict distantcousin.com
- Florida Casualties in the Vietnam War distantcousin.com
Newspapers
Additional newspapers abstracts can sometimes be found using search phrases such as Bradford County, Florida Genealogy newspapers in online catalogs like:
- WorldCat (For instructions see WorldCat Online Catalog).
- Do a Bradford County, Florida Genealogy Place-name search for these and other records in the FamilySearch Catalog (For instructions see FamilySearch Catalog Place-name Search).
- 1895-1910 Bradford County Telegraph Chronicling America
- 1888-2009 Bradford County Telegraph University of Florida
Probate
Probate records are held by the Bradford County, Florida Genealogy Clerk of Court and are housed at the Bradford County, Florida Genealogy Courthouse. See the wiki page Florida Probate Records for information about how to use probate records.
Content: Probate Records may give the decedent's date of death, names of his or her spouse, children, parents, siblings, in-laws, neighbors, associates, relatives, and their place of residence.
Record types: Wills, estates, guardianships, naturalizations, and adoptions.
Online Probate Records
- 1784 – 1990 FamilySearch Florida Probate Records 1784-1990
- 1810 – 1974 Ancestry.com $ Florida Wills and Probate Records 1810-1974
- Florida State Archives $
Taxation
Taxes were levied on free white males over 21 and slaves aged 21 to 60. These persons are referred to as "polls." Tax listings, or digests, of a county generally list the taxable landowners and other polls and the amount of tax. The records for each county are divided by militia district. For more information see the wiki page Florida Taxation.
Vital Records
Vital Records consist of births, adoptions, marriages, divorces, and deaths recorded on registers, certificates, and documents. A copy or an extract of most original records can be purchased from the Florida Department of Health, Bureau of Vital Statistics, the County Clerk's office of the county where the event occurred or order electronically online. See also How to order Florida Vital Records
For some online statewide indexes, see the FamilySearch Historical Record Collections for Florida.
Birth Records
- 1880 - 1935 FamilySearch Florida, Births and Christenings, 1880-1935
Death Records
- 1877 - 1939 FamilySearch Florida, Deaths, 1877-1939
- 1900 - 1921 FamilySearch Florida, Deaths and Burials, 1900-1921
- 1877 - 1998 FamilySearch Florida, Death Index, 1877-1998
Divorce Records
- 1927 - 2001 Ancestry.com $ Florida, Divorce Index, 1927-2001
Marriage
Marriage Records
- 1837 - 1974 Florida, Marriages, 1837-1974 at FamilySearch.org — index
- 1830 - 1993 Florida, Marriages, 1830-1993 at FamilySearch.org — index/images
- 1822 - 1875 and 1927 - 2001 Florida, Marriage Index, 1822-1875 and 1927-2001 at FamilySearch.org — index/images
- 1875-1885 - Bradford County Marriage Books A thru C 1875-1885. Batch M512951 at FamilySearch - free.[4]
- 1875-1901 - Bradford County Marriage Books A thru C 1875-1901. Batch M736978 at FamilySearch - free.[4]
- 1901-1916 - Bradford County Marriage Books D thru F 1901-1916. Batch M734991 at FamilySearch - free.[4]
- 1901-1916 - Bradford County Marriage Books D thru F 1901-1916. Batch M734992 at FamilySearch - free.[4]
- 1901-1916 - Bradford County Marriage Books D thru F 1901-1916. Batch M734993 at FamilySearch - free.[4]
- 1916-1927 - Bradford County Marriage Books G and H 1916-1927. Batch M734716 at FamilySearch - free.[4]
Societies and Libraries
Family History Centers
Family history centers provide one-on-one assistance and free access to premium genealogical websites. In addition, many centers have free how-to genealogy classes. See family history center for more information. Search the online FHC directory for a nearby family history center.
Web Sites
- Bradford County, FL History, Records, Facts and Genealogy
- Florida Genealogy Network Community on Google+
- Florida Genealogy Network Group on Facebook
- The Bradford County FLGenWeb Project, a member of The FLGenWeb Project, an affiliate of The USGenWeb Project.
- FamilySearch Catalog
- Bradford County, Florida Genealogy and Family History (Linkpendium)
- Bradford County FLGenWeb Project, Inc.
References
- ↑ Alice Eichholz, Ancestry’s Red Book: American State, County and Town Sources, Revised ed. (Salt Lake City: Ancestry, 1992), 123-139. At various libraries (WorldCat); FHL Book 973 D27rb 1992
- ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Bradford County, Florida. Page 133 At various libraries (WorldCat); FHL Book 973 D27e 2002.
- ↑ The Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America,10th ed. (Draper, UT:Everton Publishers, 2002).
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 Genealogical Society of Utah, Parish and Vital Records List (July 1998). Microfiche. Digital version at https://familysearch.org/learn/wiki/en/images/5/54/Igiflorida.pdf.
