Florida Ancestors
Welcome to the Florida Ancestors Page! I’m Aisha Taylor, Coordinator of Florida records and resources. The goal of the Florida Ancestors page is to help you locate records and learn about how to conduct genealogical research in Florida. Our site will include state resources, county resources, and special African-American collections. I’ll also bring you news from the genealogy world. Finally, I hope to provide step-by-step guides and tips for you to share your family history. I’ve got big plans, including video tutorials! I hope you enjoy this site! Happy genealogical surfing!
Why Do Public History at Plantation Sites?
Plantations were the sites of unspeakable tragedies - unrelenting labor from sunup to sundown and in many cases, violence and rape. Enslaved people lived in houses where an entire family shared a small, single room with a fireplace and nothing more. In some...
Searching Online Records for Florida? Don’t Forget These Valuable Resources!
FamilySearch Florida Collections (current to Feb 2013) Title Records Last Updated Florida, Births and Christenings, 1880-1935 20,227 10 Mar 2012 Florida, Civil War Service Records of Confederate Soldiers, 1861-1865 285,975 21 Apr 2012 Florida, Civil War Service...
Technology Tuesday: WorldCat and Google Books
We're all looking for ways to save money on our genealogy resources. Today we'll look at two sites that can help you save money on books! WorldCat One way to do save money is to check out books from the library, rather than purchasing them. Worldcat is a...
County Spotlight: Duval
According to wikipedia.org: Duval County was created in 1822 from St. Johns County. It was named for William Pope DuVal, Governor of Florida Territory from 1822 - 1834. Alachua and Nassau counties were created out of parts of Duval County in 1824. Clay County...
Book review: Nicknames Past and Present, by Christine Rose
Do you have a nickname that you use instead of your given name? You may even sign documents using your nickname, rather than your given name. Well, our ancestors did the same thing. Let's say Dorothy Smith went as Dottie Smith back in 1885. She signed official...
Technology Tuesday: Publishing your family history
If you've been researching your family for a while, you probably want to share what you've found with your cousins. Well, you don't need a book publisher and publishing your family history doesn't have to be expensive. There are services on the Web...
Technology Tuesday: Google Alerts
Google Alerts This week, a quick tip on how to use Google to tell do automated searches for you. You'll need an account with Google to set up alerts. If you don't have an account already, go to Google.com and sign up by clicking "Sign in" in the top...
Searching for Land Records in Florida: Federal Land Grants
In my last post on the Florida State Census, I talked about finding your ancestors between censuses. Another way to keep up with your ancestors between censuses is to follow them through their land records. Our ancestors bought, sold and leased land to family members...
State Census Records Fill the Gaps
Although genealogy experts recommend that we start our research with records at home, those of us doing research away from our ancestral home often start with the internet. And, of course, that usually leads us to census records. The United States Census Bureau has...