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Alachua County, Florida Genealogy

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Guide to Alachua County, Florida ancestry, family history, and genealogy birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.

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Alachua County, Florida
Map
Map of Florida highlighting Alachua County
Location in the state of Florida
Map of the U.S. highlighting Florida
Location of Florida in the U.S.
Facts
Founded December 29, 1824
County Seat Gainesville
Courthouse
FloridaAlachuaCourthouse.jpg
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County Information[edit | edit source]

Alachua County, Florida Record Dates[edit | edit source]

Known Beginning Dates for Major Records[1]
Birth* Marriage Death* Court Land Probate Census
1899 1837 1899 1850 1848 1840 1830
*Statewide registration of births and deaths began in 1899. General compliance by 1920.

County Courthouse[edit | edit source]

Alachua County Florida Courthouse

 

Alachua County Courthouse;
201 E University Ave; PO Box 600;
Gainesville, FL 32601;
Phone: 352.374.3636


County Clerk has incomplete marriage records from 1837
probate records from 1840, land records from 1848 & court records[2]

History[edit | edit source]

Parent County[edit | edit source]

1824-- Alachua County was created in 1824 by an act of the Florida Legislature. It was carved from portions of Duval and St. Johns Counties. Until 1843 its southernmost border was approximately Tampa Bay. While Gainesville is the current County seat, originally a town called Newnansville, located in the northeastern part of the County, was the seat of the county government.

The Second Seminole War slowed the growth of Newnansville and the railroad line bypassed the county seat by running in a diagonal line across the county resulting in a decision to move the county seat nearer the rail lines. This decision was made at a meeting at Boulware Springs on September 6, 1853, resulting in the creation of a new town to be called Gainesville nearer the center of commerce in Alachua County.
County seat: Gainesville [3]

Description[edit | edit source]

The county was named for Chua (Timucuan word for "sinkhole"). The county seat is Gainesville and the county was organized on February 29, 1824. The County is located in the North central area of the state.[4]

Boundary Changes[edit | edit source]

In 1843 the northernmost portion of Hernando County was created from the southern most part of Alachua County.

In 1924 Gilchrist County was created from the western most portion of Alachua County

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[edit | edit source]

There is no known history of courthouse disasters in this county.

Places/Localities[edit | edit source]

Populated Places[edit | edit source]

For a complete list of populated places, including small neighborhoods and suburbs, visit HomeTown Locator. The following are the most historically and genealogically relevant populated places in this county:[5]

Cities
Unincorporated communities
  • Adam
  • Arno
  • Arredondo
  • Beckhamtown
  • Beville Heights
  • Bland
  • Buckingham West
  • Buda
  • Burnetts Lake
  • Cadillac
  • Campville
  • Clark
  • Clinch
  • Cross Creek
  • Daysville
  • Earleton
  • Evinston
  • Fairbanks
  • Forest Grove
  • Green Grove
  • Grove Park
  • Hague
  • Haile
  • Hainesworth
  • Half Moon
  • Hasan
  • Idylwild
  • Island Grove
  • Jonesville
  • Kanapaha
  • Kincaid Hills
  • Kirkwood
  • Lochloosa
  • Los Trancos Woods
  • Louise
  • Malore Gardens
  • Melton Manor
  • Micanopy Junction
  • Monteocha
  • Newnans Lake Homesites
  • Newnansville
  • Northwood
  • Orange Heights
  • Peach Orchard
  • Phifer
  • Pine Hill Estates
  • Paradise
  • Pinesville
  • Rex
  • Riceland
  • Robinswood
  • Rochelle
  • Rocky Point
  • Ruthland
  • Rutledge
  • Santa Fe
  • Santa Fe Beach
  • Shannon Wood
  • Shenks
  • South Idylwild
  • Spring Hill
  • Suburban Heights
  • Tacoma
  • Traxler
  • Wacahoota
  • Wade
  • West Hills
  • West Park
  • Windsor


Neighboring Counties[edit | edit source]

Bradford  • Columbia  • Gilchrist  • Levy  • Marion  • Putnam  • Union

Resources[edit | edit source]

African American[edit | edit source]

Biographies[edit | edit source]

Cemeteries[edit | edit source]

Cemeteries of Alachua, Florida online and in print
Tombstone Transcriptions Online
TombstoneTranscriptions in Print (Often more complete)
List of Cemeteries in the County
See Florida Cemeteries for more information

The following web sites may have additional information on Alachua County cemeteries.

Census[edit | edit source]

For tips on accessing Alachua County, Florida Genealogy census records online, see: Florida Census.

Church[edit | edit source]

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[edit | edit source]

Land[edit | edit source]

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[edit | edit source]

Local histories are available for Alachua 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[edit | edit source]

Columbia CountyUnion CountyBradford CountyClay CountyPutnam CountyMarion CountyLevy CountyGilchrist CountyFL ALACHUA.PNG
Click a neighboring county
for more resources

Military[edit | edit source]

Civil War[edit | edit source]
World War I[edit | edit source]
World War II[edit | edit source]
Korean War[edit | edit source]
Vietnam War[edit | edit source]

Newspapers[edit | edit source]

Additional newspapers abstracts can sometimes be found using search phrases such as Alachua County, Florida Genealogy newspapers in online catalogs like:

Obituaries[edit | edit source]

Probate[edit | edit source]

Probate records are held by the Clerk of Court and are housed at the Courthouse (top of page). 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

Real Estate[edit | edit source]

Taxation[edit | edit source]

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[edit | edit source]

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, or the County Clerk's office of the county where the event occurred.

For some online statewide indexes, see the FamilySearch Historical Record Collections for Florida.

Birth Records[edit | edit source]
Death Records[edit | edit source]
Divorce Records[edit | edit source]
Marriage[edit | edit source]

Societies and Libraries[edit | edit source]

Alachua County Genealogical Society
Post Office Box 12078
Gainesville, FL 32604
E-mail:mmurphy462@aol.com
Website

Archer Historical Society
PO Box 1850
Archer, FL 32618
Telephone Number: 352-495-2310 General inquiries
Telephone Number: 352-495-2289 Museum Inquiries
E-mail:archerhistorical@gmail.com
Website


Micanopy Historical Society
706 NE Cholokka Blvd.
PO Box 462
Micanopy, FL 32667
Telephone Number: 352-466-3200
E-mail:MHS@MicanopyHistoricalSociety.com
Website


Family History Centers[edit | edit source]

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.

Websites[edit | edit source]

References[edit | edit source]

  1. ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Alachua County, Florida . Page 133-137 At various libraries (WorldCat); FHL Book 973 D27e 2002; Alice Eichholz, ed. Ancestry’s Red Book: American State, County, and Town Sources, Third ed. (Provo, Utah: Ancestry, 2004), 143-145.
  2. ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Alachua County, Florida. Page 133 At various libraries (WorldCat); FHL Book 973 D27e 2002.
  3. ↑ The Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America,10th ed. (Draper, UT:Everton Publishers, 2002).
  4. ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Alachua County," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alachua_County,_Florida 04/21/2017.
  5. ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Alachua County, Florida," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alachua_County,_Florida, accessed 1 August 2016.
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Major
 Repositories
National Archives at Atlanta · Florida Health Bureau of Vital Statistics · Meek-Eaton Black Archives · State Archives of Florida · State Library of Florida · Alma C. Field Library of Florida History · Charlton W. Tebeau Library of Florida History · Florida History and Genealogy Library · Indian River County Main Library · Jacksonville Public Library Main Branch · Orlando Public Library · P.K. Yonge Library of Florida History · Polk County Historical and Genealogical Library · St. Augustine Historical Society Research Library · University of South Florida Tampa Library Special Collections · University of West Florida Archives and West Florida History Center · Volusia County Public Library Daytona Beach Regional · West Florida Public Library Genealogy Branch · West Oaks Branch Library and Genealogy Center · Dallas Public Central Library · Ellen Payne Odom Genealogy Library · Huxford-Spear Genealogical Library · Mobile Municipal Archives · Thomasville Genealogical, History and Fine Arts Library
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