Hernando County, Florida Genealogy

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

County Courthouse
Hernando County Courthouse 20 N Main St; Brooksville FL 34601 Phone: 352.754.4201

Name changed to Benton 6 Mar 1844. Name changed back to Hernando 24 Dec 1850. Clerk County Court has marriage records. Clerk Circuit Court has divorce, probate, court and land records from 1877.

Parent County
1843-- Hernando County was created 24 February 1843 from Alachua County. The name changed to Benton 6 March 1844 and was renamed Hernando 24 December 1850. County seat: Brooksville

Description
The county was named for Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto. The County Seat is Brooksville and the county was created February 24, 1843. The County is located in the West central area of the state.

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
1877 -- Courthouse burned and many records were damaged.

For further information on researching in burned counties, see the following:


 * Burned Counties Research
 * 24-7 Family History Circle Burned Counties, by Michael John Neill

Populated Places
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:

Neighboring Counties
Citrus • Pasco •  Sumter

African American

 * USGenWeb African American Griots Project
 * Afrigeneas - African Genealogy

Cemeteries
The following web site may have additional information on Hernando County cemeteries.


 * Interment.net Florida cemetery records

Census

 * 1783 Spanish Census USGenWeb
 * 1821 Census/Tax List Index USGenWeb
 * 1823 Census/Tax List Index USGenWeb
 * 1880 Census African Born Blacks and Mulattos USGenWeb
 * Federal Census Information from National Archives USGenWeb
 * State Census Information from Florida State Archives USGenWeb
 * Census of Pensioners Revolutionary Military Service USGenWeb

Maps



 * 1821-1997 Maps of Florida
 * 1870 Gray's Atlas Panhandle Portion of StateUSGenWeb
 * 1882 Rand McNally Panhandle Portion of StateUSGenWeb
 * Exploring Florida, FCIT Maps University of South Florida

Military

 * Hernando County Military Records (USGenWeb Archives)
 * Florida State Military Files USGenWeb
 * Florida state pension records from various wars Pension Transcriptions USGenWeb

Civil War

 * 1861 - 1865 - at FamilySearch — index
 * 1861 - 1865 - at FamilySearch — index
 * 1861 - 1865 - U.S., Confederate Soldiers Compiled Service Records, 1861-1865 at Ancestry — index (free)
 * 1861 - 1865 - U.S., Union Soldiers Compiled Service Records, 1861-1865 at Ancestry — index (free)
 * 1883 - Hernando County Pensioners on the Roll as of January 1, 1883 (Genealogy Trails)
 * 1885 - 1955 - at FamilySearch — images only

World War I

 * 1917 - 1918 - Hernando County Civilian Draft Registration (Surnames A-K) (USGenWeb Archives)
 * 1917 - 1918 - Hernando County Civilian Draft Registration (Surnames L-Z) (USGenWeb Archives)
 * 1917 - 1920 - at FamilySearch — index and images

World War II

 * Hernando County Army Enlistees, Names Aiken - Rutherford (USGenWeb Archives)
 * Hernando County Army Enlistees, Names Sadler - Zigler (USGenWeb Archives)
 * Hernando County World War II Honor List of Dead and Missing Army and Army Air Forces Personnel (Genealogy Trails)
 * 1940-1945 - at FamilySearch — index and images

Korean War

 * Hernando County Korean War Casualties (Genealogy Trails)
 * Florida Casualties in the Korean Conflict distantcousin.com

Vietnam War

 * Hernando County Vietnam War Casualties (Genealogy Trails)
 * Florida Casualties in the Vietnam War distantcousin.com

Newspapers

 * Early Florida Newspapers at the Florida State Library USGenWeb

Probate
Online Probate Records
 * 1784 – 1990 Florida Probate Records 1784-1990
 * 1810 – 1974 Ancestry.com $ Florida Wills and Probate Records 1810-1974


 * Florida State Archives $

Birth Records

 * 1880 - 1935 - at FamilySearch — index

Death Records

 * 1877 - 1939 - at FamilySearch — index
 * 1900 - 1921 - at FamilySearch — index
 * 1877 - 1998 - at FamilySearch — index

Divorce Records

 * 1927 - 2001 - Florida, Divorce Index, 1927-2001 at Ancestry.com $

Marriage Records

 * 1802 - 1998 - Florida, United States Marriages at FindMyPast — index $
 * 1837 - 1974 - at FamilySearch — index
 * 1830 - 1993 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * 1830 - 1957 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * 1822 - 1875 and 1927 - 2001 - at FamilySearch — index

Societies and Libraries
Hernando County, Genealogical Society Of PO Box 1793 Brooksville 34605-1793 Telephone Number: 352-799-0129 E-mail:[mailto:gsheinfo@gmaill.com gsheinfo@gmaill.com] Website

Silverthorn Genealogy Club 4997 Championship Cup Lane Brooksville, FL 34609


 * Random Acts of Kindness List of Florida Archives, Libraries, Publications, Historical Genealogical Societies
 * FamilySearch Find a Family History Center
 * Florida Historical Society
 * Florida State Genealogical Society
 * Hernando Heritage Museum May - Stringer House

Family History Centers

 * Brooksville Florida Family History Center

Websites

 * Hernando County, FL History, Records, Facts and Genealogy
 * Florida Genealogy Network Community on Google+
 * Florida Genealogy Network Group on Facebook
 * Hernando County FLGenWeb Project, a member of TheFLGenWeb Project, an affiliate of The USGenWeb Project.
 * Hernando County, Florida Genealogy and Family History (Linkpendium)
 * Hernando County, FLGenWeb Project, Inc.
 * Hernando County, USGenWeb Archives
 * Hernando County, Florida Genealogy Trails
 * Hernando County FL Genealogy (ldsgenealogy.com)
 * Hernando County FL Genealogy (ldsgenealogy.com)