Florida in the Civil War

Introduction
Florida seceded from the Union on 10 January 1861 and joined the Confederate States of America 8 February 1861. Soldiers from Florida served in both the Union and the Confederate armies. Florida raised 44 regiments and other units that served in the Confederate army. Florida also raised 4 regiments and other units that served in the Union army. She was readmitted to representation in Congress on 25 June 1868. The U.S. War Department credited Florida with 1,290 white Union soldiers.

For more information, see:


 * The Wikipedia article, Florida in the American Civil War.
 * State Library and Archives of Florida, Florida Memory article, "The Smallest Tadpole", Florida in the Civil War.

Florida Military Units
Most units were numbered, however, some were named. See the table below for lists of the regiments, battalions, batteries, and unassigned companies.

The information in the lists of Florida Military Units comes from the Civil War Soldiers and Sailors web site. This web site also can be searched by the name of a soldier. Florida Military Units by Number or by Name 'Confed. Units 1st-11th A to Z A to Z 1st-2nd Union Units Florida Units by Type of Unit  Confed. Units Infantry Cavalry Artillery Militia Other  Union Units' Cavalry <div style="text-align: center; padding-bottom: 5px; background-color: rgb(204,255,255); margin: 4px; padding-left: 5px; width: 60px; padding-right: 5px; float: left; height: 40px; padding-top: 5px">Unassign- ed Units

Service Records
Compiled Service Records


 * (Free) (FamilySearch) is a searchable card index. The index is courtesy of Fold3. This collection is a part of RG 109,War Department Collection of Confederate Records and is National Archive Microfilm Publication M251. Description.


 * The Compiled Service Records ($) (Fold3.com) for Union and Confederate soldiers who served in organizations from the state of Florida are now available online. In the future, these records will be made available at no charge through the National Archives web site. The compiled service records consist of an envelope containing card abstracts taken from muster rolls, returns, pay vouchers, and other records. Service records may provide rank, unit, date of enlistment, length of service, age, place of birth, and date of death. The service records are also available at no charge at National Archives research rooms. For more information see Confederate Service Records.

State militia records for the Confederate period are at the state arsenal in St. Augustine. For information, write to:

Adjutant General Department of Military Affairs Attn.: M.I.L.P. P.O. Box 1008 St. Augustine, FL 32085-1008 Telephone: 904-823-0315 Fax: 904-823-0309

Pension Records
Pension applications for widows and Confederate veterans began in 1885 and continued through 1955. The applications are indexed on Family History Library microfilm. The applications are on 169 rolls of microfilm at the Family History Library and are arranged by file number (beginning with Family History Library microfilm ). These same records can be viewed online at the State Archives of Florida. They are for both the veteran's and the widow's applications.


 * 1885-1955 - at FamilySearch — index and images

Service Records

 * FamilySearch. . This collection is a part of RG 94, Records of the Adjutant General's Office, 1780's-1917 and is National Archive Microfilm Publication M400. Index courtesy of Fold3. Description.

The Family History Library and the National Archives have the following records:


 * Compiled service records: Family History Library microfilms
 * Index to service records: Family History Library microfilm
 * Index to pension records: Family History Library microfilms
 * (Pension records are only at the National Archives)

Compiled Service Records - The Compiled Service Records ($) (Fold3.com) for Union and Confederate soldiers who served in organizations from the state of Florida are now available online. In the future, these records will be made available at no charge through the National Archives web site. The compiled service records consist of an envelope containing card abstracts taken from muster rolls, returns, pay vouchers, and other records. Service records may provide rank, unit, date of enlistment, length of service, age, place of birth, and date of death. The service records are also available at no charge at National Archives research rooms. For more information see Union Service Records.

Pension Records
Civil War Pension Index Cards - An of veterans who served in the US Army between 1861-1917 is available on FamilySearch. Each card gives the soldier’s name, application and certificate numbers, state of enlistment, and might include rank and death information. The majority of the records are of Civil War veterans, but the collection also includes records for veterans of the Spanish-American War, the Philippine Insurrection, the Indian Wars, and World War I. For more information see Union Pension Records.

Contraband Camps
The web site Last Road to Freedom has information on America's Civil War Contraband Camps.

Southern Claims Commission
Southern Claims Commission. If a Union sympathizer in Florida claimed a loss during the Civil War due to Union military confiscation, he could apply to the Southern Claims Commission for reimbursement. Only a few applied per county, but their neighbors were called as witnesses and asked dozens of questions. Hundreds of all kinds of residents in a county may be mentioned in answers to Commission questions, and their wartime activities described. To learn how to find records mentioning these neighbors in Florida counties during the Civil War see the Southern Claims Commission.

Websites

 * Florida. Department of State. Florida in the Civil War has good information about the history of Florida in the Civil War on various topics with pictures. (accessed 7 June 2012)

Grand Army of the Republic (GAR)
Grand Army of the Republic founded in 1866 - 1956, was the largest veteran’s organization in the country after the Civil War. It was a fraternal organization members were veterans of the Union Army, US Navy, Marines and Revenue Cutler Service who served in the American Civil War. The group supported voting rights for black veterans, and lobbied the U.S. Congress to establish veterans' pensions. In 1890 the membership was 490,000.

In 1888 there were 10 posts and 279 members in the state of Florida

GAR Posts in the State of Florida

The FamilySearch Catalog list records of the Florida Grand Army of the Republic

Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War
With the death of the last member of the Grand Army of the Republic the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War was formed.