Sumter County, Florida Genealogy

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

County Courthouse
Sumter County Courthouse 209 N Florida Street Bushnell, FL 33513-9402 Phone: 352.793.0200

Clerk Circuit Court has marriage and land records from 1853, probate records from 1856, divorce records from 1900, court records from 1913 and delayed birth records 1943-1972.

Parent County
1853--Sumter County was created 8 January 1853 from Marion County. County seat: Bushnell

Description
The county was named for General Thomas Sumter, a general in the American Revolutionary War. The county seat is Bushnell and the county was created 8 January 1853. The County is located in the 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
A courthouse fire in 1924 destroyed records.

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
 * Hernando
 * Lake
 * Marion
 * Pasco
 * Polk

African American

 * USGenWeb Florida African American Griots Project
 * Afrigeneas - African Genealogy

Cemeteries
The following web site may have additional information on Sumter 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

Immigration
NARA Ships Passenger Lists These passenger lists cover: 1834 - 1897 Immigration of Russians to the United States 1/12/1846 -12/31/1851 Irish Famine 1850 - 1897 Germans to the United States 1855 - 1900 Italians to the United States

Land
Florida Territorial Land Records

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

 * 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)
 * 1885-1955 - at FamilySearch — images only

World War I

 * 1917-1920 - at FamilySearch — index and images

World War II

 * 1940-1945 - at FamilySearch — index and images

Korean War

 * Florida Casualties in the Korean Conflict distantcousin.com

Vietnam War

 * Florida Casualties in the Vietnam War distantcousin.com

Newspapers

 * Early Florida Newspapers at the Florida State Library USGenWeb

Obituaries

 * U.S. Hidden Ancestors Obituaries
 * USGenWeb Obituaries Project Obituary transcriptions from Florida counties

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 $

Vital Records

 * 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 - index ($)

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
The Villages Genealogical Society 2063 Duval Court The Villages, FL 32162 352 750-4004 Fax: (352) 753-6372 Email: [mailto:info@vgsfl.org info@vgsfl.org] Website

Websites

 * Sumter County, FL History, Records, Facts and Genealogy
 * Florida Genealogy Network Community on Google+
 * Florida Genealogy Network Group on Facebook
 * Sumter County FLGenWeb
 * State of Florida
 * Sumter County FlGenWeb
 * USGenWeb Project. May have maps, name indexes, history or other information for this county. Select the state, then the county.
 * Sumter County, Florida Genealogy and Family History (Linkpendium)
 * Sumter County, FLGenWeb Project, Inc.
 * Sumter County, FLGenWeb Project, Inc.