Okaloosa County, Florida Genealogy

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

County Courthouse
Okaloosa County Courthouse 101 E James Lee Boulevard Crestview, FL 32536 Phone: 850.689.5800

County Judge has marriage and probate records. Clerk Circuit Court has divorce, court and land records from 1915.

Parent County
1915--Okaloosa County was created 3 June 1915 from Santa Rosa County and Walton County'''. The first County Seat of Okaloosa County was at Crestview ''' and it became the county seat in 1917.

Description
The county seat is Crestview and the county was created September 7, 1915. The County is located in the Northwest 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
There is no known history of courthouse disasters in this county.

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

 * Covington County, Alabama
 * Escambia County, Alabama
 * Santa Rosa
 * Walton

Cemeteries
The following web site may have additional information on Okaloosa 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

Maps

 * Maps of Florida (1821-1997)
 * 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

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

World War I

 * 1917 - 1918 - Okaloosa County Civilian Draft Registration, Surnames A-G (USGenWeb Archives)
 * 1917 - 1918 - Okaloosa County Civilian Draft Registration, Surnames H-O (USGenWeb Archives)
 * 1917 - 1918 - Okaloosa County Civilian Draft Registration, Surnames P-Z (USGenWeb Archives)
 * 1917 - 1920 - at FamilySearch — index and images

World War II

 * Okaloosa County World War II Army Enlistees, Names Adams - Fuller (USGenWeb Archives)
 * Okaloosa County World War II Army Enlistees, Names Gardner - Mc White (USGenWeb Archives)
 * Okaloosa County World War II Army Enlistees, Names Medley - Youngblood (USGenWeb Archives)
 * 1940-1945 - at FamilySearch — index and images

Korean War

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

Vietnam War

 * Okaloosa County Vietnam War Casualty List (Genealogy Trails)
 * Florida Casualties in the Vietnam War distantcousin.com

Present Hostilities

 * Okaloosa County Casualties (FLGenWeb Project)

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 $

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
Valparaiso Community Library 459 Valparaiso Parkway Valparaiso, FL 32580 (850) 729-5406 Website

Valparaiso Community Library Contains a dedicated genealogy section. "The Louise K. Fitzgarrald Genealogy Department boasts one of the finest genealogy collections in the state of Florida. Over 7,000 volumes of printed materials and 1,200 microfilm reels from Federal Census records and other references are available for use. The library also offers free access to subscription based online genealogical services."

Family History Centers

 * Fort Walton Beach Florida Family History Center

Websites

 * Okaloosa County, FL History, Records, Facts and Genealogy
 * Florida Genealogy Network Community on Google+
 * Florida Genealogy Network Group on Facebook
 * Okaloosa County, Florida, USGenWeb Archives
 * Okaloosa County, Florida Genealogy and Family History (Linkpendium)
 * Okaloosa County, FLGenWeb Project, Inc.
 * Okaloosa County, FLGenWeb Project
 * Okaloosa County, Florida Genealogy Trails
 * Okaloosa County FL Genealogy (ldsgenealogy.com)
 * Okaloosa County FL Genealogy (ldsgenealogy.com)