Sarasota County, Florida Genealogy

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

Description
The county was named for the daughter of famous explorer Hernando de Soto's daughter Sara. The County is located in the west-central area of the state.

County Courthouse
Sarasota County Courthouse 2000 Main St; Sarasota, FL 34237 Phone:941-362-4066 Sarasota County Website Clerk of the Circuit Court has marriage, probate, court and land records from 1921 and divorce records from 1945 County Health Department has birth and death 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:

Census Records

 * 1783 - Spanish Census USGenWeb
 * 1821 - Census/Tax List Index USGenWeb
 * 1823 - Census/Tax List Index USGenWeb
 * 1880 - Census African Born Blacks and Mulattos USGenWeb
 * 1885 includes sex, age, relationship, occupation, place of birth of each family member and parents. Also census for agriculture, manufacture and mortality. - How to Use this Collection
 * 1935 1935 Florida State Census at MyHeritage - index ($))
 * Federal Census Information from National Archives USGenWeb
 * State Census Information from Florida State Archives USGenWeb
 * Census of Pensioners Revolutionary Military Service USGenWeb

Church Records
List of Churches and Church Parishes
 * FamilySearch Places

Florida Churches~Church Angel

Emigration and 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

Ethnic, Political, and Religious Groups
African American
 * USGenWeb Florida African American Griots Project
 * Afrigeneas - African Genealogy

Land and Property Records
Florida Territorial Land Records

Maps and Gazetteers

 * 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
 * FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places

Military Records

 * Florida State Military Files USGenWeb
 * Florida state pension records from various wars Pension Transcriptions USGenWeb

Civil War
 * 1861-1865 - at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
 * 1861-1865 - at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
 * 1861-1865 - U.S., Confederate Soldiers Compiled Service Records, 1861-1865 at Ancestry (free)
 * 1861-1865 - U.S., Union Soldiers Compiled Service Records, 1861-1865 at Ancestry (free)
 * 1885-1955 - at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection

World War I
 * 1917-1920 - at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection

World War II
 * 1940-1945 - at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection

Korean War
 * Florida Casualties in the Korean Conflict distantcousin.com

Vietnam War
 * Distantcousin.com Florida Casualties in the Vietnam War

Newspapers

 * 1800s-1999 U.S., Newspapers.com Marriage Index, 1800s-1999 at Ancestry - index ($)
 * Florida Digital Newspaper Library at George A. Smathers Libraries
 * Early Florida Newspapers at the Florida State Library USGenWeb

Obituaries

 * USGenWeb Obituaries Project Obituary transcriptions from Florida counties

Probate Records
Online Indexes and Records
 * 1784-1990 (*) at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; images
 * 1827-1950 Florida, U.S., Wills and Probate Records, 1827-1950 at Ancestry ($)
 * 1921-1926 (*); County Judge's Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
 * 1921-1927 (*); County Judge at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
 * 1921-1928 (*); County Judge's Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
 * 1921-1928 (*); County Judge's Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
 * 1921-1928 (*); County Judge's Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
 * 1921-1929 (*); County Judge's Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
 * 1921-1990 (*); County Judge's Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
 * (*); County Judge's Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images

Social Security Records

 * 1935-2014 at FamilySearch - How to use this collection; index. Also at Ancestry, findmypast, Fold3, GenealogyBank, MyHeritage, and Steve Morse. Click here for more information.
 * 1936-2007 U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007 at Ancestry ($) — index, click here for more information.

Birth

 * 1880-1935 - at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection

Marriage

 * 1802-1998 - Florida, United States Marriages at FindMyPast $
 * 1822-1875 and 1927 - 2001 - at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
 * 1830-1957 - at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
 * 1830-1993 - at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
 * 1837-1974 - at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
 * 1970 - 1999 Florida, Marriages, 1970 - 1999 at MyHeritage - index ($))

Death

 * 1877-1939 - at FamilySearch- How to Use this Collection
 * 1877-1998 - at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
 * 1900-1921 - at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection

Divorce

 * 1927-2001 - Florida, Divorce Index, 1927-2001 at Ancestry - index ($)
 * 1970 - 1999 Florida, Divorces, 1970 - 1999 at MyHeritage - index ($))

Voter Records

 * 1867-1868 Web: Florida, U.S., Voter Registration Rolls, 1867-1868 at Ancestry - index ($)

Family History Centers
Sarasota Florida Family History Center 7001 Beneva Rd  Sarasota FL 34238 Phone: 941-921-5932 Email: [mailto:FL_Sarasota@familyhistorymail.org FL_Sarasota@familyhistorymail.org] Website

Libraries

 * Selby Library 1331 First Street Sarasota, FL 34236 Phone: 941-861-1100 Website
 * There are ten Libraries and Branches throughout Sarasota County. Check webpage for location and contact information.

Societies
Englewood Genealogical Society of Florida PO Box 795 Englewood, FL 34295-0795 Email: [mailto:info@egsfl.org info@egsfl.org] Website

Genealogical Society of Sarasota P.O. Box 1917 Sarasota, FL 34230-1917 Website

Historical Society of Sarasota P.O. Box 1632 Sarasota, FL 34230 941-364-9076 Email: [mailto:hsosc1@gmail.com hsosc1@gmail.com] Website Facebook

Jewish Genealogical Society of Southwest Florida Kobernick House 1951 North Honore Avenue Sarasota, FL 34241 Email: [mailto:president@jgsswf.org president@jgsswf.org] Website

Lemon Bay Historical Society PO Box 1245 Englewood, FL 34295-1245 305- 504-7220 Website

Websites

 * State of Florida
 * Sarasota County, Florida Genealogy and Family History (Linkpendium)
 * Sarasota County (FLGenWeb Project, Inc.)
 * – The FamilySearch catalog contains descriptions and access information for all genealogical materials (including books, online materials, microfilm, microfiche, and publications) in their collection.  Use Historical Records to search for specific individuals in genealogical records.