Lake County, Florida Genealogy

United States   Florida    Lake County

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

County Courthouse
Lake County Courthouse 315 W Main St; PO 7800 Tavares, FL 32778 Phone: 352.742.4100 Clerk Circuit Court has marriage, divorce, court and land records from 1887, probate records from 1893 and adoption records. County Health Department has death records.

Parent County
1887--Lake County was created 13 May 1887 from Orange County. County seat: Tavares

In 1562 a French Huguenot colony was established in the present site of Astor on the St Johns River. The entire colony was wiped out by the Spanish, in 1566. In 1763 James Spalding established a trading post at Astor.

During the Revolutionary War all of Florida belonged to the British. A few white hunters and traders lived in Lake County, along with runaway slaves and freedmen.

In 1782, Spain re-occupied Florida and began rewarding large tracts of land. Settlers built forts throughout the county to protect them from the Indians. At that time Lake County was known as Mosquito County. In 1823, at the Treaty of Moultrie Creek, the Seminoles were ordered to live on a reservation, most of which was in Lake County.

In 1862, most white males between 18 and 35 were forced into involuntary service to the Confederacy.

In 1887, Lake County became a county. It was named “Lake County” because it contains over 1400 lakes. It was carved from Orange and Sumter counties. In 1889, the courthouse was dedicated. It was known as the “Pioneer Building”.

During World War II, Lake County was the site of a Prison of War camp. It is now primarily an agricultural and retirement community.

Boundary Changes
1821-1997  MapofUS.org "Rotating Formation Florida County Boundary Maps"

Record Loss
There is no known history of courthouse disasters in this county.

Places / Localities  Cities

 * Clermont
 * Eustis
 * Fruitland Park
 * Groveland
 * Leesburg
 * Mascotte
 * Minneola
 * Mount Dora
 * Tavares
 * Umatilla

Towns 
 * Altoona Incorporated in 1887, but abolished in 1899, after a fire wiped out most of the town's buildings. *Astatula
 * Astor
 * Bassville Park
 * Bay Lakes
 * Citrus Ridge
 * Ferndale
 * Howey-in-the-Hills
 * Lake Kathryn
 * Lake Mack-Forest Hills
 * Lisbon
 * Montverde
 * Okahumpka
 * Pittman
 * Sorrento

African American

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

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

 * Florida State Military Files USGenWeb
 * Florida state pension records from various wars Pension Transcriptions USGenWeb
 * Florida Casualties in the Korean Conflict distantcousin.com
 * Florida Casualties in the Vietnam War distantcousin.com

Newspapers

 * Early Florida Newspapers at the Florida State Library USGenWeb

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 Florida, Births and Christenings, 1880-1935

Death Records

 * 1877 - 1939 Florida, Deaths, 1877-1939
 * 1900 - 1921 Florida, Deaths and Burials, 1900-1921
 * 1877 - 1998 Florida, Death Index, 1877-1998

Divorce Records

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

Marriage Records

 * 1837 - 1974 Florida, Marriages, 1837-1974
 * 1830 - 1993 Florida, Marriages, 1830-1993
 * 1822 - 1875 and 1927 - 2001 Florida, Marriage Index, 1822-1875 and 1927-2001

Societies and Libraries

 * 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
 * Lake County Library

Family History Centers

 * Clarmont Florida Family History Center
 * Leesburg Florida Family History Center

Web Sites

 * Unicoi County, FL History, Records, Facts and Genealogy
 * Florida Genealogy Network Community on Google+
 * Florida Genealogy Network Group on Facebook
 * Kinseekers
 * Lake County, Florida Genealogy and Family History (Linkpendium)
 * Lake County, FLGenWeb Project, Inc.
 * Lake County, FLGenWeb Project, Inc.