Florida Militia Muster Rolls, 1826-1900

Series Number:

S 1146

Creator:

Florida. Office of the Adjutant General

Title:

Muster rolls and supporting documents, 1870-1918.

Amount:

10 cubic feet; 6 microfilm reels

Arrangement:

Subdivided into (1) State Militia muster rolls, arranged alphabetically by county, and then by town and/or unit or name of unit commander; and (2) Florida State Troops and Florida National Guard muster rolls and related materials, arranged alphabetically by company name within military units.

Summary:

This series contains muster rolls and supporting documents of the Florida State Militia, the Florida State Troops, and the Florida National Guard. These records provide a fairly complete picture of the organization of the Florida military from the 1870s to 1918. In this 50-year period, Floridians served in two wars and a federal "expedition" into Mexico, and were called into active state duty for countless natural disasters and civil disturbances. The muster rolls in this series are the only known surviving listings of the Floridians who served in the State Militia, the State Troops, and the National Guard during this era. Of particular interest are a number of rolls for organizations which were manned and officered by African Americans.

Subject Access Fields:

Florida. National Guard.
Florida. State Militia.
Florida. State Troops.
African American soldiers.
African Americans History 1863-1877. Florida
Military records. aat
Muster rolls. aat

Note:

Only documents dating from 1900 and earlier have been digitized.

Series Number:

S 1207

Creator:

Florida. Naval Militia.

Title:

Administrative files, 1897-1941

Amount:

4.00 cubic feet

Arrangement:

By record type, then alphabetical.

Biographical/Historical:

The Florida Naval Militia existed during three separate periods; 1897-1903, 1911-1917, and 1934-1941. It was formed to assist in the protection and defense of Florida's extensive coastline. The first Naval Militia, organized in 1897, consisted of one battalion of four divisions, located at Jacksonville, Pensacola, Port Tampa, and Tampa. Upon the outbreak in 1898 of the Spanish-American War, the militiamen were placed under Federal control, with many serving in the Navy or Coast Guard. Following the war only the Jacksonville Division was reorganized, existing until its disbandment in 1903.

During the second period of its existence (1911-1917), the Naval Militia operated divisions at Key West, Jacksonville, and Sarasota. When the United States entered the World War the Naval Militia, as it had during the Spanish-American War, came under direct control of the Federal military. Following the war the organization was not reconstituted. From 1934 to 1941 Florida again attempted to maintain a state naval force. The interest and support of Governor David Sholtz, himself an officer in the Naval Reserve, was largely responsible for this third incarnation of the Florida Naval Militia. In 1941, with the threat of United States involvement in the Second World War increasing, the personnel of the Florida Naval Militia were inducted into Federal service. When the war was over in 1945 no attempt was made to reorganize the Naval Militia.

Summary:

The series contains some information on each of the three periods of the Florida Naval Militia's existence. Included are reports, muster and pay rolls, enlistment and discharge records, correspondence, budget information, and variety of other records. The majority of the material covers the period of the third Naval Militia, 1934-1941. Also included are some correspondence and records of commission in the Florida Volunteer Naval Force. These were complimentary commissions issued by Governor Sholtz to honor those Floridians holding commissions as U.S. Naval officers.

Subject Access Fields:

United States. Navy.
Military administration.
Spanish-American War, 1898 Florida
World War, 1914-1918 Florida
World War, 1939-1945 Florida
Military records. aat
Muster rolls. aat

Note:

Only documents dating from 1900 and earlier have been digitized.

Series Number:

S 1277

Creator:

Florida. Office of the Adjutant General.

Title:

Original Florida territorial muster rolls, 1826-1849

Amount:

17 items; 1 microfilm reel

Arrangement:

Alphabetical by company name, then chronological.

Biographical/Historical:

The first state militia companies were organized under the Florida Militia Law of 1822, adopted shortly after the American acquisition of Florida. There were actually two separate types of militia during this period. One was the enrolled militia, consisting of all able-bodied, free white males between the ages of 18 and 45. Theoretically, these men were assigned to units and required to drill at least four times a year. The enrolled militia was unwieldy, with a complicated administrative hierarchy, and few units progressed beyond the planning stage.

The independent volunteer companies were a more successful type of militia. Organized and commanded locally, these units were generally better trained and prepared for emergency use. In practice, they proved more valuable than the unorganized, "enrolled" militia.

Summary:

The series contains original Florida territorial muster rolls for the Florida State Militia units from 1826 to 1849. The surviving territorial rolls include several from the 1820s organizational period, while the majority date from the Second Seminole War (1835-1842). One post-Territorial muster roll is contained in this series; it dates from 1849. In most instances the rolls contain the name and rank of the soldier, when and where they were enrolled, and remarks. An abstract of the annual strength return for 1845 has also been included in this series. Some of the records are barely legible.

Subject Access Fields:

Florida. State Militia.
Seminole War, 2nd, 1835-1842.
Seminole Indians Wars
Military records. aat
Territorial records. aat
Muster rolls. aat