Welcome to Florida Memory

About Florida Memory

The State Archives of Florida is the central repository for the records of Florida state government. The Archives is mandated by law to collect, preserve, and make available for research the records of the State of Florida, as well as private manuscripts, local government records, photographs, and other materials that complement official state records.

The Archives is part of the Division of Library and Information Services (DLIS), which in addition to archival and records management services, provides a framework for statewide library initiatives and makes available the published and unpublished history of the state. DLIS is one of seven divisions within the Florida Department of State.

In an effort to make its collections accessible to the largest possible audience, the State Library and Archives of Florida applied for grant funding under the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) to digitize select collections in 1994. The Florida Memory website was born of this initial from LSTA grant funding.

Mission Statement

The mission of the Florida Memory Program is to provide free online access to select archival resources from the collections of the State Library and Archives of Florida. Florida Memory chooses materials for digitization that illuminate significant events and individuals in the state's history, and help educate Floridians and millions of other people around the world about Florida history and culture.

The primary components of Florida Memory are:

• Discover
  • Photographs: More than 200,000 digitized photographs and illustrations from the Florida Photographic Collection.
  • Historical Records: More than 300,000 records from select collections housed at the State Library and Archives of Florida.
  • Maps: Hundreds of maps of Florida dating from the 16th to the 20th century.
  • Audio: Thousands of audio recordings from the State Archives.
  • Video: Hundreds of videos of Florida from the State Archives.
• Learn
  • Floridiana Articles: Archives staff write about interesting or significant topics in Florida's history using historical records from the collections at the State Archives and the special collections at the State Library.
  • Classroom: Learning units, primary source sets and other teaching aides to help educators use primary sources in the classroom.
  • Exhibits: A closer look at key topics in Florida's history illustrated with photographs, selected records, audio recordings and videos from the collections at the State Archives and the special collections at the State Library.
  • Research Tools: Learn about records housed at the State Library and Archives of Florida related to different topics in Florida history.
• Share
  • Order: Shop online for prints or scans of digitized photographs and maps.
  • Connect With Us: Get in touch and stay up-to-date with Florida Memory by contacting us, signing up for our newsletter and following us on social media.
  • Donate Records: Learn about donating your family papers, photographs and documents to the State Archives of Florida.