Confederate Pension Files

The following index is arranged in alphabetical order and includes the application file number, the veteran's name, his unit of service, state of service if other than Florida, widow's first and maiden name, and the earliest year of application. All of these files were filed from Holmes County FL.

 A     B     C     D     E     F     G     H    I (none)   J     K     L     M     N    O (none)   P     Q     R     S     T     U     V     W     XYZ 

The first Confederate pension in Florida were authorized in 1885 and granted to veterans the sum of $5.00 per month. The next three decades saw a new Confederate pension bill introduced at nearly every session of the Legislature. Residence requirements were added and adjusted, militia members and widows were declared eligible various financial qualifications were added and changed, and the amount and method of distribution were changed many times.

A Board of Commissioners consisting of three members was appointed under the first pension law and it remained essentially the same, despite changes in name and the inability of the legislature to settle on the identify of the third member. The Governor and Comptroller were members of the board from the beginning, although the third seat was passed at various times from the Adjutant General to the Secretary of State to the Attorney General to the Treasurer, back to the Attorney General, and again back to the Treasurer before finally stabilizing in 1915 at the Governor, Comptroller, and Treasurer. The clerical and day-to-day operations of administering the pension laws were carried out under the supervision of the Comptroller.

The pension application files include both veterans' and widows' applications interfiled, although approved and denied claims are filed separately. The veteran's application generally includes his full name, date and place of birth, unit of service, date and place of enlistment, date and place of discharge, brief description of service and/or wounds, proof of service, place and length of residence in Florida, as well as other miscellaneous documentation.

The widow's application is field with that of her husband includes here full name, date and place of marriage, date and place of her husband's death, her place and length of residence in Florida, and proof of her husband's service. Some early application also include the widow's date and place of birth.

Confederation pensions were awarded to residents of Florida regardless of the state in which their service was rendered.

Copies of these files are available from the Florida State Achieves for a flat fee of $7.50 per file (veteran and widow are filed together.) and be sure to include the application file number. Checks should be payable to the Department of State, and mailed to:

The Florida State Archives
R A Gray Building
Tallahassee FL 32399-0250

You may call 850-487-2073 to verify and obtain further information.

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