Palm Beach County, Florida Genealogy

United States

Florida

Palm Beach County

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

Florida Online Genealogy Records

County Facts County seat: West Palm Beach Organized: April 30, 1909 Parent County(s): Dade Neighboring Counties Broward • Glades • Hendry • Martin • Okeechobee See County Maps Courthouse Location Map

County Information

Description

The county was named for Palm Beach, Florida. The county is located in the Southeast area of the state.

County Courthouse

Palm Beach County Courthouse
301 N Olive Ave;
West Palm Beach, FL 33401-4705
Phone: 561-355-2754
Palm Beach County Website

County Judge has marriage and probate records.
Clerk Circuit Court has divorce, court and land records.

Palm Beach County, Florida Record Dates

Information for this chart was taken from various sources, often containing conflicting dates. This information should be taken as a guide and should be verified by contacting the county and/or the state government agency.

Known Beginning Dates for Government County Records
Birth*	Marriage	Death*	Court	Land	Probate	Census
1899	1909	1899	1909	1909	1909	1830
*Statewide registration of births and deaths began in 1899. General compliance by 1920.

Record Loss

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

Boundary Changes

1909--Palm Beach County was created 30 April 1909 from Dade County. County seat: West Palm Beach Florida Individual County Chronologies - Newberry Library list of all boundary changes by county Florida Historical Borders - Map at Newberry Library Atlas of Historical County Boundaries; Also at: mapofus.org - animated maps illustrating Florida county boundary changes

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:

Cities
Atlantis Belle Glade Boca Raton Boynton Beach Delray Beach	Greenacres Lake Worth Pahokee Palm Beach Gardens Riviera Beach	South Bay Westlake West Palm Beach
Towns
Briny Breezes Cloud Lake Glen Ridge Gulf Stream Haverhill Highland Beach Hypoluxo	Juno Beach Jupiter Jupiter Inlet Colony Lake Clarke Shores Lake Park Lantana Loxahatchee Groves	Manalapan Mangonia Park Ocean Ridge Palm Beach Palm Beach Shores South Palm Beach
Villages
Golf North Palm Beach	Palm Springs Royal Palm Beach	Tequesta Wellington
Unincorporated communities
Belle Glade Camp Boca Del Mar Boca Pointe Cypress Lakes Dunes Road Fremd Village-Padgett Island	Golden Lakes Hamptons High Point Kings Point Lake Worth Corridor Lakeside Green	Mission Bay Sandalfoot Cove Villages of Oriole Whisper Walk
Census-designated places
Acacia Villas Cabana Colony Canal Point Century Village Gun Club Estates Juno Ridge Jupiter Farms	Kenwood Estates Lake Belvedere Estates Lake Harbor Limestone Creek Pine Air Plantation Mobile Home Park Royal Palm Estates	San Castle Schall Circle Seminole Manor Stacy Street The Acreage Watergate Westgate

Resources

Cemeteries

Cemeteries of Palm Beach, Florida online and in print
Tombstone Transcriptions Online	BillionGraves Find a Grave Florida Gravestones Interment.net RecordAGrave Index USGW Tombstone Transcription Project
Tombstone Transcriptions in Print (Often more complete)	WorldCat.org
List of Cemeteries in the County	BillionGraves FamilySearch Places Find a Grave
See Florida Cemeteries for more information

Census Records

Historical populations
Census	Pop.	%±
1910	5,577	—
1920	18,654	234.5%
1930	51,781	177.6%
1940	79,989	54.5%
1950	114,688	43.4%
1960	228,106	98.9%
1970	348,753	52.9%
1980	576,863	65.4%
1990	863,518	49.7%
2000	1,131,184	31.0%
2010	1,320,134	16.7%
Source: "Wikipedia.org".

For tips on accessing census records online, see: Florida 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
• 1885 Florida State Population Census 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
• Palm Beach FLGenWeb

Church Records

Church records and the information they provide vary significantly depending on the denomination and the record keeper. They may contain information about members of the congregation, such as age, date of baptism, christening, or birth; marriage information and maiden names; and death date. For general information about Florida denominations, view the Florida Church Records wiki page.
List of Churches and Church Parishes

• FamilySearch Places

Ward and Branch Records of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

• Palm Beach W.

Directories

• 1923 1923 Directory of Palm Beach County Businesses, Manufactures, Merchants and Tradesman at FLGenWeb
• 1954 Jupiter 1954 Phone Book at FLGenWeb
• 1956 American-Finnish Directory of Palm Beach County, Florida and Vicinity, 1956 at FLGenWeb
• 1970-2024 United States, Residence Database, 1970-2024 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index, coverage may vary
• 1978 Directory, Lake Worth, Finish Speaking Population, 1978 at FLGenWeb

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

Funeral Homes

Boca Raton

Gardens of Boca Raton Cemetery and Funeral Home Gary Panoch Funeral Home and Cremations Glick Family Funeral Home Gutterman’s Funeral Home Cremation Services By The Sea Babione Funeral Home

Boynton Beach

Beth Israel Chapel Boynton Memorial Chapel Scobee-Combs-Bowden Funeral Home and Crematory Eternal Light Memorial Gardens

Delray Beach

Riverside-Stanetsky Memorial Chapels

Jupiter

Taylor and Modeen Funeral Home

Lake Worth

Premier Funeral Services and Cremations All County Funeral Home and Crematory

Lantana

Brown's Funeral Home Palm Beach Memorial Park Funeral Home and Cemetery

North Palm Beach

National Cremation Society Howard-Quattlebaum Funeral and Cremation

Palm Beach Gardens

IJ Morris at Star of David Cemetery of the Palm Beaches

Riviera Beach

Timothy E. Kitchens Funeral Home Inc.

Royal Palm Beach

Palms West Funeral Home and Crematory Lakeside Funeral Home and Cremation Care

West Palm Beach

Tillman Funeral Home and Crematory Shuler’s Memorial Chapel Stevens Brothers Funeral Home Royal Palm Funeral Home and Memorial Gardens Northwood Funeral Home and Crematory McWhite’s Funeral Home Edgley Cremation Services Bell and Clark Funeral Home

Land and Property Records

Land and property records can place an ancestor in a particular location, provide economic information, and reveal family relationships. Land records include: deeds, abstracts and indexes, mortgages, leases, grants and land patents.

See Florida Land and Property for additional information about early Florida land grants. After land was transferred to private ownership, subsequent transactions were usually recorded at the county courthouse and where records are currently housed.

Online Land Indexes and Records

• Land Grants of Palm Beach Co FLGenWeb
• Full-Text Search - Land Records at FamilySearch - index & images; dates, records, and places vary; How to Search

Local Histories

Local histories are available for most counties. County histories may include biographies, church, school and government history, and military information. For more information about local histories see the wiki page section Florida Local Histories.

• Vivian Reissland Rouson-Gossett, C. Spencer Pompeym and Melvin Haynes: Like a mighty Banyan: contribution of Black people to the history of Palm Beach County. (Palm Beach County, FLA.: Palm Beach Junior College) [1982]. WorldCat (Other Libraries)
  

• Hurricanes, The Case of the Disappearing Ancestor; Palm Beach Co, FLGenWeb
  
• History of Palm Beach FLGenWeb

Maps and Gazetteers

Click a neighboring county
for more resources

• 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

• Palm Beach County Military Records (USGenWeb Archives)
• Palm Beach County Military Records (FLGenWeb Project)
• Florida State Military Files USGenWeb
• Florida state pension records from various wars Pension Transcriptions USGenWeb
• 1812-1813 1812-1813 Residents of East Florida Patriots or Loyalists at Genealogy Trails - index

Civil War

• 1861-1865 Florida Civil War Service Records of Confederate Soldiers, 1861-1865 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
• 1861-1865 Florida Civil War Service Records of Union Soldiers, 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 Florida Confederate Veterans and Widows Pension Applications, 1885-1955 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection

World War I

• 1917-1918 Palm Beach County Civilian Draft Registration (USGenWeb Archives)
• 1917-1920 Florida, World War I Navy Card Roster, 1917-1920 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
• Palm Beach County Army and Air Force Casualties - World War I - Scroll down to World War I. (FLGenWeb Project)

World War II

• 1940-1945 Florida, World War II Draft Registration Cards,1940-1945 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
• Index to Palm Beach County World War II Army Enlistees - Scroll down to WWII. (USGenWeb Archives)
• Palm Beach County Army and Air Force Casualties - World War II - Scroll down to World War II. (FLGenWeb Project)

Korean War

• Palm Beach County Korean War Casualties (Genealogy Trails)
• Florida Casualties in the Korean Conflict distantcousin.com

Vietnam War

• Palm Beach County Vietnam War Casualties (Genealogy Trails)
• Distantcousin.com Florida Casualties in the Vietnam War

Naturalization and Citizenship

• 1823-1974 Palm Beach County, Florida, U.S., Naturalization Records, 1823-1974 at Ancestry - index & images ($)
• 1862-1960 Florida, United States Naturalization Records, 1862-1960 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection, Inventory; index & images, coverage may vary

Newspapers

• 1800s-Current Florida, U.S., Newspapers.com™ Stories and Events Index, 1800's-Current at Ancestry — index & images ($)
• 1800s-1999 U.S., Newspapers.com Marriage Index, 1800s-1999 at Ancestry - index ($)
• Florida Digital Newspaper Library at George A. Smathers Libraries
• Current Newspapers of Palm Beach Co FLGenWeb

• Courtesy of The Boca Raton Historical Society Archives:
  • 1948-1993 Boca Raton Historical Society Archived Newspapers
  • Early Florida Newspapers at the Florida State Library USGenWeb

Obituaries

• 1980-2010 Area Deaths (Genealogical Society of Palm Beach County)
• Obituary Index of Palm Beach Co FLGenWeb
• USGenWeb Obituaries Project Obituary transcriptions from Florida counties

Probate Records

Online Probate Indexes and Records

• 1784-1990 Florida Probate Records, 1784-1990(*) at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; images
• 1827-1950 Florida, U.S., Wills and Probate Records, 1827-1950 at Ancestry ($)
• 1909-1962 General Index to Estates, vol. 2, 1909-1962(*); County Judge at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
• 1955 Miscellaneous Records, 1955(*); at FamilySearch Catalog — images
• Full-Text Search - Wills and Probate Records at FamilySearch - index & images; dates, records, and places vary; How to Search

Social Security Records

• 1935-2014 United States Social Security Death Index 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.
• 1936-2007 United States, Social Security Numerical Identification Files (NUMIDENT), 1936-2007 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index

Tax Records

Taxes were levied on free white males over 21 and slaves aged 21 to 60. These persons are referred to as "polls." Tax listings, or digests, of a county generally list the taxable landowners and other polls and the amount of tax. The records for each county are divided by militia district. For more information see the wiki page Florida Taxation.

Vital Records

Vital Records consist of births, adoptions, marriages, divorces, and deaths recorded on registers, certificates, and documents. A copy or an extract of most original records can be purchased from the Florida Department of Health, Bureau of Vital Statistics, Florida State Archives, or the County Clerk's office of the county where the event occurred.

• Vital Records of the Palm Beach Co, FLGenWeb

Birth

• 1880-1935 Florida, Births and Christenings, 1880-1935 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection

Marriage

• 1802-1998 Florida, United States Marriages at Findmypast $
• 1822-1875 and 1927 - 2001 Florida, Marriage Index, 1822-1875 and 1927-2001 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
• 1823-Onward Florida Marriages at MyHeritage — index & images ($)
• 1830-1957 Florida, County Marriages, 1830-1957 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
• 1830-1993 Florida, Marriages, 1830-1993 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
• 1837-1974 Florida, Marriages, 1837-1974 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
• 1970 - 1999 Florida, Marriages, 1970 - 1999 at MyHeritage - index ($))

Death

• 1877-1939 Florida, Deaths, 1877-1939 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
• 1877-1998 Florida, Death Index, 1877-1998 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
• 1900-1921 Florida, Deaths and Burials, 1900-1921 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection

Divorce

• 1927-1950 Florida Divorce, 1927-1950 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images

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

Voting Records

• 1867-1868 Web: Florida, U.S., Voter Registration Rolls, 1867-1868 at Ancestry - index ($)
• 1880-Onward Florida, Voter Registrations at MyHeritage — index & images ($)

Research Facilities

Archives

Listed below are archives in Palm Beach County. For state-wide archival repositories, see Florida Archives and Libraries.

FamilySearch Centers

FamilySearch Center and Affiliate Library Locator map - search for local FamilySearch Centers or Affiliate Libraries

• FamilySearch Centers provide one-on-one assistance, free access to center-only databases, and to premium genealogical websites.
• FamilySearch Affiliate Libraries have access to most center-only databases, but may not always have full services normally provided by a FamilySearch center.
  

Local Centers and Affiliate Libraries

• Belle Glade Florida FamilySearch Center
• Boca Raton Florida FamilySearch Center
• Jupiter Florida FamilySearch Center
• Palm Beach Florida FamilySearch Center
• Wellington Florida FamilySearch Center

Libraries

Listed below are libraries in Palm Beach County. For state-wide library facilities, see Florida Archives and Libraries.

Palm Beach County Library
3650 Summit Boulevard
West Palm Beach, FL 33406
Phone: 561-233-2600
Email webmaster@pbclibrary.org
Website
Facebook

Societies

Listed below are societies in Palm Beach County. For state-wide genealogical societies, see Florida Societies.

Genealogical Society of Palm Beach County
3650 Summit Boulevard
PO Box 17617
West Palm Beach, Florida 33416
Phone: 561-616-3455
Email: ancestry@gensocofpbc.org
Website
Facebook

Historical Society of Palm Beach County
300 N Dixie Highway
PO Box 4364
West Palm Beach, Florida 33402
Phone: 561-832-4164
Email: info@pbchistory.org
Website
Facebook

Jewish Genealogical Society of Palm Beach County
PO Box 7796
Delray Beach, Florida 33482-7796
Phone: 561-450-9577
Website
Facebook

Websites

The usage of "Mormon" and "LDS" on this page is approved according to current policy.

• Palm Beach County, Florida Genealogy and Family History (Linkpendium)
• Palm Beach County (FLGenWeb Project)
• Palm Beach County, Florida (USGenWeb Archives)
• Palm Beach County, Florida (Genealogy Trails)
• Palm Beach County, FL Genealogy (ldsgenealogy.com)
• FamilySearch Catalog – 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.