This came from the New England Historic Genealogical Society newsletter. Every issue they are spotlighting a state archive. To get the free newsletter: http://www.newenglandancestors.org/education/articles/NEXUS_eNews/emnehgs_en ews_em_659_6.asp. (long URL) Or go to http://www.newenglandancestors.org/ and click on NEHGS enews on the right side of the screen. Bette Spotlight on State Archives: The Florida Memory Project of the Florida State Archives http://www.floridamemory.com The Florida State Archives is mandated by law to "collect, preserve and make available for research the historically significant records of the state, as well as private manuscripts, local government records, photographs, and other materials that complement the official state records." To that end, the archives applied for grant funding under the Library Services and Construction Act to digitize a large part of the collection and to place it online. The result of this grant-funded project is the Florida Memory Project website. On the Florida Memory Project website, you will find over 450,000 scanned photographs and documents that illustrate significant moments in Florida's history. For each collection in the Memory Project, you are provided with a collection description, FAQs, and background or historical information. The Project also includes an online exhibit of significant State Archives documents highlighting important events in Florida's history and an interactive timeline of people and events. The collections described below are searchable from each individual home page. You should note that the online collections may be accessed via both the Florida State Archives and the Florida Memory Project home pages. The online collections include: World War I Service Cards: This is a database of soldiers who were either from Florida or who entered the military service in Florida. These cards provide name, age, serial number, race, place of birth, and residence. Search this database by name, branch of service, service/serial number, rank, race, and residence. Digital copies of the World War I service cards may be downloaded from the site free of charge. Florida Confederate Pension Application Files: This collection contains scanned images of approximately 14,000 Confederate pension application claims (approved and denied) filed from 1885 to 1954. The information in the files generally includes name; date and place of birth; unit dates; places of enlistment and discharge date; brief description of service; wounds received; sworn statements on proof of service by comrades; War Department service abstracts; and place and length of Florida residency. The widow's applications are filed under the name of the veteran. Pension files may be searched by surname (soldier's or widow's maiden name) or applications number. The files are available online in PDF format. Florida Folklife Collection: This searchable database of over 100,000 photographs includes a wide range of images from mid-fifteenth-century maps to current photographs. You can perform a general search of all of the collections or limit your search to a specific collection by first choosing it from the Collection Index. Browse the subject headings to get a sense of the extent of the photographic holdings. The Call and Brevard Family Papers: Richard Keith Call was a territorial governor of Florida, and his daughter, Mary, married Theodore Washington Brevard. This collection includes transcriptions and scanned images of personal and business correspondence; financial records; land records; commissions; speeches; manuscript poems, articles, books, and other writings; newspaper clippings; and scrapbooks documenting the personal and public lives of members of the Call (1788-1916) and Brevard (1820-ca. 1920s) families. This collection documents Florida's history from territory to early statehood, and the Civil War, and includes first person accounts on the issues and attitudes concerning slavery and race, and the effects of the Civil War on the lives of planters of the Old South. There are many useful resources for the family history researcher on the Florida State Archives' Florida Memory Project website. Visit http://www.floridamemory.com. ____________________________________________ Check out the Bunker Family Association. http://www.bunkerfamilyassn.org. If your name is Bunker and you are a male, consider joining our surname DNA project.