In March 1861, 15 days before Confederate batteries began firing on Fort Sumter in Charleston Harbor, Richard Bradford enlisted in the Confederate army at Madison. Less than seven months later, Bradford became the first Confederate officer from Florida to die in the Civil War.

Captain Bradford was killed in October 1861 while leading his men of the 1st Florida Infantry during the Battle of Santa Rosa Island near Pensacola. Governor John Milton delivered the eulogy at his funeral in Tallahassee and, in December 1861, signed legislation changing the name of New River County to Bradford County in his honor.

Information Provided by the Florida Department of State.