Modern courts have generalized–and discounted–adoption as “wholly a creature of the State.” But the history of adoption in America, and in Florida, belies this claim. The original public meaning of “adopt” shows adoption was—and ultimately still is—created by intimate family relationships and commitments. It is a type of family formation recognized and honored by American families from this country’s inception. Families with parent-child bonds forged through shared experiences and commitments, rather than blood, existed long before governments started regulating them.

In 1868, Florida families already had a well-established tradition of adopting children. Enactment-era dictionaries did not define adoption as a legal action, but a personal one: “Adopt. To take a stranger into one’s family, as son and heir; to take one who is not a child, and treat him as one.” Noah Webster, An American Dictionary of the English Language (10th ed. 1832). In other words, early American parents adopted by creating a new family relationship through commitment, not by obtaining an adoption decree from court or a special law from the legislature. The act of adopting was recognized as a special and serious relationship that conferred important rights and obligated one to duties, regardless of legal formality.

It was not until the end of the nineteenth century that legal dictionaries begin to define adoption, and even then the formality of the legal act was still optional. Henry Campbell Black, A Dictionary of Law (1st ed. 1891). Adoption was not defined in legal dictionaries until almost the twentieth century because the state had not yet asserted regulatory control over that domain.

In 1834, the Territories of Florida passed Florida’s earliest formal adoption. The Governor and Legislative Council of the Territory of Florida passed four additional laws granting adoptions before statehood in 1845. After statehood, the Florida Legislature went on to finalize the adoptions of almost 30 more families before passing the Florida Adoption Act in 1885. Florida lawmakers prioritized adoptions throughout Florida’s territorial period, statehood, secession, civil war, the Reconstruction Era, and beyond. Adoptions were prioritized, despite periods of great upheaval, in response to constituents’ needs and local family traditions. Florida was not alone in this practice. Other states, such as Vermont, passed special laws for individual adoptions for decades before enacting their first general adoption laws.

All of the 37 states that were part of the Union in 1868 passed their first general adoption acts in the 1800s. As discussed below, these laws did not “create” an institution; they legitimized the informal transfers of custody and parental rights over children which were already taking place in America. The laws are a mere indicator of existing American family traditions.

In contrast, England did not pass its first adoption law until 1926. It is not surprising that the United States, a fledgling democracy filled with newcomers, so quickly embraced adoptive families.

“Observers have frequently attributed the acceptance of adoption in the United States to its compatibility with cherished national traditions, from immigration to democracy. According to this way of thinking, solidarities achieved on purpose are more powerful—and more quintessentially American—than solidarities ascribed to blood. Yet adoption has always had a symbolic importance that outstripped its statistical significance. Adoption has touched only a small minority of children and adults while telling stories about identity and belonging that include us all.” The Adoption History Project.

Adoption has certainly become more regulated over the past couple centuries. The inner workings of family life, however, are fundamentally unchanged. Every day in Florida, families caring for foster children wake up early to share morning hugs and get ready for school. They make breakfast together and pack their lunches for the day. The families share smiles, giggles, and silly songs as they brush their teeth and ready themselves for work and school. The families then embark on their day, discussing their plans, encouraging each other with positive affirmations and prayer. They go their separate ways for a time, but they come together again after a long day of work and school to cook together, wind down, and swap stories about their day. Sometimes they play together at the park or gather with friends, but as the day draws to a close the family shares the same routine: bedtime stories, books, and hugs—all done while resting in the knowledge that they get to wake up tomorrow, together, ready to face the day again as a family.

Foster families in Florida face many challenges as they incorporate foster children into their families and love them. Sometimes these challenges are unpredictable or unfair, but the attorneys at Jay & Campbell work hard to ensure foster adoptive families are heard by the courts.