On December 6, 1861, Governor John Milton signed a law changing the name of New River County to Bradford County. The Legislature had passed the law in honor of Captain Richard G. Bradford of Madison, who was killed October 9, 1861, in the Battle of Santa Rosa Island. This battle was fought in an attempt to capture Fort Pickens, which protected Pensacola Harbor. Bradford was the first Confederate officer from Florida to die in the War Between the States.