Texas Public Records
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To Search Public and Vital Records -
Vital records are records of life events important enough that
some level of government acquires, organizes, and preserves
them. While the term "vital records" is often applied
to a wide variety of life events... Read
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Texas Vital Records
Texas began statewide vital records registration in 1903, though some
fragmented recordings are available for earlier time periods. Master
indexes are available for those recorded after 1903. For births and
deaths after 1903, and marriages after 1966, write:
Department of Health, Bureau of Vital Statistics
1100 W. 49th Street
P.O. Box 12040
Austin, TX 78711-2040
Tel: 512-458-7111
512-458-4751
E-mail: register@stats.tdh.state.tx.us
http://www.tdh.state.tx.us/bvs/t_bvs.htm
For prior records, write to the clerk of the county
in question.
Texas Land Records
Texas land records were created under various governmental jurisdictions
in the course of including Spain, Mexico, and both the Republic
and State of Texas. The Texas General Land Office continues to maintain
its own archives and records division, housing all early land grants
including those dated in the 1700s and original grants issued by
both republic and state governments. Indexes to the original land
records are maintained by the General Land Office, Stephen F. Austin
State Office Building, Room 800, 1700 North Congress Avenue, Austin,
TX 78701-1495. Correspondence requests for index entries for an
individual name with arrival date and county is a service provided
for a minimum fee. Among the various types of original grants were
headrights, preemptions (squatter), bounty lands and empressario/colonization
grants. Once land was initially granted, all succeeding land transactions
fall under the jurisdiction of the county in which the land is located
at the time each record is created. For further reference, see:
Taylor, Virginia H. Spanish Archives of the General
Land Office of Texas. Austin: Lone Star Press, 1974.
Sadler, Jerry. History of Texas Land. Austin: GLO,
1964.
Miller, Thomas Lloyd. The Public Lands of Texas 1519-1970. Norman:
Oklahoma University Press, 1971.
Abstract of Land Claims, Compiled From the Records
of the General Land Office. Galveston: Civilian Book Office, 1852.
Arranged alphabetically in districts, lists grants from Spain, Mexico,
the Republic of Texas, and the state.
Texas Court Records
Court records can be a complex source for any state. Their records
entail probate records (which include wills), guardianship, naturalization,
and a wide variety of other sources, ranging from criminal trials
to simple road orders. All contain information about individuals
within the area. It should be remembered that there are different
levels of jurisdiction for courts in the United States, all of which
should be considered for research under various circumstances. Court
of Common Pleas, Orphan's Court, Probate Court, District Court,
Superior Court, Supreme Court, and other titles are among those
encountered. To study more about court records in general, see:
"Research in Court Records" by Arlene H. Eakle, found
in Loretto Dennis Szucs and Sandra Hargreaves Luebking, eds., The
Source: A Guidebook to American Genealogy, rev. ed. (Salt Lake City:
Ancestry, 1997).
Texas Military Records
The largest collection of military and related records pertaining
to Texans is housed in the Texas State Archives, Adjutant General
Record Group. Since 1919 military discharge records are filed at
the local county courthouse. Earliest Texas military records begin
in 1835. War of Independence veterans, or widows or heirs were eligible
for bounty and donation land grants and pensions from the Texas
government. Published lists are available of soldiers and sailors
of the Republic of Texas, participants in battles of the Alamo and
San Jacinto, and of men in the Texas Rangers and other forms of
service. Lists of those who served in the Indian Wars have also
been published.
A large collection of Confederate pension applications
is available at the Texas State Library and Archives in Austin.
These are arranged in numerical order and are indexed. Other military
records housed there include Confederate claims, 1861-65; Confederate
home records, 1886-1954; Confederate indigent families list, 1863-65;
general service records, 1836-1902; muster rolls, 1836-1917; and
payment records, 1836-46, and others. For further reference, see:
Kinney, John M. Index to Applications for Texas Confederate
Pensions. Rev. ed. Austin: Archives Division, Texas State Library,
1977.
Ingmire, Frances Terry. Texas Frontiersman, 1839-1860:
Minute Men, Militia, Home Guard, Indian Fighter. St. Louis: F. T.
Ingmire, ca. 1982. Contains officers index and alphabetically arranged
entries taken from military records.
Neagles, James C. U.S. Military Records: A Guide
to Federal and State Sources. Salt Lake City: Ancestry, Inc., 1994.
Texas Additional Sources
Munnerlyn, Tom. Texas Local History: A Source Book for Available
Town and County Local Histories, Local Memoirs and Genealogical
Records. Austin: Eakin Press, 1983.
Texas Counties, a Catalog of In-print and Out-of-print
Books, Pamphlets, Maps, Memoirs, etc. Relating to Texas Towns and
Counties. Austin: State House Books, 1985.
Kennedy, Imogene Kinard, and J. Leon Kennedy.
Genealogical Records in Texas. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing
Co., 1987.
Texas Vital Records:
Event: Birth
Cost of copy: $11.00
Address:
Bureau of Vital Statistics
Texas Department of Health
P.O. Box 12040
Austin, TX 78711-2040
Remarks: State office has had records since 1903.
Additional copies of the birth record ordered at the same time are
$11.00 each.
Check or money order should be made payable to Texas
Department of Health. Personal checks are accepted. To verify current
fees, the telephone number is (512) 458-7111. This is a recorded
message. Information on how to obtain certified copies is also available
via the internet at Texas Department of Health.
Search All Texas Records
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Event: Death
Cost of copy: $9.00
Address:
Bureau of Vital Statistics
Texas Department of Health
P.O. Box 12040
Austin, TX 78711-2040
Remarks: State office has had records since 1903.
Additional copies of the death record ordered at the same time are
$3.00 each.
Check or money order should be made payable to Texas
Department of Health. Personal checks are accepted. To verify current
fees, the telephone number is (512) 458-7111. This is a recorded
message. Information on how to obtain certified copies is also available
via the internet at Texas Department of Health.
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Event: Marriage (State)
Cost of copy: See remarks
Remarks: Records since January 1966. Certified copies
are not available from State office. Fee for search and verification
of essential facts of marriage is $9.00 each.
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Event: Marriage (county)
Cost of copy: Varies
Address:
See remarks
Remarks: County Clerk in county where license was
issued.
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Event: Divorce (State)
Cost of copy: See remarks
Remarks: Records since January 1968. Certified copies
are not available from State office. Fee for search and verification
of essential facts of divorce is $9.00 each.
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Event: Divorce (county)
Cost of copy: Varies
Address: See remarks
Remarks: Clerk of District Court in county
where divorce was granted.
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