Bexar County, TexasEdit This Page
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Texas Counties B Bexar CountyGuide to Bexar County Texas genealogy. Birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.
| Bexar County, Texas | |||||||||
| Map | |||||||||
 Location in the state of Texas | |||||||||
 Location of Texas in the U.S. | |||||||||
| Facts | |||||||||
| Founded | March 17, 1836 | ||||||||
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| County Seat | San Antonio | ||||||||
| Courthouse | |||||||||
| Address | Bexar County Courthouse County Clerk - Gerry Rickhoff 100 Dolorosa, Suite 108 San Antonio, TX 78205 Phone: 210-335-2585 Bexar County Website | ||||||||
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Contents |
County Courthouse
County Clerk has birth records from 1838, marriagerecords from 1837, death records from 1903,
probate records from 1843, land records from 1700’s,
Spanish church records 1737-1859 and Spanish City
Council minutes 1815-1820[1]
Register and log in to search digital archives
1837-1963 HISTORICAL RECORDS
at this County Clerk website:
https://gov.propertyinfo.com/tx-bexar/Default.aspx
District Clerk - Margaret G. Montemayor
100 Dolorosa
San Antonio, TX 78205
Phone: 210-335-2113
- ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Bexar County, Texas. Page 659 At various libraries (WorldCat); FHL Book 973 D27e 2002.
History
The villa of San Fernando de Bexar was the first municipality in the Spanish province of Texas in 1731. In 1772 the seat of the government of Spanish Texas moved to Bexar. The original county was divided into 128 additional counties. From the Handbook of Texas Online: The first Europeans to explore the region came with an expedition in 1691 led by Domingo Terán de los Ríos and Fray Damián Massanet, who evidently reached the San Antonio River near where San Juan Capistrano Mission was later founded. Nearby they found a group of Payayas living on the riverbank. The Indians, as Massanet recorded in his diary, called the place Yanaguana; he, however, renamed the site San Antonio de Padua to celebrate the memorial day of St. Anthony, June 13. The next group of Spanish explorers, an expedition led by two Franciscans, fathers Antonio de San Buenaventura y Olivares and Isidro Félix de Espinosa, and a military officer, Pedro de Aguirre, did not reach the area until April 1709. Much impressed by the setting and the availability of water, they noted that the area might make a promising site for future settlement. In 1714 Louis Juchereau de St. Denis crossed the region on his way to San Juan Bautista. Espinosa again visited the site in 1716 on his way to East Texas with the expedition of Domingo Ramón and this time recommended San Pedro Springs as a mission site. Near that spot, in May 1718, Martín de Alarcón led the expedition that founded San Antonio de Valero Mission and San Antonio de Béxar (or Béjar) Presidio, named for Viceroy Balthasar Manuel de Zúñiga y Guzmán Sotomayor y Sarmiento, second son of the duke of Bexar.
Parent County
1836--Bexar County was created on 17 March 1836 from Old Mexican Municipality. County seat: San Antonio [1]
Boundary Changes
See an interactive map of Bexar County border changes.
Record Loss
1892 -- Bexar County Courthouse was damaged during a large fire in downtown San Antonio on 25 February 1892. No records were lost. The offices of the San Antonio Democrat Newspaper were destroyed during the fire.[2] == Places/Localities ==
Populated Places
Towns and Cities: Adkins | Alamo Heights | Balcones Heights | Bexar | Castle Hills | China Grove | Converse | Elmendorf | Fair Oaks Ranch | Fort Sam Houston | Helotes | Hill Country Village | Hollywood Park | Kirby | Leon Valley | Live Oak | Losoya | Martinez | Olmos Park | Saint Hedwig | San Antonio | Selma | Shavano Park | Somerset | Southton | Terrell Hills | Universal City | Von Ormy | Wetmore | Wincrest
Neighboring Counties
Resources
- Local Bexar County Resouces ~ Bexar County TXGenWeb
Cemeteries
Cemetery records often reveal birth, marriage, death, relationship, military, and religious information.
| Online Grave Transcripts | Published Grave Transcripts | County Cemetery Directories |
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| WorldCat | ||
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Epodunk | |
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| See Texas Cemeteries for more information. | ||
Additional Cemetery Sources
- Cemeteries of Bexar County ~ Listings of cemeteries & partial transcriptions ~ Bexar County TXGenWeb
- Tombstone Transcription Project ~ Partial transcription of cemetery tombstones ~ USGenWeb
- Texas Historic Cemeteries ~ Partial indexes to historic cemeteries
- African American Cemeteries Online ~ Partial index/transcriptions of African American cemeteries
- Cemetery Junction ~ Links to cemetery transcriptions
Individual Cemeteries: BillionGraves:
- Anunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary Cemetery, St. Hedwig
- Confederate Cemetery, San Antonio
- Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery, San Antonio
- Roselawn Memorial Park, San Antonio
- St. Hedwig Cemetery, St. Hedwig
- St. Jerome's Cemetery, San Antonio A wiki article describing an online collection is found at: Texas, Bexar, San Antorio, Cemetery Records (FamilySearch Historical Records)
Census
- USGenWeb Census Project ~ Texas 1850 - 1930
Church
Church records and the information they provide vary significantly depending on the denomination and the record keeper. They may contain information about members of the congregation, such as age, date of baptism, christening, or birth; marriage information and maiden names; and death/burial date and place. For general information about Texas denominations, view the Texas Church Records wiki page. *Texas Christian Church Directory ~ ChurchAngel *Catholic Parishes in Texas
Court
Land
After land was transferred to private ownership, subsequent transactions, including deeds and mortgages, have been recorded by the county. You can obtain copies of these land records by writing to the county clerk at the county courthouse. For more information, see Texas Land and Property.
The Family History Library Catalog lists microfilm copies of deeds, trust deeds, and mortgages of many counties.
Local Histories
Local histories are available for Bexar County, Texas. County histories may include biographies, church, school and government history, and military information. For more information about local histories, see the wiki page section Texas Local Histories. *Museums List of all museums in Texas ~ Hidden Ancestors *History of the Alamo in Bexar County ~ Bexar County TXGenWeb *Historical Markers of Bexar County ~ Bexar County TXGenWeb
Maps
- 1889 &1909 Maps of Bexar County ~ Bexar County TXGenWeb *Historical Maps ~ From the Republic to the Turn of the Century ~ Hidden Ancestors *Texas Counties Map. Click on the county to go to the Texas Genweb site
Military
- Military Records of Bexar County ~ Bexar County TXGenWeb *Military Resources ~ Links to research Civil War to Operation Enduring Freedom ~ Hidden Ancestors *Fallen Heroes ~ Partial Index of casualties from Civil War to Operation Enduring Freedom ~ Hidden Ancestors *Honoring Our Veterans ~ Partial index of veterans from Civil War to Operation Enduring Freedom ~ Hidden Ancestors
Newspapers
Additional newspapers abstracts can sometimes be found using search phrases such as Bexar County, Texas newspapers in online catalogs like:
- WorldCat (For instructions see WorldCat Online Catalog).
- Do a Bexar County, Texas Place-name search for these and other records in the Family History Library Catalog (For instructions see FHL Catalog Place-name Search). *Wikipedia has a list of online newspaper archives for Texas. *Newspaperarchive.com ($) has historical newspapers available on-line. Their database has San Antonio newspapers from the late 1800's that covered local news on Bexar County residents.
Obituaries
- Obituaries of Bexar County, Texas ~ Partial Listing of Obituaries from Bexar County ~ Bexar County, TXGenWeb *Obituary Resources ~ Links to research and locate obituaries ~ Hidden Ancestors *USGenWeb Archives Obituary Project ~ Texas *Afrigeneas ~ African American death notices, obituaries and funeral programs compiled by users from current newspapers and historical sources *Obituary Depot ~ Texas Newspaper Citations *Obituary Project ~ Hidden Ancestors *Obituary Daily Times ~ Citations to over 15,000,000 obituaries including interactive search function
Probate
Probate records of Texas have been kept by the probate clerk in each county courthouse. You can obtain copies of the records from the clerk's office. In most counties, all information pertaining to a probate case is recorded in the "probate minutes."
Content: Probate Records may give the decedent's date of death, names of his or her spouse, children, parents, siblings, in-laws, neighbors, associates, relatives, and their places of residence.
Record types: Wills, estates, guardianships, naturalizations, marriage, adoption, and birth and death records.
See the Wiki page Texas Probate Records for information about how to use probate records. *Search Tax, Criminal, Land and Wills Records ~ Ancestry.com (subscription)
Taxation
Vital Records
See Texas Vital Records for more information about Vital records in Texas. Vital Records consist of births, adoptions, marriages, divorces, and deaths recorded on registers, certificates, and documents. United States Vital Records has additional research guidance on researching and using vital records.
A copy or an extract of most original records can be purchased from the Texas Vital Records State Department of Health or the County Clerk's office of the county where the event occurred. *Records of Bexar County, Texas ~ Bexar County TXGenWeb
Births
Marriages
Texas Marriage Records 1966 - 2005 ~ Hidden Ancestors *Texas Divorce Records 1968 - 2005 ~ Hidden Ancestors
Deaths
- Texas Deaths, 1890-1976 (FamilySearch) - The name index was created by FamilySearch and is tied to images of the Texas death certificates. Few certificates are available prior to 1903 and in many counties prior to 1910. Fold3.com also has Texas Deaths, 1890-1976 ($) available online. *Texas Death Index, 1964-1998 (FamilySearch) - Index to Texas statewide death certificates covering 4 million deaths since 1964.
Societies and Libraries
Public Libraries
Leon Valley Public Library 6425 Evers Rd Leon Valley, TX 78238 Phone: (210) 684-0720
Website San Antonio Public Library 600 Soledad St[[|]] San Antonio, TX 78205 Phone: (210) 207-2500 Website
Universal City Public Library 100 Northview Dr Universal City, TX 78148 Phone: (210) 659-7048 Website
Converse Public Library 601 S Seguin Rd Converse, TX 78109 Phone: (210) 659-4160 Website
Societies
:Daughters of the Republic of Texas Library
P.O. Box 1401
300 Alamo Plaza
San Antonio, Texas 78295-1401
Telephone: (210) 225-1071
Materials are in closed stacks. ==== San Antonio Genealogical and Historical Society
Mailing address: P.O. Box 790087, San Antonio, TX 78279-0087
Library address: 911 Melissa Drive, San Antonio, TX 78213
Phone: (210) 342-5242
Website
Family History Centers
- [[Introduction to LDS Family History Centers *San Antonio Texas Family History Center *San Antonio Texas East Family History Center *San Antonio Texas North Family History Center *San Antonio Texas West Family History Center *Stone Oak Texas Family History Center (San Antonio)
Web Sites
- Bexar County TXGenWeb *TXGenWeb project. May have maps, name indexes, history or other information for this county. Select the county. *Hidden Ancestors Information on Texas genealogy research as well as genealogy research in general. *Family History Library Catalog *Cyndi's List ~ Texas *Bexar County Genealogy (Texas Genealogy) == References ==
- ↑ The Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America,10th ed. (Draper, UT:Everton Publishers, 2002).
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- This page was last modified on 2 May 2013, at 01:27.
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