Cameron County, Texas Genealogy

United States Texas  Counties C  Cameron County

Guide to Cameron County Texas ancestry, family history, and genealogy research page. Birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.

County Courthouse
County Clerk has birth, death and military records from 1848, marriage records from 1800, land records from 1845, probate records from 1850 and court records from 1964

The county was named for Ewen Cameron, (1811?-1843). On July 7, 1842, Cameron took part in the engagement at Lipantitlán against Gen. Antonio Canales. Samuel H. Walker attributed much of the credit for the successful defense of the position to Cameron. At the battle of Mier, "The fearless Cameron, whose company garrisoned the back yard of one of the houses, being charged by an imposing force of the enemy, after emptying his rifles into their lines, beat off the foe until he could reload, with the loose stones in the court." At Pass Suarte, after Fisher and the staff officers had been separated from the command, the Mier prisoners unanimously chose Cameron as their commander. On Saturday, February 19, Cameron and about sixty men were recaptured by Mexicans and subjected with other groups to the Black Bean Episode. Cameron drew a white bean in the lottery, but was shot for a later attempt at escape.

Places / Localities
Town/city records in the FamilySearch Catalog



Populated Places
Towns and Cities: | Bayview | | Cameron Park | Combes |  | Indian Lake | La Feria | Laguna Vista | Los Fresnos | Los Indios | Palm Valley | Port Isabel | Primera | Rancho Viejo | Rangerville | Rio Hondo | San Benito | Santa Rosa | South Padre Island |

Neighboring Counties
Hidalgo •  Willacy

Resources

 * Cameron County Resources~Cameron County, TXGenWeb

Cemeteries
Cemetery records often reveal birth, marriage, death, relationship, military, and religious information.

Additional Cemetery Sources

 * Cemeteries of Cameron County~ Cameron 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

Church

 * Texas Christian Church Directory~ ChurchAngel
 * Catholic Parishes in Texas

Local Histories

 * Texas Museums ~  List of all museums in Texas  ~  Hidden Ancestors

Maps



 * Texas Land Survey Maps for (land patent maps) at HistoryGeo.com ($). Free surname search.
 * Historical Maps ~  From the Republic to the Turn of the Century  ~  Hidden Ancestors
 * Texas Counties Map. Click on the county to go to the TXGenWeb site

Military

 * 1838 - 1900 Texas Muster Roll Index Cards 1838-1900 at Ancestry.com — index and images $
 * 1845 - 1848 US American Volunteer Soldiers Mexican War 1845-1848 at Ancestry.com — index $

Civil War Battle
The following Civil War battle was fought in Cameron County.


 * May 12-13, 1865 = Palmito Ranch, also known as Palmito Hill
 * Map showing Civil War battles in Texas.
 * Cameron County Military Resources ~ Cameron 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

 * Home Town News -  Texas Newspaper Index with links
 * Newslink -  Texas Newspaper List (sorted by publication frequency)
 * The Olden Times  -   Historic Texas News Online

Obituaries

 * 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

 * Search Tax, Criminal, Land and Wills Records ~  Ancestry.com  (subscription)
 * Texas Land Title Abstracts ~ Ancestry.com (subscription)

Birth
Online Birth Indexes and Records


 * Birth Records of Cameron County 1926-1995 from the USGenWeb archives
 * Texas, Birth Certificates, 1903-1935 (images and index) - FamilySearch
 * Texas, Birth Index, 1903-1997 (index only) - FamilySearch
 * Texas, Births and Christenings, 1840-1981 -  FamilySearch

Original Birth Records on Microfilm

Marriage
Online Marriage Indexes and Records

Original Marriage Records on Microfilm
 * Marriage Records of Cameron County incomplete list of Marriage Records from the Cameron County TXGenWeb site.
 * Texas Marriage Records 1966 - 2005  -  Hidden Ancestors
 * Texas, County Marriage Index, 1837-1977 - FamilySearch records collection 
 * Texas, Marriages, 1837-1973  -  FamilySearch record collection
 * Texas, Marriages, 1966-2010  -  FamilySearch record collection
 * 1814 - 1909 and 1966 - 2011 Texas Marriage Collection 1814-1909 and 1966-2011 at Ancestry.com — index $
 * 1837 - 1977 Texas Select County Marriage Index 1837-1977 at Ancestry.com — index $

Death
Online Death Indexes and Records


 * Texas Death Records 1890 – 1976 [with images] Name index and images of statewide death certificates, 1890-1976. The name index has been created by FamilySearch and is tied to images of the Texas death certificates. Few certificates are available prior to 1903.
 * Texas Death Index 1964 to 1998 Texas, Death Index, 1964-1998 (FamilySearch Historical Records) Name index to Texas Statewide Death Certificates or four million people who have died since 1964.
 * Texas Deaths and Burials 1903 - 1973 (index)  -  FamilySearch
 * 1977 - 1986 at FamilySearch.org — index
 * 1968 - 2011 Texas Divorces 1968-2011 at Ancestry.com — index $
 * 1903 - 1982 Texas Death Certificates 1903-1982 at Ancestry.com — index and images $

Original Death Records on Microfilm

Divorce

 * Divorce Records of Cameron County 1968-2001 from the USGenWeb archives
 * Texas Divorce Records 1968 - 2005   ~  Hidden Ancestors
 * 1968 - 2011 Texas Divorces 1968-2011 at Ancestry.com — index $


 * USGenWeb Census Project ~ Texas 1850 - 1930

Societies and Libraries
Caprock Public Library 104 N 1st St Quitaque, TX 79255 Phone: (806) 455-1225


 * Society Hill ~  Links and addresses to Texas genealogical and historical societies

Family History Centers

 * Brownsville Texas Family History Center
 * Harlingen Texas Family History Center

Web Sites

 * 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.