Taylor County, Texas Genealogy
Guide to Taylor County Texas ancestry, family history, and genealogy research page. Birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.
| Taylor County, Texas | |||||||||
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 Location in the state of Texas | |||||||||
 Location of Texas in the U.S. | |||||||||
| Facts | |||||||||
| Founded | February 1, 1858 | ||||||||
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| County Seat | Abilene | ||||||||
| Courthouse | |||||||||
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Contents
- 1 County Information
- 2 History
- 3 Places / Localities
- 4 Resources
- 5 Societies and Libraries
- 6 Websites
- 7 References
County Information
County Courthouse
Taylor County Courthouse
300 Oak Street
Abilene, TX 79602
Phone: 325-674-1202
County Clerk has marriage, probate and land records[1]
County Clerk
300 Oak St. Ste. 100
Abilene 79602
Phone: 325-674-1205
Fax: 325-674-1279
District Clerk
300 Oak St. Ste. 400
Abilene 79602
Phone: 325-674-1316
Fax: 325-674-1307
Taylor County has had two county seats: Buffalo Gap 1878-1883 and Abilene 1883-present.[2]
Taylor County, Texas Record Dates
|
| |||||
| Birth | Marriage | Death | Census | Land | Probate |
| 1903 | 1878 | 1880 | 1878 | 1878 | |
History
Parent County
1858--Taylor County was created 1 February 1858 from Bexar and Travis Counties.
- County seat: Abilene [3]
Boundary Changes
See an interactive map of Taylor County boundary changes.
Record Loss
There is no known history of courthouse disasters in this county.
Places / Localities
Town/city records in the FamilySearch Catalog
Populated Places
Abilene | Buffalo Gap | Caps | Potosi | Hamby | Happy Valley | Lawn | Merkel | Ovalo | Potosi | Trent | Tuscola | Tye | View | Wylie
Neighboring Counties
Callahan • Coleman • Fisher • Jones • Nolan • Runnels • Shackelford
Resources
African American
- 1865-1870 Freedmen's Bureau Field Office Records(images) - FamilySearch
Cemeteries
Cemetery records often reveal birth, marriage, death, relationship, military, and religious information.
| Tombstone Transcriptions Online | Tombstone Transcriptions in Print | List of Cemeteries in the county |
| FindAGrave | Family History Library | FindAGrave |
| Linkpendium | WorldCat | Tombstone Project |
| Billion Graves (name) | Cemeteries of TX | |
| GenWeb Archives | Texas Cemeteries | |
| Billion Graves (cemetery) | TX Gravestones | |
| TXGenWeb | Epodunk | |
| Names in Stone | ||
| See Texas Cemeteries for more information. | ||
Additional Cemetery Sources
- Abilene City Cemetery (City of Abilene Cemetery, Municipal Cemetery) Cemetery Database. Also includes: I. O. O. F. Cemetery, Masonic Cemetery, Cedar Hill Cemetery, Cedar Hill Flats Cemetery. Search by space or occupant.
- Texas Historic Cemeteries
- African American Cemeteries Online ~ Partial index/transcriptions of African American cemeteries
- Texas Escapes Listing of Texas cemeteries with transcriptions and lots of pictures.
Census
| Historical populations | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1880 | 1,736 | ||
| 1890 | 6,957 | 300.7% | |
| 1900 | 10,499 | 50.9% | |
| 1910 | 26,293 | 150.4% | |
| 1920 | 24,081 | −8.4% | |
| 1930 | 41,023 | 70.4% | |
| 1940 | 44,147 | 7.6% | |
| 1950 | 63,370 | 43.5% | |
| 1960 | 101,078 | 59.5% | |
| 1970 | 97,853 | −3.2% | |
| 1980 | 110,932 | 13.4% | |
| 1990 | 119,655 | 7.9% | |
| 2000 | 126,555 | 5.8% | |
| 2010 | 131,506 | 3.9% | |
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 FamilySearch Catalog lists microfilm copies of deeds, trust deeds, and mortgages of many counties.
Local Histories
Local histories are available for Taylor County, Texas Genealogy. 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.
- A History of Rural Taylor County, 1980, by Juanita Daniel Zachry.
- Taylor County Timeline ~ TXGenWeb
- Taylor County, Texas History from the Handbook of Texas Online
- Texas Museums ~ List of all museums in Texas ~ Hidden Ancestors
Maps
- Texas Land Survey Maps for Taylor County, Texas Genealogy (land patent maps) at HistoryGeo.com ($). Free surname search.
- 1883 Abilene Panoramic Map from the Amon Carter Museum.
- Historical Maps ~ From the Republic to the Turn of the Century ~ Hidden Ancestors
Military
- 1838 - 1900 - Texas Muster Roll Index Cards 1838-1900 at Ancestry.com — index and images $
- 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
Mexican-American War
- 1845 - 1848 - US American Volunteer Soldiers Mexican War 1845-1848 at Ancestry.com — index $
Civil War
- 1861 - 1865 - Texas, Civil War Service Records of Confederate Soldiers, 1861-1865 at FamilySearch — index
- 1861 - 1865 - Texas, Civil War Records of Union Soldiers, 1861-1865 at FamilySearch — index
- Confederate Pension Applications ~ Texas State Library and Archives Commission
- Taylor County CSA Pensions ~ USGenWeb Archives
- Civil War Soldiers and Sailors
- Confederate Indigent Families List
- Terrys Texas Rangers, 8th Texas Calvary
World War I
- 1917 - 1920 - Texas, World War I Records, 1917-1920 at FamilySearch — index and images
Newspapers
Additional newspapers abstracts can sometimes be found using search phrases such as Taylor County, Texas Genealogy newspapers in online catalogs like:
- TX Newspaper Abstracts (For instructions see WorldCat Online Catalog).
- Census Diggins 1830-1930
- Do a Taylor County, Texas Genealogy Place-name search for these and other records in the FamilySearch Catalog (For instructions see FamilySearch Catalog Place-name Search).
- Newspaperarchive.com ($) has Abilene newspapers from the early 1900's that covered local news on residents from Taylor County.
- Wikipedia has a list of online newspaper archives for Texas.
- Abilene Reporter News
- The Merkel Mail
912 North 1st Street
Merkel, TX 79536
Phone: 325-928-5712[[Image:]]325-928-5712 - The Buffalo Gap RoundUp
- 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
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.
Online Probate Records
- 1800 – 1990 Texas Probate Records 1800-1990 at FamilySearch — images
- 1800 – 2000 Texas Wills and Probate Records 1800-2000 at Ancestry.com — index and images $
- Search Tax, Criminal, Land and Wills Records ~ Ancestry.com (subscription)
Taxation
Texas tax records complement land records and can be used in place of censuses or to supplement the years between censuses. Because only persons who owned taxable property were listed, many residents were not included in tax lists. There may also be gaps of several years in the tax records of some counties. For more information, see the wiki page Texas Taxation.
1846-1910 Texas County Tax Rolls lists FHL films with county tax lists. The lists vary by county and year. Most records are between the years of 1846 - 1910.
Vital Records
Birth
Online Birth Indexes and Records
- 1903-1935 Texas, Birth Certificates, 1903-1935 (images and index) - FamilySearch
- 1903-1997 Texas Birth Index, 1903-1997 (index)- FamilySearch
Marriage
Online Marriage Indexes and Records
- 1802-2010 - Texas, United States Marriages at FindMyPast — index $
- 1814-1909 and 1966-2011 Texas Marriage Collection 1814-1909 and 1966-2011 at Ancestry.com — index $
- 1837-1973 Texas, Marriages, 1837-1973 - FamilySearch record collection
- 1837-1977 Texas County Marriage Records, 1837-1977 - FamilySearch. Index to a variety of marriage records (registers, licenses, intentions to marry, etc.) from select counties in Texas.
- 1966-2005 Texas Marriage Records 1966 - 2005 - Hidden Ancestors
- 1966-2010 Texas, Marriages, 1966-2010 - FamilySearch record collection
Death
Online Death Indexes and Records
- 1890-1976 Texas Death Records 1890 – 1976 [with images]
Name index and images of statewide death certificates, 1890-1976. The name index has been created by Family Search and is tied to images of the Texas death certificates. Few certificates are available prior to 1903. - 1903-2000 Texas, Death Index, 1903-2000 (index) - FamilySearch
- 1964-1998 Texas Death Index 1964 to 1998 [no images] Name index to Texas Statewide Death Certificates or four million people who have died since 1964.
- 1977-1986 Texas Deaths 1977-1986 at FamilySearch.org — index
Divorce
- 1968-2005 Texas Divorce Records 1968 - 2005 Hidden Ancestors
- 1968-2010 Texas Divorce Index 1968-2010 at FamilySearch.org — index
Societies and Libraries
Scarborough Library of Genealogy
History and Biography of South and Southwest
c/o McMurray College Library
McMurray Station, Abilene, TX 79605
Website
Taylor Heritage Society
PO Box 385
Taylor 76574
Abilene Public Library
202 Cedar St
Abilene, TX 79601
Telephone Number: 325-676-6328
Website
Merkel Public Library
100 Kent St
Merkel, TX 79536
Telephone Number: 325-928-5054
- Society Hill ~ Links and addresses to Texas genealogical and historical societies
Family History Centers
Family history centers provide one-on-one assistance and free access to premium genealogical websites. In addition, many centers have free how-to genealogy classes. See family history center for more information. Search the online FHC directory for a nearby family history center.
Websites
- Taylor County~ TXGenWeb
- Taylor County Archives ~ USGenWeb Archives Project
- TXGenWeb project. May have maps, name indexes, history or other information for this county. Select the county.
- USGenWeb Texas Archives Vital statistics, maps, obituaries, Bible records, tombstone transcriptions and many other records.
- FamilySearch Catalog — The catalog is genealogical materials (including books, online materials, microfilm, microfiche, and publications) This catalog is different than the indexed Historical Records.
References
- ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Taylor County, Texas. Page 674 At various libraries (WorldCat); FHL Book 973 D27e 2002.
- ↑ Handbook of Texas Online: Taylor County http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/hct02
- ↑ The Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America,10th ed. (Draper, UT:Everton Publishers, 2002).
