Brown County, Texas Genealogy
Guide to Brown County Texas ancestry, family history, and genealogy research page. Birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.
| Brown County, Texas | |||||||
| Map | |||||||
 Location in the state of Texas | |||||||
 Location of Texas in the U.S. | |||||||
| Facts | |||||||
| Founded | August 27, 1856 | ||||||
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| County Seat | Brownwood | ||||||
| Courthouse | |||||||
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| Address | Brown County Courthouse 200 S Broadway Street Brownwood, TX 76801 Phone: 325-643-2594 Brown County Website | ||||||
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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[edit | edit source]
Description[edit | edit source]
The county was named for Henry Stevenson Brown, a commander at the Battle of Velasco, an early conflict between Texians and Mexicans. The County is located in the central area of the state.[1]
County Courthouse[edit | edit source]
County Clerk has birth records from 1900,
death records from 1903, marriage, land,
probate, court and military records from 1880;
District Court has divorce records from 1880[2]
County Clerk
200 S. Broadway
Brownwood 76801
Phone: 325-643-2594
District Clerk
200 S. Broadway
Brownwood 76801
Phone: 325-646-5514
Brown County Website
Brown County, Texas Record Dates[edit | edit source]
| Birth* | Marriage | Death* | Court | Land | Probate | Census |
| 1900 | 1880 | 1903 | 1880 | 1880 | 1880 | 1829 |
History[edit | edit source]
Parent County[edit | edit source]
1856--Brown County was created 27 August 1856 from Comanche and Travis Counties.
- County seat: Brownwood [4]
The county was named for Henry Stevenson Brown, (1793-1834), early settler, trader, and Indian fighter, who was born in Madison County, Kentucky, on March 8, 1793, the son of Caleb and Jemima (Stevenson) Brown.
Boundary Changes[edit | edit source]
Record Loss[edit | edit source]
1880, 1894--Courthouse and many county records were destroyed by fire in March 1880 and February 1894.
Places / Localities[edit | edit source]
Town/city records in the FamilySearch Catalog
Populated Places[edit | edit source]
For a complete list of populated places, including small neighborhoods and suburbs, visit Hometown Locator. The following are the most historically and genealogically relevant populated places in this county:[5]
| Cities | ||
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| Towns | ||
| Unincorporated communities | ||
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| Census-designated places | ||
Neighboring Counties[edit | edit source]
Callahan • Coleman • Comanche • Eastland • McCulloch • Mills • San Saba
Resources[edit | edit source]
Cemeteries[edit | edit source]
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 |
| TX Gravestones | WorldCat | Tombstone Project |
| BillionGraves (name) | Cemeteries of TX | |
| USGW Archives | Texas Cemeteries | |
| BillionGraves | Linkpendium | |
| TXGenWeb | Interment | |
| FamilySearch Places | ||
| See Texas Cemeteries for more information. | ||
Additional Cemetery Sources
Cemetery Books available from the Brown County Historical Society
- History of Greanleaf Cemetery
- Eastlawn Memorial Park, Early, Texas, records of over 4,000 tombstones,1951-2001.
- Zephyr Cemetery Survey Book, 1455 deceased names listed with years of birth & death, updated 2007.
- Salem Cemetery, Brown County, history and alphabetical listing of persons buried.
- Fairview Cemetery, Grosvenor, list of known deceased from 1878, history, cemetery plat.
- Rural Cemetery Inscriptions of Brown County Supplement includes 51 rural cemeteries updated 1970-2002.
Census[edit | edit source]
| Historical populations | ||
|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± |
| 1860 | 244 | — |
| 1870 | 544 | 123.0% |
| 1880 | 8,414 | 1446.7% |
| 1890 | 11,421 | 35.7% |
| 1900 | 16,019 | 40.3% |
| 1910 | 22,935 | 43.2% |
| 1920 | 21,682 | −5.5% |
| 1930 | 26,382 | 21.7% |
| 1940 | 25,924 | −1.7% |
| 1950 | 28,607 | 10.3% |
| 1960 | 24,728 | −13.6% |
| 1970 | 25,877 | 4.6% |
| 1980 | 33,057 | 27.7% |
| 1990 | 34,371 | 4.0% |
| 2000 | 37,674 | 9.6% |
| 2010 | 38,106 | 1.1% |
| Source: "Wikipedia.org". | ||
Church[edit | edit source]
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.
- List of Churches in Brown County from the Brown County TXGenWeb site.
- St. John's Episcopal Church, Brownwood History from the Brown County TXGenWeb site
List of Churches and Church Parishes
Court[edit | edit source]
- Brown County District Court Records, starting with 1860 are available at the Local History and Genealogy Library, Brownwood, Texas.
Land[edit | edit source]
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.
- Brown County Bounty-Land Warrant Files A-S are available at the Local History and Genealogy Library, Brownwood, Texas.
Naturalization and Citizenship[edit | edit source]
- 1906 - 1989 Texas, Naturalization Records, 1906-1989 — index and images
Local Histories[edit | edit source]
Local histories are available for Brown 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.
- Brown County, Texas, 1956-1985, published 1987 by Estill Franklin Allen, Brown County Historical Society.
- In the Live and Lives of Brown County People, 23 volumes, available from the Brown County Historical Society
- The Promised Land: A history of Brown County, 1941, by James C. White, available from the Brown County Historical Society Partial transcription online at the Brown County TXGenWeb site.
- Something About Brown, 1958, by Dr. T. R. Havins., available from the Brown County Historical Society
- Frontier's Generation, 1931, by Tevis Clyde Smit.
- Blanket, Texas Community History 1983, with an Edition compiled in 2000, by Estill Franklin Allen, available from the Brown County Historical Society
- Early Communities of Lake Brownood by Pattie Lee Cross Weedon, available from the Brown County Historical Society
- Pioneer Women of Brownwood, History & Genealogy of Brown County Sheriffs 1858-2008, Last Train to Blanket, and other Brown County Books available from the Brown County Historical Society
- Frontier Times Magazine by J. Marvin Hunter. Database of magazines 1923-1954 located at the Local History & Genealogy Library The magazines chronicle life in Western and Central Texas in the mid to late 1800s and early 1900s and feature county and town histories, lives of interesting people, biographies of Texas Rangers, etc. Index to the magazines at Frontier Times website.
Maps[edit | edit source]
for more resources
- 1940 Brown County General Highway Map from the Texas State Library.
- 1961 Brown County General Highway Map Detail of Brownwood and other towns in Brown County from the Texas State Library.
- Map of Historic Brown County with locations of former small communities, schools, etc. available from the Brown County Museum of History and the History and Genealogy Research Library
- Texas Counties Map. Click on the county to go to the TXGenweb site.
- FamilySearch Places:Cities and Towns- How to Use FS Places
Military[edit | edit source]
- Veterans Memorials in Brown County from the Heritage Association Brown County.
Brown County World War II Veterans, Surnames A-G with brief biographical sketches. Alphabetical list of veterans who lost their lives; and Brown County World War II Veterans, Surnames H-Z, includes biographical sketches, "Women in the Military" and "Story of Camp Bowie. (In the Life and Lives of Brown County People, Vol. 12 & 13) Available from the Brown County Historical Society.
Mexican-American War[edit | edit source]
- 1845 - 1848 US American Volunteer Soldiers Mexican War 1845-1848 at Ancestry.com — index $
Civil War[edit | edit source]
Online Records
- 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
- 1838 - 1900 Texas Muster Roll Index Cards 1838-1900 at Ancestry.com — index and images $
- Confederate Pension Applications ~ Texas State Library and Archives Commission
Civil War Veterans of Brown County (In the Life and Lives of Brown County People, Vol. 10) includes 440 Veteran listed alphabetically. Available from the Brown County Historical Society.
World War I[edit | edit source]
- 1917 - 1920 - Texas, World War I Records, 1917-1920 at FamilySearch — index and images
Newspapers[edit | edit source]
Additional newspapers abstracts can sometimes be found using search phrases such as Brown County, Texas Genealogy newspapers in online catalogs like:
- TX Newspaper Abstracts (For instructions see WorldCat Online Catalog).
- Census Diggins 1830-1930
- Do a Brown County, Texas Genealogy Place-name search for these and other records in the FamilySearch Catalog (For instructions see FamilySearch Catalog Place-name Search).
- Brownwood Bulletin Newspaper
- Brownwood Bulletin and Brownwood Banner newspapers archives are available on microfilm at the Local History & Genealogy Library.
Probate[edit | edit source]
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 $
Taxation[edit | edit source]
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 1846-1910 at findmypast ($) — index and images
- Brown County Tax Rolls 1859-1910 are available at the Local History and Genealogy Library, Brownwood, Texas.
Vital Records[edit | edit source]
Vital Records consist of births, adoptions, marriages, divorces, and deaths recorded on registers, certificates, and documents.
Certified birth and death certificates or birth and death verifications can be ordered online or by mail at the Texas Vital Records State Department of Health. Copies can also be obtained from the County Clerk's office of the county where the event occurred and are often less expensive. You can also order them online through a third party company.
Marriages records can be obtained from the county the marriage occurred. Only marriage verifications can be obtained from the Texas Vital Records State Department of Health.
See Texas Vital Records for more information about Vital records in Texas.
- Brown County Marriage Records, Texas Birth Index 1903-1976 and Texas Deaths 1906-1973 are available on microfilm at the Local History and Genealogy Library, Brownwood, Texas.
Birth[edit | edit source]
Online Birth Indexes and Records
- 1903 - 1935 Texas, Birth Certificates, 1903-1935 (images and index) - FamilySearch
- 1903 - 1997 Texas, Birth Index, 1903-1997 (index only) - FamilySearch
- 1849 - 1981 Texas, Births and Christenings, 1840-1981 FamilySearch
- 1926-1995 Texas Births, 1926 - 1995 at MyHeritage ($) — index
Marriage[edit | edit source]
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 - 1965 - Texas, County Marriage Records, 1837-1965 at FamilySearch — index and images
- 1837 - 1973 - Texas, Marriages, 1837-1973 at FamilySearch — index
- 1837 - 1977 - Texas, County Marriage Index, 1837-1977 at FamilySearch — index
- 1837 - 1977 Texas Select County Marriage Index 1837-1977 at Ancestry.com — index $
- 1880 - 1920 - Index to Marriages Brown County Texas 1880-1920. Book available from the Brown County Historical Society
- 1966 - 2010 - Texas, Marriages, 1966-2010 FamilySearch record collection
- 1966-2016 Texas Marriages and Divorces at MyHeritage ($) — index
Death[edit | edit source]
Online Death Indexes and Records
- 1890 - 1976 Texas Death Records 1890 – 1976 [with images]
- 1903 - 1973 Texas Deaths and Burials 1903 - 1973 (index) FamilySearch
- 1903 - 1982 Texas Death Certificates 1903-1982 at Ancestry.com — index and images $
- 1910 - 1942 McInnis Funeral Home Records, 1910-1942. Book available from the Brown County Historical Society
- 1964 -1998 Texas Death Index 1964 to 1998 [no images]
- 1977 - 1986 Texas Deaths 1977-1986 at FamilySearch.org — index
Divorce[edit | edit source]
- 1968 - 2010 Texas Divorce Index 1968-2010 at FamilySearch.org — index
- 1968 - 2011 Texas Divorces 1968-2011 at Ancestry.com — index $
- 1966-2016 Texas Marriages and Divorces at MyHeritage ($) — index
Societies and Libraries[edit | edit source]
Libraries[edit | edit source]
- Brownwood Public Library
600 Carnegie
Brownwood, TX 76801
325-646-0155 website
- Local History and Genealogy Library
Includes DAR Genealogy Library
across the street from the Courthouse
213 S. Broadway
Brownwood, TX 76801
325-646-6006 information
The library has the Brownwood newspapers on microfilm, City Directories from 1909, phone books, cemetery burial lists, Brown County Tax Rolls, District Court records, World War II records and newspaper clippings, and vital records.
The libraries' Genealogy holdings are searchable in the Brown County Public Library catalog.
Closed on weekends and Saturdays
- Walker Memorial Library includes Burress Genealogy Library
Howard Payne University
1000 Fisk St.
Brownwood, TX 76801
325-649-8602 hours & info
Genealogy collections are listed in the library's catalog
- Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints Family History Center
4503 4th St.
Brownwood, TX 76801
Societies[edit | edit source]
- Pecan Valley Genealogical Society
213 S. Broadway
Brownwood, TX 76801
Telephone Number: 325-646-6006
website
- Brown County Historical Society
Located in the Local History and Genealogy Library
213 S. Broadway
PO Box 146
Brownwood, TX 76801-0146
Telephone Number: 325-646-8208
website
- Brown County Historical Commission
305 North Fisk Avenue
Brownwood, TX 76801
Telephone Number: 325-643-3322
website
Museums[edit | edit source]
- Brown County Museum of History
Located in the Old Jail, Downtown Brownwood
P.O. Box 2006
Brownwood, TX 76804-2006
325-641-1926 website
Also has an Annex located at 209 Broadway Street, across from the Jail.
- Blanket Museum of History
Located in the former Blanket State Bank building and the former Ernest Allen Drug Store building
712 Main Street
Blanket, TX 76432 website
Family History Centers[edit | edit source]
Family History Centers provide one-on-one assistance, free access to center-only databases, and to premium genealogical websites.
FamilySearch Affiliate Libraries have access to most center-only databases, but may not always have full services normally provided by a family history center.
Local Centers and Libraries
Websites[edit | edit source]
- Brown County TXGenWeb
- FamilySearch Catalog The catalog is genealogical materials (including books, online materials, microfilm, microfiche, and publications) This catalog is different than the indexed Historical Records.
- TXGenweb Project
References[edit | edit source]
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Brown County, Texas," in https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brown_County,_Texas. accessed 07/25/2019
- ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Brown County, Texas. Page 659 At various libraries (WorldCat); FHL Book 973 D27e 2002.
- ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Brown County, Texas . Page 658-677 At various libraries (WorldCat); FHL Book 973 D27e 2002; Alice Eichholz, ed. Ancestry’s Red Book: American State, County, and Town Sources, Third ed. (Provo, Utah: Ancestry, 2004), 655-665.
- ↑ The Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America,10th ed. (Draper, UT:Everton Publishers, 2002).
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Brown County, Texas," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brown_County,_Texas, accessed 26 March 2019.
