Leon County, TexasEdit This Page
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United States 
Texas Counties L Leon County
Guide to Leon County Texas genealogy. Birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.
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Adopted by TXGenWeb Leon County
Cheryl Burks
Contents |
County Courthouse
Leon County Courthouse
PO Box 98
Centerville, TX 75833-0098
Phone: 903.536.2352
County Clerk has birth and death records from 1903,
marriage records from 1885, probate records from 1846,
court and land records[1]
The original Courthouse and County Seat was at Leona. It was organized July 13, 1846. The first court was held at the home of Moses Campbell and then a log courthouse was built. After a heated battle, which included the killing of one man and the wounding of another, the County Seat was moved to Centerville in October 1850.
History
Named for: This county was named for Martin de Leon, a native of Tamaulipas, Mexico who was born in 1765.
Parent County
1846--Leon County was created 17 March 1846 from Robertson County. County seat: Centerville [2]
Boundary Changes
Record Loss
1885--A fire on the night of November 9, 1885 destroyed the courthouse. After the ashes and debris were cleared away, it was found that the brick remained in good condition and that the brick and two large safes left standing could be refurbished. Many records were lost and I do not know what the contents of the safes were. Most of the records for the county were destroyed. [3]
Places / Localities
Populated Places
- Buffalo, located near the Freestone County line, is the largest community in Leon Co.
- Centerville, the County Seat
- Hilltop Lakes
- Jewett
- Malvern
- Marquez
- Middleton
- Normangee
- Nineveh
- Oakwood
- Red Branch
Neighboring Counties
Resources
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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| See Texas Cemeteries for more information. | ||
Cemeteries
- Brushy Cemetery, Marques BillionGraves
- Leon Co. Cemetery Index
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.
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 Leon 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.
- A Memorial and Biographical History of Navarro, Henderson, Anderson, Limestone, Freestone and Leon Counties, Texas, 1883. Digital book on line from the Portal to Texas History.
Maps
- Texas Land Survey Maps for Leon County, Texas (land patent maps) at HistoryGeo.com ($). Free surname search.
- Texas Counties Map. Click on the county to go to the TXGenWeb site.
Military
Newspapers
Additional newspapers abstracts can sometimes be found using search phrases such as Leon County, Texas newspapers in online catalogs like:
- WorldCat (For instructions see WorldCat Online Catalog).
- Do a Leon County, Texas Place-name search for these and other records in the Family History Library Catalog (For instructions see FHL Catalog Place-name Search).
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.
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.
Texas County Tax Rolls, 1846-1910 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
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.
- Texas Death Index 1964 to 1998 [no images] Name index to Texas Statewide Death Certificates or four million people who have died since 1964.
- 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. - Marriage Records Brides
1895 - 1910 and various years indexed by brides - Marriage Records Grooms
1895 - 1910 and various years indexed by grooms
Societies and Libraries
Leon Co. Genealogical Society
P.O. Box 400
Centerville, TX 75833
903-536-2710
Hours of operation: 1PM to 4PM Monday through Friday
Family History Centers
Web Sites
- TXGenWeb project. May have maps, name indexes, history or other information for this county. Select the county
References
- ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Leon County, Texas. Page 668 At various libraries (WorldCat); FHL Book 973 D27e 2002.
- ↑ The Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America,10th ed. (Draper, UT:Everton Publishers, 2002).
- ↑ GenDisasters.com - Centerville, TX Leon County Courthouse Fire, Nov 1885 http://www3.gendisasters.com/texas/17828/centerville-tx-leon-county-courthouse-fire-nov-1885
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- This page was last modified on 15 May 2013, at 02:02.
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