Bexar County, Texas Genealogy
Guide to Bexar County, Texas ancestry, genealogy and family history, birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.
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County Information
Description
The county was named for Presidio San Antonio de Béxar. The county is located in the central area of the state. [1]
County Courthouse
Bexar County Courthouse
100 Dolorosa
San Antonio, TX 78205
Phone: 210-335-2011
Bexar County Website
County Clerk has birth records from 1838, marriage records 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.[2]
Bexar County, Texas Record Dates
Information for this chart was taken from various sources, often containing conflicting dates. This information should be taken as a guide and should be verified by contacting the county and/or the state government agency.
| Birth* | Marriage | Death* | Court | Land | Probate | Census |
| 1838 | 1837 | 1903 | 1836 | 1700s | 1843 | 1829 |
Record Loss
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Boundary Changes
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Populated Places
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:[6]
| Cities | ||
| Towns | ||
| Unincorporated communities | ||
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| Census-designated places | ||
‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties
History Timeline
Resources
Bible Records
Biographies
Business, Commerce, and Occupations
Cemeteries
- 1893-2007 Texas, Bexar County, San Antonio Cemetery Records, 1893-2007 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
Census Records
- 1850-1930 USGenWeb Census Project — Texas 1850 - 1930
| Historical populations | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1850 | 6,052 | ||
| 1860 | 14,454 | 138.8% | |
| 1870 | 16,043 | 11.0% | |
| 1880 | 30,470 | 89.9% | |
| 1890 | 49,266 | 61.7% | |
| 1900 | 69,422 | 40.9% | |
| 1910 | 119,676 | 72.4% | |
| 1920 | 202,096 | 68.9% | |
| 1930 | 292,533 | 44.7% | |
| 1940 | 338,176 | 15.6% | |
| 1950 | 500,460 | 48.0% | |
| 1960 | 687,151 | 37.3% | |
| 1970 | 830,460 | 20.9% | |
| 1980 | 988,800 | 19.1% | |
| 1990 | 1,185,394 | 19.9% | |
| 2000 | 1,392,931 | 17.5% | |
| 2010 | 1,714,773 | 23.1% | |
| Source: "Wikipedia.org". | |||
Church Records
- See Texas Church Records for more information.
- Texas Christian Church Directory at Church Angel
- Catholic Parishes in Texas
List of Churches and Church Parishes
- FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places
Court Records
Directories
- 1958 San Antonio, Bexar County, Texas, City Directory, 1958 at MyHeritage — index & images ($)
- 1970-2024 United States, Residence Database, 1970-2024 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index, coverage may vary
Emigration and Immigration
- 1944-1952 Texas, San Antonio, Alien Arrivals, May 1944-March 1952 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
Ethnic, Political, and Religious Groups
African Amercicans
- 1865-1870 Texas, Freedmen's Bureau Field Office Records, 1865-1870 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Images only
- Texas African American Griots at USGenWeb
Funeral Homes
Genealogies
Guardianship
Land and Property Records
- See Texas Land and Property for more information.
Online Land Indexes and Records
- Full-Text Search - Land Records at FamilySearch - index & images; dates, records, and places vary; How to Search
Local Histories
Local histories are available for Bexar County and may include biographies, church, school and government history, and military information.
- See Texas Local Histories for more information.
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.
- History of the Alamo in Bexar County at Bexar County TXGenWeb
- Historical Markers of Bexar County at Bexar County TXGenWeb
- Texas Indexes (about 20 counties) at EveryNameIndex.com — Select the county
Maps and Gazetteers
for more resources
- 1889-1909 1889-1909 Maps of Bexar County at Bexar County TXGenWeb
- 1897 Map of 1897 Bexar County, Texas with numerous small settlements. (My Genealogy Hound)
- Texas Counties Map. Click on the county to go to the Texas Genweb site
- FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places
Migration
Military Records
- Military Records of Bexar County at Bexar County TXGenWeb
Texas Revolution
- 1835 - 1845 Index to the Military Rolls of the Republic of Texas 1835-1845 at Texas State Historical Association
Mexican-American War
- 1845-1848 US American Volunteer Soldiers Mexican War 1845-1848 at Ancestry — index ($)
Civil War
- 1861-1865 Texas, Civil War Service Records of Confederate Soldiers, 1861-1865 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images at partner site
- 1861-1865 Texas, Civil War Service Records of Union Soldiers, 1861-1865 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images at partner site
- 1838-1900 Texas Muster Roll Index Cards 1838-1900 at Ancestry — index & images ($)
World War I
- 1917-1920 Texas, World War I Records, 1917-1920 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
Naturalization and Citizenship
- 1906-1989 Texas Naturalization Records, 1906-1989 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
Newspapers
- Texas Digital Newspaper Program at The Portal to Texas History
- Wikipedia has a list of online newspaper archives for Texas.
- Newspaperarchive.com ($) 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.
- 1800s-Current Texas, U.S., Newspapers.com™ Stories and Events Index, 1800's-Current at Ancestry — index & images ($)
Obituaries
- Obituaries of Bexar County, Texas at Partial Listing of Obituaries from Bexar County at Bexar County, TXGenWeb
- TX USGenWeb Archives Obituary
- Obituary Daily Times at Ancestry ($) Citations to over 15,000,000 obituaries including interactive search function
Other Records
Periodicals
Probate Records
Probate records of Texas counties were kept by the probate clerk, usually in "probate minutes."
- See Texas Probate Records for more information.
- 1800-1990 Texas Probate Records, 1800-1990 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Images only
- 1800-2000 Texas Wills and Probate Records 1800-2000 at Ancestry — index & images ($)
- Search Tax, Criminal, Land and Wills Records Ancestry ($)
- Full-Text Search - Land Records at FamilySearch - index & images; dates, records, and places vary; How to Search
School Records
Social Security Records
- 1935-2014 United States Social Security Death Index at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index. Also at Ancestry, findmypast, Fold3, GenealogyBank, MyHeritage, and Steve Morse. Click here for more information.
- 1936-2007 U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007 at Ancestry ($) — index, click here for more information.
- 1936-2007 United States, Social Security Numerical Identification Files (NUMIDENT), 1936-2007 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index
Tax Records
- See Texas Taxation for more information.
- 1846-1910 Texas, County Tax Rolls 1846-1910 at Findmypast ($) — index & images
Vital Records
Vital Records of births, adoptions, marriages, divorces, and deaths were recorded on registers, certificates, and documents. Copies can be obtained from the County Clerk's office, or order certified copies online or by mail at the Texas Vital Records State Department of Health. See Texas Vital Records for more information.
Birth
- 1840-1981 Texas Births and Christenings, 1840-1981 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index
- 1903-1935 Texas Birth Certificates, 1903-1935 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
- 1903-1997 Texas Birth Index, 1903-1997 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index; Key to Texas County Codes; Also at: Ancestry ($)
- 1926-1995 Texas Births, 1926-1995 at MyHeritage — index ($)
Marriage
- 1802-2010 Texas, United States Marriages at Findmypast — index ($)
- 1814-2011 Texas Marriage Collection 1814-1909 and 1966-2011 at Ancestry — index ($)
- 1837-1965 Texas Marriages, 1837-1965 at MyHeritage — index & images ($)
- 1837-1965 Texas, County Marriage Records, 1837-1965 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
- 1837-1965 Texas, U.S., Select County Marriage Records, 1837-1965 at Ancestry — index ($)
- 1837-1973 Texas Marriages, 1837-1973 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index
- 1837-1977 Texas, County Marriage Index, 1837-1977 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
- 1837-1965 Texas, U.S., Select County Marriage Records at Ancestry — index & images ($)
- 1966-2010 Texas Marriages, 1966-2010 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index
- 1966-2016 Texas Marriages and Divorces at MyHeritage — index ($)
Death
- 1890-1976 Texas Deaths, 1890-1976 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
- 1903-1973 Texas Deaths and Burials, 1903-1973 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index
- 1903-1982 Texas Death Certificates 1903-1982 at Ancestry — index & images ($)
- 1903-2000 Texas Death Index, 1903-2000 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index
- 1964-1998 Texas Death Index, 1964-1998 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index
- 1977-1986 Texas Deaths, 1977-1986 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
Divorce
- 1968-2010 Texas Divorce Index, 1968-2010 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index
- 1968-2011 Texas Divorces 1968-2011 at Ancestry — index ($)
- 1966-2016 Texas Marriages and Divorces at MyHeritage — index ($)
Research Facilities
Archives
FamilySearch Centers
FamilySearch Center and Affiliate Library Locator map - search for local FamilySearch Centers or Affiliate Libraries
- FamilySearch 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 FamilySearch center.
Local Centers and Affiliate Libraries
- San Antonio Texas East FamilySearch Center
- San Antonio Texas FamilySearch Center
- San Antonio Texas La Cantera FamilySearch Center
- San Antonio Texas North FamilySearch Center
- San Antonio Texas West FamilySearch Center
- Stone Oak Texas FamilySearch Center
- Leon Valley Public Library - an affiliate library
- San Antonio Genealogical and Historical Society - an affiliate library
Libraries
- Converse Public Library
601 S Seguin Rd
Converse, TX 78109
Phone: (210) 659-4160
Website - Leon Valley Public Library
6425 Evers Rd
Leon Valley, TX 78238
Phone: (210) 684-0720
Website
Research Wiki Article - 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
Museums
Societies
- Daughters of the Republic of Texas Library
Website - Los Bexareños Genealogical And Historical Society
PO Box 1935
San Antonio, TX 78297
Website - San Antonio Genealogical and Historical Society
911 Melissa Drive
San Antonio, TX 78213
Phone: (210) 342-5242
Website
Websites
- Bexar County TXGenWeb, part of TXGenWeb
- USGenWeb Archives Project
- Cyndi's List TX
- FamilySearch Catalog – The FamilySearch catalog contains descriptions and access information for all genealogical materials (including books, online materials, microfilm, microfiche, and publications) in their collection. Use Historical Records to search for specific individuals in genealogical records.
Research Guides
References
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Bexar County, Texas," in https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bexar_County,_Texas. accessed 07/25/2019
- ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Bexar County, Texas. Page 659 At various libraries (WorldCat); FS Library Book 973 D27e 2002.
- ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Bexar County, Texas . Page 658-677 At various libraries (WorldCat); FS Library 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.
- ↑ GenDisasters.com - San Antonio, Texas Fire, Feb 1892 http://www.gendisasters.com/texas/17958/san-antonio-tx-fire-feb-1892
- ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002).At various libraries (WorldCat); FSC Book 973 D27e 2002.
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Bexar County, Texas," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bexar_County,_Texas, accessed 26 March 2019.