Bowie County, Texas Genealogy

United States

Texas

Bowie County

Guide to Bowie County, Texas ancestry, genealogy and family history, birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.

Texas Online Genealogy Records

County Facts County seat: Boston Organized: December 17, 1840 Parent County(s): Red River Neighboring Counties Cass • Little River (AR) • McCurtain (OK) • Miller (AR) • Morris • Red River See County Maps Courthouse Location Map

County Information

Description

The county was named for James Bowie, the legendary knife fighter who died at the Battle of the Alamo. The county is located in the northeast area of the state.

County Courthouse

Bowie County Courthouse
710 James Bowie Dr
New Boston, TX 75570
Phone: 903-628-6781
Bowie County Website

County Clerk has birth, marriage, death, probate, land and military records, school census.
Clerk District Court has divorce and court records.

Bowie 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.

Known Beginning Dates for Government County Records
Birth*	Marriage	Death*	Court	Land	Probate	Census
1903	1889	1903	1889	1889	1889	1829
*Statewide registration for births and deaths began in 1903. General compliance by the 1930s.

Record Loss

1889--The Bowie County Courthouse at Texarkana burned on 21 Jan 1889. Almost all the records were destroyed. 1989--The Old Bowie County Courthouse at Old Boston, built in 1891, burned on 12 Aug 1989. The courthouse was abandoned, as a new courthouse had opened at New Boston in 1985. No records were lost. For suggestions about research in places that suffered historic record losses, see: Burned Counties. By Michael John Neill at 24-7 Family History Circle. When the Records are Gone. By Arlene Eakle at Arlene Eakle's Tennessee Blog. Burned Counties Research in the FamilySearch Research Wiki. List of counties in the United States with Record Loss

Boundary Changes

Parent County(s): Created from Red River on December 17, 1840. County Seat: Boston Texas Individual County Chronologies - Newberry Library list of all boundary changes by county Texas Historical Borders - Map at Newberry Library Atlas of Historical County Boundaries; Also at: mapofus.org - animated maps illustrating Texas county boundary changes

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:

Cities
DeKalb Hooks Leary Maud	Nash New Boston Red Lick	Redwater Texarkana Wake Village
Unincorporated communities
Bassett Beaver Dam Boston (county seat) Carbondale College Hill Corley Dalby Springs Hoot	Hubbard Malta Oak Grove Old Boston Old Salem Red Bank Old Union Siloam	Simms Spring Hill South Texarkana Victory City Wamba WardCreek
Ghost towns
Darden Eylau	* Hartman Hodgson	* Sulphur

‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties

†The City of Texarkana is located in two states. In the middle of the city is a street called State Line Road which separates the city between Bowie County, Texas and Miller (AR). Texarkana is the county seat for Miller County, Arkansas, and a marriage license purchased in Miller County, Arkansas is not valid in the State of Texas.

Resources

Cemeteries

Cemeteries of Bowie County, Texas online and in print
Tombstone Transcriptions Online	Find a Grave TX Gravestones Photo Project TX Tombstone Transcription Project BillionGraves Cemeteries of TX USGenWeb Archives TXGenWeb
Tombstone Transcriptions in Print (Often more complete)	FamilySearch Library WorldCat
List of Cemeteries in the County	Find a Grave FamilySearch Places
See Texas Cemeteries for more information.

Census Records

Historical populations
Census	Pop.		%±
1850	2,912		—
1860	5,052		73.5%
1870	4,684		−7.3%
1880	10,965		134.1%
1890	20,267		84.8%
1900	26,676		31.6%
1910	34,827		30.6%
1920	39,472		13.3%
1930	48,563		23.0%
1940	50,208		3.4%
1950	61,966		23.4%
1960	59,971		−3.2%
1970	67,813		13.1%
1980	75,301		11.0%
1990	81,665		8.5%
2000	89,306		9.4%
2010	92,565		3.6%
Source: "Wikipedia.org".

Church Records

• See Texas Church Records for more information.

• Christian Church Directory for Texas at ChurchFinder
• Churches in Texarkana TX
• Texarkana TX Churches

List of Churches and Church Parishes

• FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places
  

Directories

• 1970-2024 United States, Residence Database, 1970-2024 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index, coverage may vary

Ethnic, Political, and Religious Groups

African Americans

• 1865-1870 Texas, Freedmen's Bureau Field Office Records, 1865-1870 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Images only

Funeral Homes

Bates-Rolf Funeral Home in New Boston East Funeral Home in Texarkana Haynes Mortuary, Inc. in Texarkana Jones-Stuart Mortuary, Inc in Texarkana Richardson Hill Funeral Home in Texarkana Texarkana Funeral Homes in Nash Texarkana Funeral Homes in Texarkana

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 Bowie County and may include biographies, church, school and government history, and military information.

• See Texas Local Histories for more information.

• First Settlers of Bowie and Cass Counties Texas, By: Gifford White, Published June 1, 1983 by Ericson Books
• Daughter of Destiny: Memoirs of a Bowie County, Texas Farm Girl, By: Carlene M. Howell, Published April 1995 by Tab Books
• Bowie County, Tx Index to Probate Records; 1883-1940, 97 Pages,Compiled by WPA Workers
• Texarkana Pioneer Families, By: Nancy Jennings
• The Texarkana Story 1873-1948, By: Lucille Holland
• Texarkana a Pictorial History, By: William D Leet, Published 1982
• Bowie County Texas Historical Handbook, By: Bowie County Historical Commission, Published 1976
• Texarkana Centennial, Historical Program - 1873-1973, By: Nancy Jennings Watts & Mary Lou Stuart Phillips, Published 1973
• History of Texarkana and Bowie and Miller Counties, By: Chandler, Barbara O., 1939.

Maps and Gazetteers

Click a neighboring county
for more resources

• Interactive Map of Texas County Formation History (1790-1897) - animated maps illustrating Texas county boundary changes
• Texas Counties Map. Click on the county to go to the TXGenWeb site
• 1897 Map of 1897 Bowie County, Texas with numerous small settlements. (My Genealogy Hound)
  
• FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places

Military Records

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
• Bowie County Civil War lists TXGenWeb

World War I

• 1917-1920 Texas, World War I Records, 1917-1920 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images

Vietnam War

• Vietnam Wall List for Bowie County - Bowie County TXGenWeb

Naturalization and Citizenship

• 1906-1989 Texas Naturalization Records, 1906-1989 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images

Newspapers

• Texarkana Gazette
• Texas Digital Newspaper Program at The Portal to Texas History
• 1800s-Current Texas, U.S., Newspapers.com™ Stories and Events Index, 1800's-Current at Ancestry — index & images ($)

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 ($)
• Full-Text Search - Wills and Probate Records at FamilySearch - index & images; dates, records, and places vary; How to Search

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
• 1846- Bowie County 1846 Tax List from the USGenWeb archives
• 1903- Bowie County Poll Tax List 1903 from the USGenWeb archives
• 1904- Bowie County Poll Tax List 1904 from the USGenWeb archives

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 ($)
• 1837-1973 Texas Marriages, 1837-1973 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index
• 1837-1977 Texas, County Marriage Index, 1837-1977 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
• 1837-1977 Texas Select County Marriage Index 1837-1977 at Ancestry ($) — index
• 1966-2010 Texas Marriages, 1966-2010 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index
• 1966-2016 Texas Marriages and Divorces at MyHeritage ($) — index

Death

• 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
• Bates Rolf Funeral Home Index and Bowden Funeral Home Records from the USGenWeb archives.

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

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

• Queen City Texas FamilySearch Center
• Texarkana-New Boston Texas FamilySearch Center
• Franklin County Genealogical Society - an affiliate library
• Atlanta Public Library - an affiliate library

Societies

Texarkana Genealogical Society
PO Box 5825
Texarkana, TX 75505-5825

Genealogical Society
PO Box 461882
Garland, TX 75046
Website

Texarkana USA Genealogy Society
P.O. Box 2323
Texarkana, TX 75504-2323

Red River County Genealogical Society
P.O. Box 516
Clarksville, TX 75426

Websites

• Bowie TX GenWeb part of TXGenWeb
• Bowie USGWArchives part of USGWArchives Texas
• 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.