Erath County, Texas Genealogy

United States

Texas

Erath County

Guide to Erath 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: Stephenville Organized: 04 Aug 1856 Parent County(s): Bosque, Coryell Neighboring Counties Bosque • Comanche • Eastland • Hamilton • Hood • Palo Pinto • Somervell See County Maps Courthouse Location Map

County Information

Description

The county was named for George Bernard Erath, an early surveyor and a soldier at the Battle of San Jacinto. The county is located in the central area of the state.

County Courthouse

Erath County Courthouse
100 W Washington St
Stephenville, TX 76401
Phone: 254-965-1452
Erath County Website

County Clerk has birth and death records from 1903, marriage records from 1869 probate records from 1876 and land records from 1867.

Erath 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	1869	1903	1866	1867	1876	1829
*Statewide registration for births and deaths began in 1903. General compliance by the 1930s.

Record Loss

1866--Courthouse and most of the county records were destroyed by fire in the summer of 1866. 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 Bosque and Coryell Counties on 25 January 1856. County Seat: Stephenville 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
Dublin	Stephenville (county seat)
Unincorporated communities
Alexander Bluff Dale Chalk Mountain Clairette Edna Hill	Harbin Huckabay Lingleville Morgan Mill Oak Dale	Purves Selden Three Way Thurber
Ghost towns
Duffau

Resources

Cemeteries

Cemeteries of Erath County, Texas online and in print
Tombstone Transcriptions Online	Find a Grave BillionGraves Cemeteries of TX Tombstone Transcription Project TX Gravestones Photo Project USGenWeb Archives TXGenWeb Interment.net Names in Stone
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.		%±
1860	2,425		—
1870	1,801		−25.7%
1880	11,796		555.0%
1890	21,584		83.0%
1900	29,966		38.8%
1910	32,095		7.1%
1920	28,385		−11.6%
1930	20,804		−26.7%
1940	20,760		−0.2%
1950	18,434		−11.2%
1960	16,236		−11.9%
1970	18,141		11.7%
1980	22,560		24.4%
1990	27,991		24.1%
2000	33,001		17.9%
2010	37,890		14.8%
Source: "Wikipedia.org".

• 1856-1857 Tax Rolls at USGenWeb Archives Project
• 1900 Federal Census, partial at USGenWeb Archives Project
• 1900 Federal Census -Prect 2 Page 115-Davies at USGenWeb Archives Project
• 1900 Federal Census - Prect 1 Pages 1A-21B at USGenWeb Archives Project

Church Records

• See Texas Church Records for more information.

• Erath County Churches at TXGenWeb
• Christian Church Directory for Texas at ChurchFinder
• 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

Online Court Indexes and Records

• Erath County Court Records at TXGenWeb

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 American

• African American Griots at USGenWeb

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

Funeral Homes

Harrell Funeral Home in Dublin Lacy Funeral Home in Stephenville Stephenville Funeral Home in Stephenville

Land and Property Records

• See Texas Land and Property for more information.

• Land Abstract Indexes at USGenWeb Archives Project
• Erath County Deeds & Land Records at TXGenWeb
• Full-Text Search - Land Records at FamilySearch - index & images; dates, records, and places vary; How to Search

Local Histories

Local histories are available for Erath County and may include biographies, church, school and government history, and military information.

• See Texas Local Histories for more information.

• 1854--Permanent settlers arrived in Stephenville in 1854.
• Biographies of Erath County Residents at TXGenWeb

Maps and Gazetteers

Click a neighboring county
for more resources

• Erath County Map at TXGenWeb
• 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

Military Records

• 1838-1900 Texas Muster Roll Index Cards at Ancestry — index & images ($)

Mexican-American War

• 1845-1848 US American Volunteer Soldiers Mexican War 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
• CSA Indigent Families at USGenWeb Archives Project
• CSA Pension List at USGenWeb Archives Project

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

• w3newspapers - Texas Newspaper Index with links
• Newslink - Texas Newspaper List (sorted by publication frequency)
• The Olden Times - Historic Texas News Online
• 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 ($)

Obituaries

• Erath County Obituaries at TXGenWeb
• USGenWeb Archives Obituary Project at Texas

• Obituary Daily Times at Citations to over 15,000,000 obituaries (Ancestry)

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 at Ancestry — index & images ($)
• Search Tax, Criminal, Land and Wills Records at Ancestry ($)
• 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
• 1856-1857 Tax Rolls at TXGenWeb

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

• 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 ($)
• 1814-2011 Texas Marriage Collection at Ancestry — index ($)
• 1837-1965 Texas Marriages, 1837-1965 at MyHeritage — index & images ($)
• 1837-1965 Texas, County Marriage Records, 1837-1965 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
• 1837-1973 Texas Marriages, 1837-1973 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index
• 1837-1977 Texas, County Marriage Index, 1837-1977 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
• 1837-1977 Texas Select County Marriage Index at Ancestry — index ($)
• 1966-2010 Texas Marriages, 1966-2010 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index
• 1966-2016 Texas Marriages and Divorces at MyHeritage — index ($)

Death

• 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 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 at Ancestry — index ($)
• 1966-2016 Texas Marriages and Divorces at MyHeritage — index ($)
• 1850-1930 USGenWeb Census Project — Texas 1850 - 1930

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

• Granbury Texas FamilySearch Center
• Stephenville Texas FamilySearch Center
• Comanche Public Library - an affiliate library
• Dublin Public Library - an affiliate library

Libraries

Public Library
174 N Columbia St
Stephenville, TX 76401
Phone: 254-918-1240
Website

Societies

Erath County Genealogical Society
174 North Columbia
Stephenville, TX 76401
Website

Erath County Genealogical Society
Dublin Public Library
206 W Blackjack St
Dublin, TX 76446
Phone: 254-445-4141
Website

Websites

• Erath TX GenWeb part of TXGenWeb
• Erath USGWArchives part of USGWArchives Texas Counties
• Frontier Times Magazine
• Historic 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.

This table contains the dates the local or state government began recording in the county or county equivalent. Use substitute records for earlier dates. If you believe there is an error, email us at wikisupport@familysearch.org.

County boundary maps are currently unavailable. Download information instead.

To access available information, first log into FamilySearch.

Users should verify which locations and dates are included in this collection.

This website requires a paid subscription for full access. Some subscription websites are available for free at your local FamilySearch Center or Affiliate Library.

“Current” indicates records are available as recently as privacy laws allow. This date can change from year to year. To determine the exact dates available, contact the respective organization/repository.

FamilySearch affiliate libraries may have access to center-only databases, but do not always have all services normally provided by a FamilySearch center.