Hill County, Texas Genealogy

United States

Texas

Hill County

Guide to Hill 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: Hillsboro Organized: 14 May 1853 Parent County(s): Navarro Neighboring Counties Bosque • Ellis • Johnson • Limestone • McLennan • Navarro See County Maps Courthouse Location Map

County Information

Description

The county was named for George Washington Hill, secretary of war and secretary of the navy under the Republic of Texas. The county is located in the central area of the state.

County Courthouse

Hill County Courthouse
1 N Waco St
Hillsboro, TX 76645
Phone: 254-582-4020
Hill County Website

County Clerk has birth and marriage records 1876, probate records from 1879 and land records from 1853.
District Clerk has divorce records

Hill 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
1876	1876	1903	1867	1853	1879	1829
*Statewide registration for births and deaths began in 1903. General compliance by the 1930s.

Record Loss

1872--The Hill County Courthouse caught fire on 18 Sept 1872. Many county records were destroyed. 1993--The Hill County Courthouse, built in 1890, caught fire on 1 Jan 1993, destroying most of the building. 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 Navarro County, on7 February 1853. County Seat: Hillsboro 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

Town/city records in the FamilySearch Catalog Abbott Blum Hillsboro Itasca Mount Calm

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
Abbott Aquilla Covington	Hillsboro (county seat) Hubbard	Itasca Whitney
Towns
Blum Bynum Carl's Corner	Malone Mertens	Mount Calm Penelope
Unincorporated communities
Birome	Brandon	Irene

Resources

Biographies

• Biographies -Hill County TXGenWeb

Cemeteries

Cemeteries of Hill County, Texas online and in print
Tombstone Transcriptions Online	Find a Grave BillionGraves Tombstone Transcription Project TX Gravestones Photo Project Cemeteries of TX 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.

• Hill County, Texas Cemeteries (Cathy Shelley)
• Simmons Cemetery: The Forgotten Cemetery (Cathy Shelley)

Census Records

Historical populations
Census	Pop.	%±
1860	3,653	—
1870	7,453	104.0%
1880	16,554	122.1%
1890	27,583	66.6%
1900	41,355	49.9%
1910	46,760	13.1%
1920	43,332	−7.3%
1930	43,036	−0.7%
1940	38,355	−10.9%
1950	31,282	−18.4%
1960	23,650	−24.4%
1970	22,596	−4.5%
1980	25,024	10.7%
1990	27,146	8.5%
2000	32,321	19.1%
2010	35,089	8.6%
Source: "Wikipedia.org".

• 1880 Census Images - Hill County TXGenWeb
  
• 1900 Census Images - Hill County TXGenWeb
  
• Acker, Karen Ladd. Abstracts of Post Returns for Fort Graham, Texas, April 1849-October 1853: With a List of Soldiers Enumerated on the 1850 U.S. Census of Navarro County. Houston, TX: Self-published, 2008. (Contains records of personnel changes at Fort Graham in Navarro County, present-day Hill County, which closed in 1853.) | WorldCat page
• Census Records and Indexes (Hill County) (Linkpendium)
• Hill County Archives: Census Records (U.S. GenWeb Archives)
• 1900 and 1910 Layman, Helen. Czech Families in Hill County, Texas in 1900 & 1910: Extractions from the United States Census. Houston, TX: Czech Heritage Society of Texas, 2001. | World Cat page

Church Records

• See Texas Church Records for more information.

• Daniel, J.C. A History of the Baptists of Hill County, Texas. 1907.
• 1888-2008 Leak, Jim. Median River Baptist Association Also Known as Hill County Baptist Association: 1888-2008 - 120 Years. TX: Hill County Baptist Assn., 2009. | WorldCat page
  
• 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

• Hill County Archives: Court Records (U.S. GenWeb Archives)
  
• 1906-1989 Texas Naturalization Records, 1906-1989 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images

Directories

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

Land and Property Records

• See Texas Land and Property for more information.

• 1853-1901 Deed records on microfilm at FS Library: Land and property deeds with index
• Hill County, Texas Original Land Owners (U.S. GenWeb Archives)
• Hill County, Texas Miscellaneous Deeds (U.S. GenWeb Archives)
• Full-Text Search - Land Records at FamilySearch - index & images; dates, records, and places vary; How to Search

Local Histories

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

• See Texas Local Histories for more information.

1848 and 1853-- Early settlement followed the establishment of Fort Graham in 1848 to suppress Indian hostility. Hill County was formed in 1853 from Navarro County.

• 1838-1965 Bailey, Ellis, A History of Hill County, Texas, 1838-1965.
• The Heritage of Hill County, Texas. Clanton, AL: Heritage Publishing, 2006. | WorldCat
• The Heritage of Hill County, Texas, Vol. 2. Lexington, KY: Heritage Publishing, 2010 | WorldCat page
• 1853-1980 A History of Hill County, Texas, 1853-1980. Hill County Historical Commission, 1980.
• Kirkpatrick, A.Y. The Early Settlers' Life in Texas, and the Organization of Hill County. 1963.
• A Memorial and Biographical History of Johnson and Hill Counties, Texas: Containing the Early History of this Important Section of the Great State of Texas Together with Glimpses of its Future Prospects... Chicago: Lewis Publishing, 1892. | digital copy of Vol. 1 in Internet Archive | Google Books page (no preview)
• Simpson, Harold B. Hill County Trilogy. Hillsboro, TX: Hill College Press, 1986. | WorldCat page

Maps and Gazetteers

Click a neighboring county
for more resources

• 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 ($)
• 1849-1853 Acker, Karen Ladd. Abstracts of Post Returns for Fort Graham, Texas, April 1849-October 1853: With a List of Soldiers Enumerated on the 1850 U.S. Census of Navarro County. Houston, TX: Self-published, 2008. (Contains records of personnel changes at Fort Graham in Navarro County, present-day Hill County, which closed in 1853.) | WorldCat page
• Hill County Honor Roll: World War I, World War II, Korean War. Hillsboro, TX: American Legion Post No. 4, 1963. | WorldCat page

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
• Bryan, J.L. Confederate Veterans Buried in Hill County, Texas. Quinlan, TX: Solis/Bryan Researches, 1988. | WorldCat page
• Confederate Reunion (Cathy Shelley)
• Hill County, Texas Confederate Pension Applications (U.S. GenWeb Archives)

World War I

• 1917-1920 Texas, World War I Records, 1917-1920 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
• Military Discharges (WWI) (Cathy Shelley)

Newspapers

• Bessire, Royal C. Obituaries Hill County, Texas: 1886 to 1900. Hewitt, TX: Self-published, 2006. | WorldCat page
• Funeral Announcements (Cathy Shelley)
• Hill County Archives: Obituaries (U.S. GenWeb Archives)
• Hill County, Texas Obituaries (Cathy Shelley)
• The Hillsboro Reporter
• Texas Digital Newspaper Program at The Portal to Texas History
• Just the News - Surnames (Cathy Shelley)
• 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 at Ancestry — index & images ($)
• Probate minutes 1853 to 1934 with index
  
• 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
• Texas county tax rolls, 1846-1910, by the Texas Comptrollers Office

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

• A Hill County, Texas Marriage Records A (CensusDiggins.com)
• A-Z Hill County, Texas Marriages A to Z, Part 1 (Cathy Shelley)
• Z-Z Hill County, Texas Marriages Z to Z, Part 2 (Cathy Shelley)
• 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 ($)
• 1837-1965 Texas, County Marriage Records, 1837-1965 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
• 1837-1973 Texas Marriages, 1837-1973 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index
• 1837-1977 Texas, County Marriage Index, 1837-1977 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
• 1873-1880 Ingmire, Frances Terry. Hill County, Texas Marriage Records, 1873-1880. St. Louis: Self-published, 1981. | WorldCat page
• 1837-1977 Texas Select County Marriage Index 1837-1977 at Ancestry — index ($)
• 1873-1934 Hill County, Texas, marriage records, 1873-1934; index, 1873-1941
• 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
• 1890-1976 Footnote.com ($) has Texas Death Certificates 1890-1976 available online.
• 1903*1956 Death records, 1903-1956
• 1903-1973 Texas Deaths and Burials, 1903-1973 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index
• 1903-1982 Texas Death Certificates 1903-1982 at Ancestry — index & images ($)
• 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

• 1966-2016 Texas Marriages and Divorces at MyHeritage — index ($)
• 1968-2010 Texas Divorce Index, 1968-2010 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index
• 1968-2011 Texas Divorces 1968-2011 at Ancestry — index ($)

Research Facilities

Archives

Texas State Library and Archives
Hill County Records Available on Microfilm from Baylor University

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

• Cleburne Texas FamilySearch Center
• Waco Texas FamilySearch Center
• Ennis Public Library - an affiliate library
• Waco-McLennan County Library - multiple locations - an affiliate library

Libraries

Hillsboro City Library
118 South Waco Street
Hillsboro, TX 76645
Phone: 254-582-7385
Website

Societies

Hill County Genealogical Society
1019 E Elm
Hillsboro, TX 76645
Website

Websites

• Hill TX GenWeb part of TXGenWeb
• Hill USGWArchives part of USGWArchives Texas Counties
• Hill County, Texas (Handbook of Texas)
• Hill County, Texas Genealogy and Family History (Linkpendium)
• 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.