Limestone County, Texas Genealogy

United States

Texas

Limestone County

Guide to Limestone 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: Groesbeck Organized: August 18, 1846 Parent County(s): Robertson Neighboring Counties Falls • Freestone • Hill • Leon • McLennan • Navarro • Robertson See County Maps Courthouse Location Map

County Information

Description

The county is located in the east-central area of the state.

County Courthouse

Limestone County Courthouse
200 W State St
Groesbeck TX 76642
Phone: 254-729-5504
Limestone County Website

County Clerk has birth and death records from 1903, marriage records from 1873, probate records from 1880’s, land records from late 1800’s, court records from 1900s and military records from 1920s.
District Clerk has divorce records

Limestone 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	1873	1903	1870	1873	1874	1829
*Statewide registration for births and deaths began in 1903. General compliance by the 1930s.

Record Loss

1873 Limestone County Courthouse at Springfield and most county records were destroyed by fire in October 1873. 1891 Limestone County Courthouse at Groesbeck destroyed by fire on February 1, 1891. Records were stored in vaults and were not lost. 1954The Old Limestone County Courthouse, built in 1891, was destroyed by fire in May 1954. It had not been used as a courthouse since 1924, when the current courthouse was built. 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 Robertson County, on 11 April 1846. 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 Coolidge Kosse Tehuacana

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
Groesbeck (county seat)	Mart‡	Mexia
Towns
Coolidge Kosse	Tehuacana	Thornton
Unincorporated communities
Ben Hur Buffalo Mop Farrar	Forest Glade Holden Prairie Hill	Point Enterprise Victoria†
Ghost towns
Springfield

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

†Not to be confused with Victoria, in Victoria County, Texas

Resources

Cemeteries

Cemeteries of Limestone 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.

Census Records

Historical populations
Census	Pop.	%±
1850	2,608	—
1860	4,537	74.0%
1870	8,591	89.4%
1880	16,246	89.1%
1890	21,678	33.4%
1900	32,573	50.3%
1910	34,621	6.3%
1920	33,283	−3.9%
1930	39,497	18.7%
1940	33,781	−14.5%
1950	25,251	−25.3%
1960	20,413	−19.2%
1970	18,100	−11.3%
1980	20,224	11.7%
1990	20,946	3.6%
2000	22,051	5.3%
2010	23,384	6.0%
Source: "Wikipedia.org".

Church Records

• See Texas Church Records for more information.

• Catholic Parishes in Texas
• Christian Church Directory for Texas at ChurchFinder

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

Funeral Homes

Blair Stubbs Funeral Home in Mexia Blair Stubbs Funeral Home in Thornton Corley and Corley-Porter Funeral Homes and Chapel in Mexia Groesbeck Funeral Home Inc. in Groesbeck Jones Funeral Services in Mexia Littlepage Funeral Home in Mart Pearly Gates Funeral Home in Mexia

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

• See Texas Local Histories for more information.

• 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.
• History of Negroes of Limestone County, From 1866-1939. By Walter Cotton. Mexia, TX: Dr. J.A. Chatman and S.M. Merriwether, 1939. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library.

Maps and Gazetteers

Click a neighboring county
for more resources

• Texas Counties Map. Click on the county to go to the TXGenWeb site.
• 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
• 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

World War I

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

Newspapers

• 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 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 ($)

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
• 1903-1997 Texas Birth Index, 1903-1997 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index; Key to Texas County Codes; Also at: Ancestry ($)
• 1903-1935 Texas Birth Certificates, 1903-1935 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
• 1926-1995 Texas Births, 1926-1995 at MyHeritage — index ($)

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

Death

• 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 ($)
• 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

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

• Corsicana Texas FamilySearch Center
• Waco Texas FamilySearch Center
• Fairfield Library Association - an affiliate library
• Groesbeck Public Library - an affiliate library
• Waco Library - multiple locations - an affiliate library

Libraries

Hill County Genealogical Society
PO Box 636
Hillsboro, TX 76645
Website

Gibbs Memorial Library
305 E Rusk St
Mexia, TX 76667
Website

Maffett Memorial Library
601 W Yeagua St
Groesbeck, TX 76642
Website

Websites

• Limestone TX GenWeb part of TXGenWeb
• Limestone 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.