Runnels County, Texas Genealogy

United States

Texas

Runnels County

Guide to Runnels 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: Ballinger Organized: February 1880 Parent County(s): Bexar Land District, Travis Land District Neighboring Counties Coke • Coleman • Concho • Nolan • Taylor • Tom Green See County Maps Courthouse Location Map

County Information

Description

The county was named for Hiram G. Runnels, a Texas state legislator. The county is located in the central area of the state.

County Courthouse

Runnels County Courthouse
613 Hutchings Ave
Ballinger, TX 76821
Phone: 325-365-2720
Runnels County Website

County Clerk has birth, death and court records from 1903, marriage, probate and land records from 1880, military discharge records from 1918 and school census records 1925-1970.
District Clerk has divorce records.

Runnels 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	1880	1903	1903	1880	1880	1829
*Statewide registration for births and deaths began in 1903. General compliance by the 1930s.

Record Loss

There is no known history of courthouse disasters in this county.

Boundary Changes

Parent County(s): Created from Bexar Land District and Travis Land District on February 1, 1858. County Seat: Ballinger 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 Ballinger Content Rowena

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
Ballinger (county seat)	Miles	Winters
Unincorporated communities
Benoit Norton	Rowena	Wingate

History Timeline

1858	County Formed	Source:Red Book: American State, County, and Town Sources
1880	First Census	Source:Population of States and Counties of the United States: 1790-1990
1880	Land records recorded	Source:Red Book: American State, County, and Town Sources
1880	Marriage records recorded	Source:Red Book: American State, County, and Town Sources
1880	No significant boundry changes after this year	Source:Population of States and Counties of the United States: 1790-1990
1880	Probate records recorded	Source:Red Book: American State, County, and Town Sources
1881	Court records recorded	Source:Red Book: American State, County, and Town Sources
1903	Birth records recorded	Source:Red Book: American State, County, and Town Sources

Resources

Cemeteries

Cemeteries of Runnels 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 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

• 1850-1930 USGenWeb Census Project — Texas 1850 - 1930

Historical populations
Census	Pop.	%±
1880	980	—
1890	3,193	225.8%
1900	5,379	68.5%
1910	20,858	287.8%
1920	17,074	−18.1%
1930	21,821	27.8%
1940	18,903	−13.4%
1950	16,771	−11.3%
1960	15,016	−10.5%
1970	12,108	−19.4%
1980	11,872	−1.9%
1990	11,294	−4.9%
2000	11,495	1.8%
2010	10,501	−8.6%
Source: "Wikipedia.org".

Church Records

• See Texas Church Records for more information.

• 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
  

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

Heritage Family Funeral Home in Ballinger Lange Funeral Home in Ballinger Winters Funeral Home in Winters

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

• See Texas Local Histories for more information.

1862 The first white settler arrived in 1862.

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 1838-1900 at Ancestry ($) — index & images

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
• Confederate Pension Applications at Texas State Library and Archives Commission

World War I

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

Newspapers

• Newspaperarchive.com ($) has historical newspapers available on-line. Their database has digitized Abilene newspapers that may include residents from Runnels County.
• w3newspapers-Texas Newspaper Index with links
• Newslink-Texas Newspaper List (sorted by publication frequency)
• The Olden Times - Historic Texas News Online
• Texas Digital Newspaper Program at The Portal to Texas History
• 1800s-Current Texas, U.S., Newspapers.com™ Stories and Events Index, 1800's-Current at Ancestry — index & images ($)

Obituaries

• USGenWeb Archives Obituary Project - Texas
• Obituary Daily Times - Citations to over 15,000,000 obituaries including interactive search function at 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.

• 1800-2000 Texas Wills and Probate Records 1800-2000 at Ancestry ($) — index & images
• 1800-1990 Texas Probate Records, 1800-1990 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Images only
• Search Tax, Criminal, Land and Wills Records at Ancestry($)
• 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

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 ($) — index
• 1814-2011 Texas Marriage Collection 1814-1909 and 1966-2011 at Ancestry ($) — 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
• 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

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

• Abilene Texas FamilySearch Center
• San Angelo Texas FamilySearch Center
• Tom Green County Library - an affiliate library

Libraries

Library Of Ballinger
204 N 8th St
Ballinger, TX 76821
Phone: 325-365-3616
Website

Public Library
120 N Main St
Winters, TX 79567
Phone: 325-754-4251
Website

Websites

• Runnels TX GenWeb part of TXGenWeb
• Runnels 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.