Shelby County, Texas Genealogy

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

County Facts
County seat: Center
Organized: December 29, 1845
Parent County(s): Nacogdoches, San Augustine
Neighboring Counties
DeSoto (LA)NacogdochesPanolaRuskSabineSabine (LA)San Augustine
See County Maps
Courthouse
Texas, Shelby County Courthouse.png
Location Map
Tx-shelby.png

Isaac Shelby.JPG

County Information

Description

The county was named for Isaac Shelby, a soldier in the American Revolution who became the first governor of Kentucky. The county is located in the east-central area of the state.[1]

County Courthouse

Shelby County Courthouse
200 Augustine St
Center, TX 75935
Phone: 936-598-6361
Shelby County Website

County Clerk has birth, marriage, probate, court and land records from 1882, death and burial records from 1903. District Clerk has divorce records.[2]

Shelby 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[3]
Birth* Marriage Death* Court Land Probate Census
1882 1882 1903 1882 1882 1882 1829
*Statewide registration for births and deaths began in 1903. General compliance by the 1930s.

Record Loss

  • 1882 The Shelby County courthouse burned May 31, 1882 destroying all records. [4]
Tax lists were forwarded to Austin so still exist. Deed records were "reconstructed" by the county commissioners.[5]

Boundary Changes

Populated Places

Town/city records in the FamilySearch Catalog

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:[7]

Cities
Towns
Unincorporated communities


History Timeline

Resources

Bible Records

Biographies

Business, Commerce, and Occupations

Cemeteries

Cemeteries of Shelby County, Texas online and in print
Tombstone Transcriptions Online
Tombstone Transcriptions in Print (Often more complete)
List of Cemeteries in the County
See Texas Cemeteries for more information.


Census Records

Historical populations
Census Pop.
1850 4,239
1860 5,362 26.5%
1870 5,732 6.9%
1880 9,532 66.3%
1890 14,365 50.7%
1900 20,452 42.4%
1910 26,423 29.2%
1920 27,464 3.9%
1930 28,627 4.2%
1940 29,235 2.1%
1950 23,479 −19.7%
1960 20,479 −12.8%
1970 19,672 −3.9%
1980 23,084 17.3%
1990 22,034 −4.5%
2000 25,224 14.5%
2010 25,448 0.9%
Source: "Wikipedia.org".


Church Records

Lutheran

  • Records of St. Paul's Lutheran Church, Shelby County, in Evangelical Lutheran Church in America database at Archives.com ($).

List of Churches and Church Parishes

Court Records

Directories

Emigration and Immigration

Ethnic, Political, and Religious Groups

Funeral Homes

Genealogies

Guardianship

Land and Property Records

Online Land Indexes and Records

Local Histories

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

  • 1750-1826 The county is named after Kentucky's First Governor Isaac Shelby.[8]
  • 1841-1844 This county was the scene of the Regulator-Moderator War.
  • Shelby County History from the Shelby County TXGenWeb site

Maps and Gazetteers

Rusk CountyPanola CountyNacogdoches CountySan Augustine CountySabine CountySabine ParishDeSoto ParishTX SHELBY.PNG
Click a neighboring county
for more resources

Migration

Military Records

Texas Revolution

Mexican-American War

Civil War

World War I

Vietnam War

Naturalization and Citizenship

Newspapers

Obituaries

Other Records

Periodicals

Probate Records

Probate records of Texas counties were kept by the probate clerk, usually in "probate minutes."

School Records

Social Security Records

Tax Records

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

Marriage

Death

Divorce

Research Facilities

Archives

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

Libraries

Museums

Timpson Area Genealogy and Heritage Society
520 Austin St
Timpson, TX 75975
Phone: 936-254-2966
Email:timpsgen@sbcglobal.net
Website

Societies

Shelby County Historical Society
Museum and Genealogy Research Library
230 Pecan St
Center, TX 75935
Phone: 936-598-3613
Website

Websites

Research Guides

References

  1. Wikipedia contributors, "Shelby, Texas" in "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shelby_County,_Texas. accessed 11/26/2019
  2. Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Shelby County, Texas. Page 673 At various libraries (WorldCat); FS Library Book 973 D27e 2002.
  3. Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Shelby County, Texas . Page 658-677 At various libraries (WorldCat); FS Library Book 973 D27e 2002; Alice Eichholz, ed. Ancestry’s Red Book: American State, County, and Town Sources, Third ed. (Provo, Utah: Ancestry, 2004), 655-665.
  4. Unknown. Touching Three Centuries, Shelby County Historic Courthouse. [cited 2011 27 April 2011]; Available from: http://www.shelbycountychamber.com/index.php?coc=courthouse.
  5. Unknown. Touching Three Centuries, Shelby County Historic Courthouse. [cited 2011 27 April 2011]; Available from: http://www.shelbycountychamber.com/index.php?coc=courthouse.
  6. Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002).At various libraries (WorldCat); FSC Book 973 D27e 2002.
  7. Wikipedia contributors, "Shelby County, Texas," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shelby_County,_Texas, Last accessed 22 August 2019.
  8. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_counties_in_Texas Wikipedia