Tom Green County, Texas Genealogy

United States

Texas

Tom Green County

Guide to Tom Green 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: San Angelo Organized: 5 January 1875 Parent County(s): Bexar Land District Neighboring Counties Coke • Concho • Irion • Menard • Reagan • Runnels • Schleicher • Sterling See County Maps Courthouse Location Map

County Information

Description

The county was named for Thomas Green, a Confederate brigadier general. The county is located in the west-central area of the state. The original Tom Green County extended to the Pecos River and covered 12,500 square miles. Twelve other counties have been created from this area. The first white settler arrived in 1864. Ben Ficklin was almost washed away in 1882. Tom Green County has had five courthouses and two county seats. When the county was first organized, the town of Ben Ficklin was chosen as the county seat and an adobe building was used as a courthouse. A stone courthouse was soon built. After the town was destroyed by a flood in 1882, the county seat was moved to the larger and more centrally located San Angelo, where the third Tom Green Courthouse was completed in 1884. The current courthouse was built in 1928.

County Courthouse

Tom Green County Courthouse
124 W Beauregard Ave
San Angelo, TX 76903
Phone: 325-659-6551
Tom Green County Website

County Clerk has birth and death records from 1903, marriage, probate and court records from 1875 and land records from 1860.

Tom Green 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	1875	1903	1875	1860	1875	1829
*Statewide registration for births and deaths began in 1903. General compliance by the 1930s.

Record Loss

1882 Ben Ficklin, then the county seat, was destroyed by flood; the recently-built stone courthouse, however, was one of the few buildings that was still standing. An older adobe building used as the first courthouse was destroyed in the flood. 1886 The second floor of the Tom Green County Courthouse caught fire on June 28, 1886, possibly from mice eating matches. The fire started in the office of the Clerk of District Courts. Many of the records in the clerk's office were destroyed. 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 Bexar Land District, on 13 Mar 1874. County Seat: San Angelo 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 Christoval San Angelo

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
San Angelo (county seat)
Unincorporated communities
Harriett Knickerbocker Mereta Negro Crossing	Orient Tankersley Vancourt	Veribest Wall Water Valley
Census-designated places
Carlsbad	Christoval	Grape Creek
Ghost towns
Ben Ficklin

History Timeline

1876 When Tom Green County was created in 1874, the county had no northern boundary. On 21 August 1876, a northern boundary was created - drawn from the northwest corner of Runnels County to the New Mexico state line and cutting off territory for 54 counties to the north of Tom Green County.

Resources

Cemeteries

Cemeteries of Tom Green 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

• 1850-1930 USGenWeb Census Project Texas 1850 - 1930

Historical populations
Census	Pop.		%±
1880	3,615		—
1890	5,152		42.5%
1900	6,804		32.1%
1910	17,882		162.8%
1920	15,210		−14.9%
1930	36,033		136.9%
1940	39,302		9.1%
1950	58,929		49.9%
1960	64,630		9.7%
1970	71,047		9.9%
1980	84,784		19.3%
1990	98,458		16.1%
2000	104,010		5.6%
2010	110,224		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
• 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

• 1954 San Angelo, Tom Green County, Texas, City Directory, 1954 at MyHeritage — index & images ($)
• 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
• Texas African American Griots Project at USGenWeb

Funeral Homes

Gutierrez Funeral Chapels in San Angelo Harper Funeral Home in San Angelo Johnson's Funeral Home in San Angelo Robert Massie Funeral Home in San Angelo Shaffer Funeral Home in San Angelo West Texas Cremation in San Angelo

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

• See Texas Local Histories for more information.

• The History of Tom Green County, Texas, 1931 by Julia Grace Bitner.
  
• No Country For Dull Men, Excerpts from the San Angelo Standard, 1884-1885, published by the San Angelo Genealogical and Historical Society, 2010. 327 pages including name and subject index, 1880 images of San Angelo, area maps, and 1880 plot maps of San Angelo, Midland and Sherwood, Texas. Available from the San Angelo Genealogical and Historical Society
• 1890 Records of Tom Green County, Texas, Includes the 1890 tax list (property by residents living outside Tom Green County, unrendered property, railroads), marriages for the year 1890, probate records for the year 1890, plus the 1890 census of servicemen and widows. Published by the San Angelo Genealogical and Historical Society, 1990, 161 pages including index. Available from the San Angelo Genealogical and Historical Society
• Tom Green County History from the Handbook of Texas Online.
  

Maps and Gazetteers

Click a neighboring county
for more resources

• Texas Land Survey Maps for Tom Green County (land patent maps) at HistoryGeo.com ($). Free surname search.
• 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

• 1838-1900 Texas Muster Roll Index Cards 1838-1900 at Ancestry — index & images ($)
• Camps and Forts of Tom Green County at TXGenWeb

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

• San Angelo Standard Times. [1] Archived papers on Newspapers.com ($)
• Christoval Observer at University of Texas at Austin. Use Search function to locate copies held at this university.
• San Angelo Enterprise at University of Texas at Austin. Use Search function to locate copies held at this university.
• w3newspapers - Texas Newspaper Index with links
• Newslink - Texas Newspaper List (sorted by publication frequency)
• Texas Digital Newspaper Program at The Portal to Texas History
• 1800s-Current Texas, U.S., Newspapers.com™ Stories and Events Index, 1800's-Current at Ancestry — index & images ($)

Obituaries

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

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 ($)

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 ($)
• 1837-1965 Texas Marriages, 1837-1965 at MyHeritage — index & images ($)
• 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

• 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

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

Libraries

Tom Green County Library System
113 W Beauregard Ave
San Angelo, TX 76903
Phone: 325-655-7321
Website

Societies

Angelo Genealogical and Historical Society
PO Box 3453
San Angelo, TX 76902-3453
Phone: 325-268-0973
Website
Facebook

Green County Historical Society
PO Box 5602
San Angelo, TX 76903
Website

Websites

• Tom Green TX GenWeb part of TXGenWeb
• Tom Green 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.