Calhoun County, Texas Genealogy

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County Courthouse
Calhoun County has had two county seats and five courthouses. The first county seat and courthouse was in Lavaca, 1846-1852. The county seat was moved to Indianola in 1852, where the second courthouse was built in 1857. The county seat was moved back to Lavaca (now renamed Port Lavaca) after the hurricane of 1886 destroyed the Indianola Courthouse. A courthouse was built in Port Lavaca in 1887. A new courthouse was built in 1912 and later demolished in 1959, when the current courthouse was opened.

Calhoun County Courthouse Calhoun County Clerk - Anita Fricke 211 S. Ann St Port Lavaca, TX. 77979 Calhoun County Government Website

Inventory of the county archives of Texas : Calhoun County, 1941. Inventory of records housed in the Calhoun County Courthouse as of 1936. Describes the records of the County Commissioners Court, County Clerk as Recorder, District Court, County Court, Justices of the Peace, District Attorney, County Attorney, Sheriff, Constables, Tax Assessor-Collector, Board of Equalization, County Treasurer, County Board of School Trustees, County School Superintendent, County Health Officer, County Surveyor, Board of Land Commissioners (Defunct), Inspector of Hides and Animals (Defunct), and Coroner (Defunct). Read the book online from The Portal to Texas History.

Parent County
1846--Calhoun County was created April 4, 1846 from Jackson, Victoria, and Matagorda Counties. County seat: Port Lavaca

The county was named for John Caldwell Calhoun (March 18, 1782 – March 31, 1850), 7th Vice President of the United States.

Record Loss
1886 -- Calhoun County Courthouse at Indianola destroyed by hurricane, August 1886.

Populated Places
Cities and Towns: | | Long Mott |  |  |  | Port O'Connor |  |

Neighboring Counties

 * Aransas
 * Jackson
 * Matagorda
 * Refugio
 * Victoria

Court

 * Calhoun County Court Records available on microfilm - District Court Minutes 1847-1914

Land

 * Calhoun County Land Records available on microfilm - Deed Records 1846-1890, Survey Records 1838-1934

Local Histories

 * Shifting Sands of Calhoun County, Texas, 1980 by the Calhoun County Historical Commission.
 * "Looking Back" Scrapbook for Calhoun County and Matagorda Bay, Texas
 * A History of Indianola, by Lelia Seelingson. Brief history of Indianola, beginning with the arrival of La Salle. Read the book online from The Portal to Texas History.
 * Indianola: The Mother of Western Texas, 1988, by Brownson Malsch.
 * Calhoun County History from The Handbook of Texas Online.
 * Indianola, Texas Hurricane, Sept 1875

Maps

 * Calhoun County 1845, map showing the area before Calhoun County was formed in 1846.
 * Calhoun County 1862
 * Calhoun County 1872
 * Calhoun County 1910 - Southern part of Calhoun County
 * More Calhoun County Maps from the Calhoun County TXGenWeb site

Military

 * Confederate Pension Applications from the Calhoun County TXGenWeb site
 * Index to the Military Rolls of the Republic of Texas 1835-1845

Newspapers

 * Port Lavaca Wave Newspaper
 * Indianola Bulletin newspaper abstracts: Mar 4, 1852, Mar 25, 1852, Jan 6, 1853 - from newspaperarchives.com
 * Newspaper Database of Obituaries, Marriage Records and Birth Records from the Calhoun County Genealogical Society.

Probate

 * Calhoun County Probate Records available on microfilm - Probate Records 1846-1914

Taxation

 * Calhoun County Tax Records available on microfilm - Tax Rolls 1846-1910

Vital Records

 * Vital Records - Obituaries, Marriage Records and Birth Records from the Calhoun County Genealogical Society
 * Calhoun County Vital Records available on microfilm - Marriage Records 1846-1919, Probate Records 1846-1916, County Clerk and other records.
 * Port Lavaca Wave Newspaper Obituary Index 2002-2003
 * Texas Death Index 1964 to 1998 [no images] Name index to Texas Statewide Death Certificates or four million people who have died since 1964.
 * Texas Death Records 1890 – 1976 [with images] Name index and images of statewide death certificates, 1890-1976. The name index has been created by FamilySearch and is tied to images of the Texas death certificates. Few certificates are available prior to 1903

Societies and Libraries

 * Calhoun County Genealogical Society, founded to preserve the genealogy and history of Calhoun County.
 * Calhoun County Museum 301 S. Ann Street Port Lavaca, TX 77979 website
 * Calhoun County Public Library 200 West Mahan St. Port Lavaca, TX 77979 website

Web Sites

 * Calhoun County Texas TXGenWeb site family histories, cemeteries, maps and more.
 * Calhoun County, TX Old Photos