Kaufman County, Texas Genealogy

Guide to Kaufman County Texas ancestry, family history, and genealogy research page. Birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, and military records. Texas Online Genealogy Records

Description
The county was named for David S. Kaufman, a diplomat and U.S. Representative from Texas. The County is located in the northeast central area of the state.

Kaufman County Justice Center
Note: The Kaufman County offices moved in December of 2022 to the new Justice Center.

As of January 2023 the records were still in the courthouse building downtown. If you

are seeking early land or probate records you should call first to make sure the records you

seek are at the new location. A clerk may need to retrieve your records from the courthouse.

Kaufman County Justice Center 1904 U.S. 175 Kaufman, TX 75142 Phone: 972.932.4331 County Clerk has birth and death records from 1903, marriage and probate records from 1850 and land records

County Clerk

1904 U.S. 175 Kaufman 75142 Phone: 972-376-4730

District Clerk

1904 U.S. 175 Kaufman 75142 Phone: 972-376-4640

History
1841--The first settlers arrived around 1841. Area was inhabited by Caddo, Cherokee, Delaware and Kickapoo Indians.

Parent County
1848--Kaufman County was created 26 February 1848 from Henderson County.
 * County seat: Kaufman

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

Places / Localities
Town/city records in the FamilySearch Catalog



Populated Places
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:

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

Neighboring Counties
Dallas •  Ellis  •  Henderson  •  Hunt  •  Rockwall  •  Van Zandt

African American

 * 1865-1870 Freedmen's Bureau Field Office Records(images) - FamilySearch
 * African American Griots ~ USGenWeb
 * AfriGeneas ~ African Ancestored Genealogy
 * Texas African American Genealogy ~ Access Genealogy

Cemeteries
Additional Cemetery Sources


 * African American Cemeteries Online ~ Partial index/transcriptions of African American cemeteries
 * Texas Escapes Listing of Texas cemeteries with transcriptions and lots of pictures.

Census

 * 1850 Census Index ~ USGenWeb Archives Project
 * 1850-1930 USGenWeb Census Project Texas

Church
List of Churches and Church Parishes
 * Texas Christian Church Directory ~ ChurchAngel
 * Catholic Parishes in Texas
 * Forney, Texas Church Records ~ Forney Historic Preservation League archives
 * FamilySearch Places

Local Histories

 * History of Forney, Texas ~ Forney Historic Preservation League archives

Maps

 * 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

 * 1838 - 1900 Texas Muster Roll Index Cards at Ancestry.com — index and images $

Mexican-American War

 * 1845 - 1848 US American Volunteer Soldiers Mexican War at Ancestry.com — index $

Civil War

 * 1861 - 1865 at FamilySearch — index
 * 1861 - 1865 at FamilySearch — index
 * Confederate Pension Applications ~ Texas State Library and Archives Commission
 * Confederate Pension Applications ~ TXGenWeb
 * Confederate Indigent Families ~ TXGenWeb

World War I

 * 1917 - 1920 at FamilySearch — index and images

Newspapers

 * Home Town News -  Texas Newspaper Index with links
 * The Portal to Texas History ~ The Portal to Texas History (UNT) (Books, Maps, Photos, Newspapers)
 * 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
 * Forney, Texas newspaper clippings ~ Forney Historic Preservation League archives

Obituaries

 * USGenWeb Archives Obituary Project ~  Texas
 * Afrigeneas ~ African American death notices, obituaries and funeral programs compiled by users from current newspapers and historical sources
 * Obituary Depot ~ Texas Newspaper Citations
 * Obituary Daily Times ~ Citations to over 15,000,000 obituaries including interactive search function
 * Forney, Texas Obituaries ~ Forney Historic Preservation League archives

Probate
Online Probate Indexes and Records


 * 1800 – 1990 at FamilySearch — images
 * 1800 – 2000 Texas Wills and Probate Records at Ancestry.com — index and images $
 * Search Tax, Criminal, Land and Wills Records ~ Ancestry.com (subscription)

Taxation

 * 1846-1910 Texas, County Tax Rolls 1846-1910 at Findmypast ($) — index and images

Birth
Online Birth Indexes and Records


 * 1903-1935 Texas, Birth Certificates, 1903-1935 (images and index) - FamilySearch
 * 1903-1997 Texas Birth Index, 1903-1997 (index) - FamilySearch
 * 1926-1995 Texas Births, 1926 - 1995 at MyHeritage ($) — index

Marriage
Online Marriage Indexes and Records


 * 1802-2010 Texas, United States Marriages at Findmypast — index $
 * 1814-1909 and 1966-2011 Texas Marriage Collection 1814-1909 and 1966-2011 at Ancestry.com — index $
 * 1837-1965 at FamilySearch — index and images
 * 1837-1973 at FamilySearch — index
 * 1837-1977 at FamilySearch — index
 * 1837-1977 Texas Select County Marriage Index 1837-1977 at Ancestry.com — index $
 * 1942-1965 Texas, U.S., Select County Marriage Records at Ancestry.com — index & images, ($)
 * 1966-2010 at FamilySearch
 * 1966-2016 Texas Marriages and Divorces at MyHeritage ($) — index

Death
Online Death Indexes and Records


 * 1890-1976 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.
 * 1903-1973 at FamilySearch.org — index
 * 1903-1982 Texas Death Certificates 1903-1982 at Ancestry.com — index and images $
 * 1903-2000 Texas, Death Index, 1903-2000 (index) - FamilySearch
 * 1964-1998 [no images] Name index to Texas Statewide Death Certificates or four million people who have died since 1964.
 * 1977-1986  at FamilySearch.org — index

Divorce

 * 1966-2016 Texas Marriages and Divorces at MyHeritage ($) — index
 * 1968-2010 at FamilySearch.org — index
 * 1968-2011 Texas Divorces 1968-2011 at Ancestry.com — index $

Societies and Libraries
Forney Historic Preservation League PO Box 317 Forney, TX 75126 Email: [mailto:historicforney@gmail.com historicforney@gmail.com Website

Root Seekers Genealogical Society PO Box 1770 Mabank 75147 Website

Kaufman County Library 3790 S Houston St Kaufman, TX 75142 Telephone Number: 972-932-6222 Website

Riter C Hulsey Public Library 301 N Rockwall St Terrell, TX 75160 Telephone Number: 972-551-6663 Website

Tri-County Library 132 E Market St Mabank, TX 75147 Telephone Number: 903-887-9622 Website

Ellen Brooks West Memorial Library of Forney 800 Fm 741 South Forney, TX 75126 Telephone Number: 972-564-7027 Website

Forney Historic Preservation League 200 S. Bois d'Arc Forney, Texas 75126 Telephone Number: 972-552-2400 Website

Society Hill ~  Links and addresses to Texas genealogical and historical societies

FamilySearch Centers

 * Arlington Texas FamilySearch Center
 * Dallas Texas FamilySearch Center
 * Heath Texas FamilySearch Center
 * Hurst Texas FamilySearch Center
 * Wills Point Texas FamilySearch Center


 * Dallas Public Library - an affiliate library
 * Ennis Public Library - an affiliate library
 * Kaufman County Library - an affiliate library
 * Lancaster Veterans Memorial Library - an affiliate library

Websites

 * Kaufman County Archives ~ USGenWeb Archives Project
 * Kaufman County ~  TXGenWeb
 * TXGenWeb project. May have maps, name indexes, history or other information for this county. Select the county.
 * USGenWeb Texas Archives Vital statistics, maps, obituaries, Bible records, tombstone transcriptions and many other records.
 * Forney Historic Preservation League ~ History, Archives, Membership, Museum