Mexico Land and Property

Land records are primarily used to learn where an individual lived and when he or she lived there. They often reveal other information, such as the name of a spouse, heir, other relatives, or neighbors. You may learn where a person lived previously, his or her occupation, and other clues for further research. The national and state archives of Mexico, such as the one in Guadalajara, house records that were created in their historical jurisdiction. In the Guadalajara archives you will also find land records dealing with the southwest part of the United States. The Archivo General de la Nacion in Mexico City has large collections of these records.

Different type of land records include:


 * Capellanías (Land Grants). Documents that deal with land being transferred by individuals and families to the Catholic Church. The documents include wills, court records, land titles, contracts, and family information.


 * Vínculos y Mayorazgos (Entailed Estates). Records concerning hereditary properties that can include land titles and family information that could have genealogies for three to seven generations. Biographical information arising from property disputes, boundary adjustments, and rights to use Indian labor.


 * Concesiones y Títulos de Propiedad (Consessions and Land Titles). Any documentation relating to land titles, possession, contracts, bills of sale, buildings, or improvements, as well as information about individuals and families who have owned or occupied the land.


 * Tierras y Aguas (Land and Water). Land grants and water rights, correspondence, transfer of title, and other documents related to the transactions.

The Family History Library has some land records from Mexico. Some of the major land records the library has are:

Ramo de Tierras, 1523–1822 (Land Records, 1523–1822). México, D.F.: Archivo General de la Nación, 1989–1992. (On 1999 FHL films beginning with 1563720, and on 66 FHL films beginning with 1857028.) Indexed.

Vínculos, 1700–1800 (Entails, 1700–1800). Ciudad de México: Archivo General de la Nación, 1953. (On 184 films beginning with 0034613.)

Original Spanish and Mexican land titles in Texas from 1720 to 1836 can be found at the Texas General Land Office, whose address is:


 * Texas General Land Office 1700 North Congress Avenue Austin, TX 78701 Telephone: 512-463-5001 Internet: http://www.glo.state.tx.us

Other land records are listed in the FamilySearch Catalog under:

MEXICO - LAND RECORDS

MEXICO, STATE - LAND RECORDS

To access these records and look for a specific place, go to the Library Catalog and then type in the name of the place you are searching for. A list will come up and you can choose the one you want. Click on Search. A list of the records for that place will come up and you can choose to see the ones that might be of help to you.

Getting Started
Determine the time and place your family might have owned property.

Research should begin at the smallest jurisdictional level - usually the county (except in Connecticut, Rhode Island, and Vermont, where town clerks have kept the records). These records are found in the local town or county office, or many times on microfilm at state archives or the Family History Library.

There is a high likelihood that your ancestor can be found in land records. “It is estimated that by the mid-1800s, as many as ninety percent of all adult white males owned land in the United States.”

What’s the Next Step?

 * 1) Begin with indexes. Check both the grantor/direct (seller) and grantee/indirect (buyer) indexes for all possible entries for the ancestor of interest. Copy the references.
 * 2) Look up each land transaction reference in the appropriate books, or volumes, and page numbers.
 * 3) Notice the details of the transaction: dates, names, relationships, and property description.
 * 4) Make a reliable copy (handwritten, photocopy, or digital) of the full entry.
 * 5) Evaluate the results.

Finding Your Ancestor in the Record
If your ancestor is male, follow the steps outlined in “What’s the Next Step?”

Finding a female ancestor in land records can be more challenging because of property laws in earlier time periods. It is more likely to find your female ancestor in records of her husband’s property being sold. The wife often was examined separately because of laws pertaining to her “dower right.” (This term is NOT an indication that she brought land into the marriage, but rather it is related to her right to use of land following her husband’s death.) Therefore, look for her husband’s name in the grantor/direct (seller) index, then search in the related entry.

Land indexes only list the names of the grantor/direct (seller) and grantee/indirect (buyer). Therefore, search the indexes for names of other relatives and neighbors to assist you in finding a land record in which your ancestor might be named.

There are instances when an ancestor bought land from the government such as: homestead grants, military bounty land warrants, lottery land, mining and timberland claims and more. If an ancestor received or bought land from the government, review the topics having to do with the "Government to Person" Land Acquisition Process as well as the topics named above to learn how to obtain these records. Return to the United States Land and Property page for information on these topics.

Tips:

 * Recognize that it may take time to navigate the complexities.
 * Land records exist in cases in which other record types didn’t. This is because the line of ownership has to be proven.
 * Names of neighboring property owners and witnesses might provide clues to other relatives.
 * The transaction might have been recorded at a much later date. This is especially true if the land remained in the family. Selling to a non-family member may have prompted the recording of the title decades after the initial owner died.
 * Remember that land may be in a different jurisdictions (aka counties) in different years as county boundaries changed and new counties were formed.
 * Notice if there is a record of the person selling land but no record of the purchase. This can be a clue that 1) the land was acquired by inheritance, or 2) the land was acquired from the state or federal government (which means that a higher jurisdiction needs to be considered.)
 * Plat each transaction. This may reveal additional acquisitions or divisions between transactions and identify mixed jurisdictions. It may also allow you to analyze what is happening to neighboring properties.