Ellis County, Texas Genealogy

Guide to Ellis County Texas ancestry, family history, and genealogy research page. Birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.

Texas Online Genealogy Records

Description
The county was named for Richard Ellis, president of the convention that produced the Texas Declaration of Independence. The County is located in the east-central area of the state.

County Courthouse
Ellis County Courthouse 115 W Franklin Waxahachie, TX 75165 Phone: 972.923.5070 County Clerk has birth, marriage, death, land, probate, Military and court records

County Clerk

P.O. Box 250 Waxahachie 75168 Phone: 972-825-5070

District Clerk

109 S. Jackson Waxahachie 75165 Phone: 972-825-5091

The County Courthouse is located in Waxahachie.

History
1843--The first settlement was in 1843.

Parent County
1849--Ellis County was created 20 December 1849 from Navarro County.
 * County seat: Waxahachie

The Texas State legislature officially established Ellis County on December 20,1849. The county was named for Richard Ellis, president of the Texas Constitutional Convention of 1836.

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 •  Henderson  •  Hill  •  Johnson  •  Kaufman  •  Navarro  •  Tarrant

African American

 * 1865-1870 Freedmen's Bureau Field Office Records(images) - FamilySearch

Cemeteries
Cemetery records often reveal birth, marriage, death, relationship, military, and religious information.

Additional Cemetery Sources


 * African American Cemeteries Online ~ Partial index/transcriptions of African American cemeteries
 * Cemetery Junction ~  Links to cemetery transcriptions

Church
List of Churches and Church Parishes
 * Texas Christian Church Directory~ ChurchAngel
 * Catholic Parishes in Texas
 * FamilySearch Places

Naturalization and Citizenship

 * 1906-1989 — index and images

Local Histories

 * History of Ellis County, Texas, 1972.
 * Memorial and Biographical History of Ellis County, 1892 (reprinted as Ellis County History, Fort Worth: Historical Publishers, 1972). Read the book online from The Portal To Texas History.
 * Ellis County History from the Handbook of Texas Online.
 * Texas Museums ~  List of all museums in Texas  ~  Hidden Ancestors

Maps

 * Texas Land Survey Maps for (land patent maps) at HistoryGeo.com ($). Free surname search.
 * Historical Maps ~  From the Republic to the Turn of the Century  ~  Hidden Ancestors
 * Texas Counties Map. Click on the county to go to the TXGenWeb site.
 * FamilySearch Places:Cities and Towns- How to Use FS Places

Military

 * 1838 - 1900 - Texas Muster Roll Index Cards at Ancestry.com — index and images $
 * Military Resources ~ Links to research Civil War to Operation Enduring Freedom ~ Hidden Ancestors
 * Fallen Heroes ~ Partial Index of casualties from Civil War to Operation Enduring Freedom ~ Hidden Ancestors
 * Honoring Our Veterans ~ Partial index of veterans from Civil War to Operation Enduring Freedom ~ Hidden Ancestors

Mexican-American War

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

Civil War
Online Records
 * 1861 - 1865 - at FamilySearch — index
 * 1861 - 1865 - at FamilySearch — index
 * Confederate Pension Applications ~ Texas State Library and Archives Commission
 * 'Confederate P.O.W.'s: soldiers &amp; sailors who died in federal prisons &amp; military hospitals in the North.' (Salt Lake City, Utah: Filmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah, 1976),.

World War I

 * 1917 - 1920 - at FamilySearch — index and images


 * The Texas spirit of '17: a pictorial and biographical record of the gallant and courageous men from Ellis County who served in the Great War, 1919. Book that details the World War I military service of the citizens of Ellis County, including photographs and biographies. Read the book online at the Portal To Texas History.

Newspapers

 * Home Town News -  Texas Newspaper Index with links
 * Newslink -  Texas Newspaper List (sorted by publication frequency)
 * The Olden Times  -   Historic Texas News Online

Obituaries

 * Obituary Resources ~ Links to research and locate obituaries ~ Hidden Ancestors
 * 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 Project ~ Hidden Ancestors
 * Obituary Daily Times ~ Citations to over 15,000,000 obituaries (Ancestry)

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

Marriage

 * 1802-2010 Texas, United States Marriages at FindMyPast — index $
 * 1814-1909 and 1966-2011 Texas Marriage Collection 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 at Ancestry.com — index $
 * 1966-2010 Texas, Marriages - FamilySearch record collection
 * 1966-2016 Texas Marriages and Divorces at MyHeritage ($) — index

Death
Online Death Indexes and Records


 * 1890-1976 Texas Death Records [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 Texas Deaths and Burials (index) - FamilySearch
 * 1903-1982 Texas Death Certificates at Ancestry.com — index and images $
 * 1903-2000 Texas, Death Index, 1903-2000 (index) - FamilySearch
 * 1964-1998 Texas Death Index [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

 * 1968-2005 Texas Divorce Records ~ Hidden Ancestors
 * 1968-2010 at FamilySearch.org — index
 * 1968-2011 Texas Divorces at Ancestry.com — index $
 * 1966-2016 Texas Marriages and Divorces at MyHeritage ($) — index


 * 1850-1930 USGenWeb Census Project Texas 1850 - 1930

Societies and Libraries
Grand Prairie Genealogical Society PO Box 532026 Grand Prairie, TX 75053 website

Ellis County Genealogical Society PO Box 479 Waxahachie 75165 website

Ennis Public Library 501 W Ennis Ave Ennis, TX 75119 Telephone Number: 972-875-5360 Website

Ferris Public Library 514 S Mabel St Ferris, TX 75125 Telephone Number: 972-544-3696 Website

Ah Meadows Library 923 S 9th St Midlothian, TX 76065 Telephone Number: 972-775-3417 Website

Nicholas P Sims Library Lyceum 515 W Main St Waxahachie, TX 75165 Telephone Number: 972-937-2671 Website

Red Oak Public Library 200 Lakeview Pkwy Red Oak, TX 75154 Telephone Number: 469-218-1230 Website

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

Websites

 * 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.