Ward County, Texas Genealogy

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

Description
The County was named for Thomas W. Ward, a soldier in the Texas Revolution. The County is located in the west area of the state.

County Courthouse
Ward County Courthouse 400 S Allen Street Monahans, TX 79756 Phone: 915.943.3294 County Clerk has birth, marriage, death, probate, court and land records Clk has from 1892 and military records; District Clerk has divorce records

County Clerk

400 South Allen St.; Ste 101 Monahans 79756 Phone: 915-943-3294 Fax: 915-943-6054

District Clerk

P.O. Box 440 Manahans 79756 Phone: 432-943-2751 Fax: 432-943-3810

History
1881-- Anglo-American settlement started in 1881.

Parent County
1887--Ward County was created 26 February 1887 from Tom Green County.
 * County seat: Monahans

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
Crane •  Ector  •  Loving  •  Pecos  •  Reeves  •  Winkler

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


 * Monahans Cemetery -  photos
 * Tamarisk Cemtery - photos - USGenWeb Archives Project
 * Texas Historic Cemeteries ~Preservation Texas
 * African American Cemeteries Online ~ Partial index/transcriptions of African American cemeteries
 * Texas Escapes Listing of Texas cemeteries with transcriptions and lots of pictures.

Church

 * Texas Christian Church Directory~ ChurchAngel
 * Catholic Parishes in Texas

Land

 * Land Survey Abstract Indices of the Original Land Owners of Texas

Local Histories

 * History of Ward County ~  The Handbook of Texas Online
 * Texas Museums ~  List of all museums in Texas  ~  Hidden Ancestors

Maps

 * 1895 US Atlas Ward County
 * 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

Military

 * 1838 - 1900 - Texas Muster Roll Index Cards 1838-1900 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 1845-1848 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

World War I

 * 1917 - 1920 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * 1917 - 1918 - Draft Registration 1917-1918;- USGenWeb Archives Project

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 including interactive search function

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)

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
 * 1926-1949 Births 1926-1949 - US Gen Web Archives Project
 * 1950-1995 Births 1950-1995 - US GenWeb Archives Project

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 $
 * 1966-2005 Texas Marriage Records 1966 - 2005  -  Hidden Ancestors
 * 1966-2010 Texas, Marriages, 1966-2010  -  FamilySearch record collection

Death
Online Death Indexes and Records


 * 1890-1976 Death Records 1890 – 1976 [with images] Name index and images of statewide death certificates, 1890-1976. The name index has been created by Family Search 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 Texas Death Index 1964 to 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

 * 1968-2005 Texas Divorce Records 1968 - 2005     Hidden Ancestors
 * 1968-2010 at FamilySearch.org — index
 * 1968-2011 Texas Divorces 1968-2011 at Ancestry.com — index $
 * 1850-1930''' US Gen Web Census Project Texas 1850 - 1930

Societies and Libraries
Ward County Genealogical Society 400 E. 4th St. Monahans 79758 Website

Ward County Library 409 S Dwight St Monahans, TX 79756 Telephone Number: 432-943-3332

Family History Centers

 * Monahans Texas Family History Center
 * Society Hill ~  Links and addresses to Texas genealogical and historical societies

Websites

 * Ward County TXGenWeb
 * Ward County Archives - USGenWeb
 * Ward 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.
 * — The catalog is genealogical materials (including books, online materials, microfilm, microfiche, and publications) This catalog is different than the indexed Historical Records.