Texas Compiled Genealogies

United States Texas  Texas Genealogy

The Texas State Library and most university libraries, historical societies, and genealogical societies have special collections and indexes of genealogical value. These must usually be searched in person. The following are major manuscript collections and published sources for Texas.

Nationwide Indexes

 * FamilySearch™ Internet Genealogy Service - Trees contains lineages organized into family groups and pedigrees with an every-name index. This was created from a database formerly known as Ancestral File.


 * The Family History Library has an extensive collection of almost 50,000 published U.S. family histories and newsletters. Copies at the library are listed in the Last names Search of the Family History Library Catalog.


 * Major collections of printed family histories are also found at most of the archives and libraries listed in United States Archives and Libraries. Most large libraries have indexes and catalogs to published family histories. For a list of the indexes and catalogs available at the Family History Library see the Family History section of United States Genealogy in the Wiki.


 * National Union Catalog of Manuscript Collections (NUCMC). "The National Union Catalog of Manuscript Collections, established in 1959, is a cooperative cataloging program in which repositories from all over the United States open to the public report their holdings of manuscript collections to the Library of Congress. Staff members of the Manuscripts Section of the Library's Special Materials Cataloging Division prepare catalog entries for these reports, which are published annually in book form by the Library of Congress"--Index to personal names in the National Union Catalog of manuscript collections, 1959-1984, p. vii. An index is available at the Family History Library


 * Ancestry.com ($) Public and Private member trees.


 * World Connect includes hundreds of thousands of ancestors in pedigrees and family trees with an easy to use index.


 * Periodical Source Index (PERSI). There are more than 126,000 surnames included in the PERSI database which is available on the Internet at HeritageQuestOnline.com as well as at Ancestry.com. Both are subscription websites, but often available at local libraries.

Statewide Collections
The Handbook of Texas is a encyclopedic collection of history, geography and biographies. It is now available on line through the Texas State Historical Association.


 * Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) Collection. This collection consists of transcripts of Bible records, cemetery records, church records, marriages, deaths, obituaries, and wills. It was microfilmed in 1971 at the DAR Library in Washington, D.C. ; A similar DAR collection was filmed in 1961. and.




 * A genealogical cardfile of approximately 270,000 cards compiled by Rudolfo Gonzalez de la Garza representing thousands of families of Southern Texas and Northern Mexico. The cardfile is in the Laredo Public Library.


 * Spanish-American Mission Collection. This is a collection of family group forms showing the ancestry of members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from the Southwest. . The original forms are interfiled with the Patron Section of the Family Group Records Collection.


 * Ancestors: A Book of Lineage Charts. Seven Volumes. Tyler, Texas: East Texas Genealogical Society, 1979-95..


 * Founders and Patriots of the Republic of Texas: Lineages of the Members of the Daughters of the Republic of Texas. Eight Volumes. Austin, Texas: Daughters of the Republic of Texas, 1963-85..


 * Morris, Mrs. Harry Joseph. Citizens of the Republic of Texas. Dallas: Texas State Genealogical Society, 1977. . This includes over 8,000 names on pedigrees contributed to the society. It is indexed.


 * Residents of Texas, 1782-1836. Three Volumes. San Antonio, Texas: The University of Texas, Institute of Texan Cultures, 1984..


 * Texas Family Land Heritage Registry, Eight Volumes. Austin, Texas: Texas Department of Agriculture, 1974—. . The Department of Agriculture inaugurated a program in 1974 to identify pre-1874 farms and ranches that have been operated continually by the same family. The published volumes list the original owners, location of the land, date of ownership, and names of the present owners. A complete set of the published records are available at the Texas State Library. It is listed in the catalog under TEXAS - GENEALOGY - PERIODICALS.


 * A genealogical cardfile of approximately 270,000 cards compiled by Rudolfo Gonzalez de la Garza representing thousands of families of Southern Texas and Northern Mexico. The cardfile is in the Laredo Public Library.



Web Sites

 * Texas State Library and Archives Commission


 * Daughters of the American Revolution

Writing and Sharing Your Family History
Sharing your own family history is valuable for several reasons:


 * It helps you see gaps in your own research and raises opportunities to find new information.
 * It helps other researchers progress in researching ancestors you share in common.
 * It draws other researchers to you who already have information about your family that you do not yet possess.
 * It draws together researchers with common interests, sparking collaboration opportunities. For instance, researchers in various localities might choose to do lookups for each other in remote repositories. Your readers may also share photos of your ancestors that you have never seen before.


 * See also:
 * Create a Family History
 * Writing Your Family and Personal History
 * A Guide to Printing Your Family History