Van Zandt County, Texas Genealogy

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

County Courthouse
Van Zandt County Courthouse 121 East Dallas Street Room 202 Canton, TX 75103 Phone: 903.567.6503 Phone: 903-567-7555 Fax: 903-567-6722 County Clerk has birth and death records 1903, marriage, land, probate and court records from 1848 and military discharge records from 1918; District Clerk has divorce records from 1848

County Clerk

121 E. Dallas Rm 202 Canton 75103 Phone: 903-567-6503 Fax: 903-567-6722

District Clerk

121 E. Dallas Street Room 302 Canton 75103 Phone: 903-567-6576 Fax: 903-567-1283

Sabine Lake (also known as Jordan's Saline) served as the Van Zandt County's first county seat from 1848-1850. The first courthouse was a crude log building. In 1850 the county seat was moved to Canton, where it has remained. Courthouses were built in Canton in 1850 and 1857. In 1896 a three-story courthouse with a bell tower was built. The current courthouse opened in 1939.

Van Zandt County Government website

History
1822, 1839, 1845-- Cherokees occupied the area under a grant from Mexico in 1822 and were removed in 1839. The first post office, grist mill and saw mill were set up in 1845. During the Civil War the county was popularly known as the "Free State of Van Zandt."

Parent County
1848--Van Zandt County was created 20 March 1848 from Henderson County.
 * County seat: Canton

Boundary Changes
1850-- Wood county was created out of Van Zandt County.

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
Henderson •  Hunt  •  Kaufman  •  Rains  •  Smith  •  Wood

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

Census
Publications;
 * 1860 Publication -Census Records - Van Zandt County-1860 ~ Van Zandt County Genealogical Society
 * 1870 Publication -Census Records - Van Zandt County-1870 ~ Van Zandt County Genealogical Society
 * 1880 Publication -Census Records - Van Zandt County-1880 ~ Van Zandt County Genealogical Society
 * 1900 Publication -Census Records - Van Zandt County-1900 ~ Van Zandt County Genealogical Society
 *  "1890' in Van Zandt County"-Various County Records'' ~ Van Zandt County Genealogical Society [census substitute]

Court

 * Publication -Divorce Records of Van Zandt County, 1848-1920 ~ Van Zandt County Genealogical Society
 * Van Zandt Co. Court Minutes, Vol. A &amp; B 1848-1871 ~ Elvis Allen
 * "Desperate Characters of Van Zandt County" ~ Cheryl Vaughan
 * Reconstruction Records of Van Zandt County, 1867-1874: Voters Registration List 1867-1869, Occupation Taxes 1867-1874 &amp; Poll Taxes for 1872

Local Histories

 * Some History of Van Zandt County, 1919; reprinted, 1977, by Wentworth Manning. Digital book online from the Portal to Texas History.
 * A History of Van Zandt County, 1976 by Margaret Elizabeth Hall.
 * History of Van Zandt County, 1950, by William Samuel Mills.
 * History of Van Zandt County, 1984, by the Van Zandt County History Book Committee.
 * Historical Places in Van Zandt County Many Van Zandt County historical sites and research helps on Bobby Pearce's "Field Guide to Historical Sites in Van Zandt County".
 * Van Zandt County History from the Handbook of Texas Online.
 * Van Zandt County Histories and Biographies, Vol. I ~ Van Zandt County Genealogical Society
 * Van Zandt County Histories and Biographies, Vol. II ~ Van Zandt County Genealogical Society
 * "Daddy Said" ~ Elvis Allen

Maps

 * 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 $
 * 1890 Veterans of Van Zandt County Muster Rolls, Civil War Pensioners, 1890 Texas Union Soldier Schedule, World War I Casualties, World War I Draft Registrations (by town), World War II Veterans with pictures, from the Van Zandt County TXGenWeb site.

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
 * Publication- Civil War Veterans of Van Zandt County ~ Van Zandt County Genealogical Society

World War I

 * 1917 - 1920 - at FamilySearch — index and images

Newspapers

 * Canton Herald newspaper
 * Van Banner newspaper
 * Wills Point Chronicle
 * Van Zandt County News
 * Grand Saline Sun
 * Edgewood Enterprise.
 * Publication -Early Obituaries &amp; Death Notices of Van Zandt County, Vol. I, 1884-1900 ''~ Van Zandt County Genealogical Society
 *  Publication - Early Obituaries &amp; Death Notices of Van Zandt County, Vol. II, 1901-1907 ~ Van Zandt County Genealogical Society
 * Publication - Early Obituaries &amp; Death Notices of Van Zandt County, Vol. III, 1908-1913 ~ Van Zandt County Genealogical Society

Probate
Online Probate Records


 * 1800 – 1990 at FamilySearch — images
 * 1800 – 2000 Texas Wills and Probate Records 1800-2000 at Ancestry.com — index and images $

School

 * Publication -School Days in Van Zandt County, Vol. I~ Van Zandt County Genealogical Society
 * Publication -School Days in Van Zandt County, Vol. II ~ Van Zandt County Genealogical Society
 * Publication -School Days in Van Zandt County, Vol. III ~ Van Zandt County Genealogical Society

Birth
Online Birth Indexes and Records


 * 1840-1981 Texas, Births and Christenings, 1840-1981 - FamilySearch
 * 1903-1935 Texas, Birth Certificates, 1903-1935 (images and index) - FamilySearch
 * 1903-1997 Texas Birth Index, 1903-1997 (index)- FamilySearch

Marriage

 * 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 $
 * 1848-1909 Publication -Van Zandt County Marriage Book, Vol. I, 1848-1909~ Van Zandt County Genealogical Society
 * 1909-1931 Publication -Van Zandt County Marriage Book, Vol. II, 1909-1931 ~ Van Zandt County Genealogical Society
 * 1932-1950 Publication -Van Zandt County Marriage Book, Vol. III, 1932-1950 ~ Van Zandt County Genealogical Society
 * 1966-2010 Texas, Marriages, 1966-2010  -  FamilySearch record collection

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 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 $
 * 1964-1998 Texas Death Index 1964 to 1998
 * 1964-1998 Texas, Death Index, 1964-1998 - 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 (index)  - Hidden Ancestors
 * 1968-2010 at FamilySearch.org — index
 * 1968-2011 Texas Divorces 1968-2011 at Ancestry.com — index $

Societies and Libraries
Van Zandt County Genealogical Society PO Box 716 Canton 75103 Website

Van Zandt County Genealogical Society P.O. Box 1388 Canton, Texas 75103-1388 Telephone Number; 903-567-5012 E-mail:[mailto:vanzandtgensoc@etcable.net vanzandtgensoc@etcable.net] Website The location is at the court house annex. They have published Graveyards of Van Zandt Co., Tx - Vol A-E,and Marriage Record Books of Van Zandt Co. The library is open from 9am -4 pm Monday thru Friday and 9 am - 1pm Saturday- staffed by local volunteers who know about the county.


 * Early Van Zandt County Doctors and Medical Society Minutes and read the minutes from the Medical Society's meetings of the early 1900s.


 * OPHGR (Organization for the Preservation of Historical and Genealogical Records) [mailto:pvinson47@aol.com P. Vinson], President Canton, TX email: [mailto:opngr1@gmail.com ophgr1@gmail.com] Website These folks go to county courthouses, churches and other places where old documents and records are housed. They either scan the very old records with their oversized scanner or they transcribe those old documents and then publish them as books. Membership is $10.00/year if you have an email address and you get their Newsletter sent to you quarterly. Visit their website for Publication Listings as well as membership information. They also host several workshops during the year. Topics include: Beginning Researcher, Internet Research, Beginner Computer Help as well as Native American/Melungeon/African American Research.

Family History Centers

 * Wills Point Texas Family History Center

Websites

 * TXGenWeb project. May have maps, name indexes, history or other information for this county. Select the county
 * Van Zandt County Genealogical Society:   In addition to Society information, this site contains thousands of records and photographs.
 * — The catalog is genealogical materials (including books, online materials, microfilm, microfiche, and publications) This catalog is different than the indexed Historical Records.