Dawson County, Texas Genealogy

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

County Courthouse
Dawson County Courthouse PO Drawer 1268 Lamesa, TX 79331 Phone: 806.872.3778 County Clerk has birth, marriage, death, burial, probate and land records from 1905 and court records from 1920; District Clerk has divorce records

County Clerk

P.O. Box 1268 Lamesa 79331 Phone: 806-872-3778

District Clerk P.O. Box 1268 Lamesa 79331 Phone: 806-872-7373

Parent County
1858--Dawson County was created 1 February 1858 from Bexar Land District.
 * County seat: Lamesa

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
Andrews •  Borden  •  Gaines  •  Howard  •  Lynn  •  Martin  •  Terry

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

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

Naturalization and Citizenship

 * 1906-1989 — index and images

Local Histories

 * Texas Museums ~  List of all museums in Texas  ~  Hidden Ancestors

Maps

 * 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
Online Records
 * 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

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

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

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 Texas Death Records 1890–1976 [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 1903-1973 (index) -  FamilySearch
 * 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 1964-1998 [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

 * 1850-1940 USGenWeb Census Project Texas 1850-1940
 * 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 $

Societies and Libraries
Lamesa Area Genealogical Society PO Box 1264 Lamesa 79331-1264 Website


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

Websites

 * Dawson County TXGenWeb
 * TXGenWeb project. May have maps, name indexes, history or other information for this county. Select the county.
 * Hidden Ancestors Information on Texas genealogy research as well as genealogy research in general.
 * The catalog is genealogical materials (including books, online materials, microfilm, microfiche, and publications) This catalog is different than the indexed Historical Records.