Brewster County, Texas Genealogy

United States Texas  Counties B  Brewster County

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

County Courthouse
County Clerk has birth, probate, military, and court records from 1900, marriage records from 1887, death records from 1903 and land records from 1800: District Court has divorce records

Places / Localities
Town/city records in the FamilySearch Catalog

Populated Places
Towns and Cities: Alpine | Lajitas | |

Neighboring Counties
Jeff Davis •  Pecos  •  Presidio  •  Terrell

Resources

 * Look-Up Volunteers of Brewster County ~ Brewster County, TXGenWeb

African American

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

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

Additional Cemetery Sources

 * Cemeteries of Brewster County~Brewster County, TXGenWeb~ Complete List
 * Tombstone Transcription Project ~ Partial transcription of cemetery tombstones ~ USGenWeb
 * Elm Grove Cemetery - Hidden Ancestors ~ transcription and photographs
 * Texas Historic Cemeteries ~ Partial indexes to historic cemeteries
 * African American Cemeteries Online ~ Partial index/transcriptions of African American cemeteries
 * Cemetery Junction ~  Links to cemetery transcriptions

Church

 * Churches of Brewster County Complete list of churches~Brewster County, TXGenWeb
 * Texas Christian Church Directory~ Church Angel
 * Catholic Parishes in Texas

Local Histories

 * Mirages, Mysteries and Reality: Brewster County, Texas, the Big Bend of the Rio Grande, 1972, by Clifford B. Casey.
 * A Most Singular Country: A History of Occupation in the Big Bend, 1990, by Arthur R. Gomez.
 * Brewster County History from the Handbook of Texas Online.
 * Texas Museums ~  List of all museums in Texas  ~  Hidden Ancestors

Maps



 * Brewster County 1920 Texas General Land Office map, online from The Portal to Texas History
 * Brewster County 1939 Texas General Land Office map, online from The Portal to Texas History
 * Historical Maps ~  From the Republic to the Turn of the Century  ~  Hidden Ancestors

Military

 * 1838 - 1900 Texas Muster Roll Index Cards 1838-1900 at Ancestry.com — index and images $
 * 1845 - 1848 US American Volunteer Soldiers Mexican War 1845-1848 at Ancestry.com — index $
 * Civil War Service Records of Confederate Soldiers, 1861-1865 - FamilySearch
 * Texas, Civil War Service Records of Union Soldiers, 1861-1865 - FamilySearch
 * Confederate Pension Applications ~ Texas State Library and Archives Commission
 * Military Veterans of Brewster County~ sorted by Cemetery~ Brewster County, TXGenWeb
 * 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

Newspapers

 * Alpine Avalanche Newspaper, serving Big Bend and the Davis Mountains since 1891
 * Home Town News -  Texas Newspaper Index with links
 * Newslink -  Texas Newspaper List (sorted by publication frequency)
 * The Olden Times  -   Historic Texas News Online

Obituaries

 * Obituaries of Brewster County ~Brewster County, TXGenWeb
 * 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

 * Search Tax, Criminal, Land and Wills Records ~  Ancestry.com  (subscription)
 * Texas Land Title Abstracts ~ Ancestry.com (subscription)
 * Texas, Probate Records, 1800-1990 (images) - FamilySearch

Vital Records

 * Vital Records of Brewster County ~ Marriage Records 1966-2002, Death Records 1910-2008, Divorce Records 1968-1996, Births 1904-1934

Birth
Online Birth Indexes and Records


 * Texas, Birth Certificates, 1903-1935 (images and index) - FamilySearch
 * Texas Birth Index, 1903-1997 (index)- FamilySearch
 * 1840 - 1981 at FamilySearch.org — index

Original Birth Records on Microfilm

Marriage
Online Marriage Indexes and Records

Original Marriage Records on Microfilm
 * Texas Marriage Records 1966 - 2005 -  Hidden Ancestors
 * Texas County Marriage Records, 1837-1977 - FamilySearch. Index to a variety of marriage records (registers, licenses, intentions to marry, etc.) from select counties in Texas.
 * Texas, Marriages, 1837-1973  -  FamilySearch record collection
 * Texas, Marriages, 1966-2010  -  FamilySearch record collection
 * 1814 - 1909 and 1966 - 2011 Texas Marriage Collection 1814-1909 and 1966-2011 at Ancestry.com — index $
 * 1837 - 1977 Texas Select County Marriage Index 1837-1977 at Ancestry.com — index $
 * 1837 - 1977 Texas Select County Marriage Index 1837-1977 at Ancestry.com — index $

Death
Online Death Indexes and Records


 * 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.
 * Texas, Death Index, 1903-2000 (index) - FamilySearch
 * Texas Death Index 1964 to 1998 [no images] Name index to Texas Statewide Death Certificates or four million people who have died since 1964.
 * Texas Deaths and Burials 1903 - 1973 (index)  -  FamilySearch
 * 1977 - 1986 at FamilySearch.org — index
 * 1903 - 1982 Texas Death Certificates 1903-1982 at Ancestry.com — index and images $
 * 1903 - 1982 Texas Death Certificates 1903-1982 at Ancestry.com — index and images $

Original Death Records on Microfilm

Divorce

 * Texas Divorce Records 1968 - 2005   ~  Hidden Ancestors
 * 1968-2010 at FamilySearch.org — index
 * 1968 - 2011 Texas Divorces 1968-2011 at Ancestry.com — index $


 * USGenWeb Census Project ~ Texas 1850 - 1930

Societies and Libraries
Big Bend Genealogical Society 300 John Rd W Alpine 75830-2032 Big Ben Genealogy Society Brewster County Historical Commission P.O. Box 1620 Alpine, TX 79831 website

Family History Centers

 * Alpine Public Library 203 N 7th St Alpine, TX 79830 Phone: (432) 837-2621Website
 * Big Bend Genealogical Society, Brewster, Jeff Davis and Presidio Counties
 * Museum of the Big Bend, Sul Ross State University, Alpine, Texas
 * Brewster County Historical Commission

Web Sites

 * Brewster County Texas Old Photos Old photographs and postcards of people and places in Alpine and other parts of Brewster County.
 * 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.