User:RogersBA/Sandbox TX 14

Guide to Bell County, Texas ancestry, genealogy and family history, birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.

Description
The county was named for Peter Hansborough Bell, the third governor of Texas. The County is located in the central area of the state.

County Courthouse
Bell County Courthouse 550 E 2nd Street PO Box 480 Belton, TX 76513 Phone: 254.933.5174  Bell County Website County Clerk has birth and death records from 1903, marriage, probate and land records from 1850, military records and school census; Clerk District Court has divorce records from 1850, court and naturalization records

 County Clerk P.O. Box 480 Belton 76513 Phone: 254-933-5165 Fax: 254-933-5176

 District Clerk P.O. Box 909 Belton 76513 Phone: 254-933-5190 Fax: 254-933-5199 Bell County Website

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

History Timeline

 * The county was named for Peter H. Bell, (1812-1898). Peter Hansborough Bell, governor of Texas, was born on May 12, 1812, in Spotsylvania County, Virginia. He engaged in business in Petersburg until he left Virginia to fight for the independence of Texas.

Census Records

 * 1860 Bell County Census - USGenWeb Archives Project
 * 1870 Bell County Census - USGenWeb Archives Project
 * 1880 Bell County Census - USGenWeb Archives Project
 * See also Using the Census to find other records about ancestors

Church Records
 List of Churches and Church Parishes
 * FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places

Ethnic, Political, and Religious Groups
 African Americans
 * 1865-1870 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Images only
 * Texas African American Griots at  USGenWeb
 * AfriGeneas American Ancestored Genealogy; select Records then a collection

Local Histories

 * Bell County Bibliography -  TXGenWeb
 * Bell County Photographs - TXGenWeb
 * Surnames - TXGenWeb
 * Historical Timeline - Wikipedia
 * Texas Indexes (about 20 counties) at EveryNameIndex.com — Select the county

Maps and Gazetteers

 * Texas Land Survey Maps for Bell County (land patent maps) at HistoryGeo.com ($). Free surname search.
 * Bell County Maps
 * Hometown Locator map
 * Texas Counties Map. Click on the county to go to the Texas Genweb site
 * FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places

Military Records

 * Military in Bell County - USGenWeb Archives Project

 Mexican-American War
 * 1845-1848 US American Volunteer Soldiers Mexican War at Ancestry — index ($)

 Civil War
 * 1861-1865 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images at partner site
 * 1861-1865 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images at partner site
 * 1838-1900 Texas Muster Roll Index Cards at Ancestry — index and images ($)
 * Bell County Rangers and Confederate Vet Muster List - USGenWeb Archives Project
 * Confederate Pension Applications - USGenWeb Archives Project
 * Confederate Indigent Families - USGenWeb Archives Project

 World War I
 * 1917-1920 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images

Naturalization and Citizenship

 * 1906-1989 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images

Newspapers
 Off-line Newspaper Information
 * Texas Digital Newspaper Program at The Portal to Texas History

Probate Records

 * 1800-2000 Texas Wills and Probate Records 1800-2000 at Ancestry.com — index and images ($)
 * 1800-1990 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Images only

Social Security Records

 * 1935-2014 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index. Also at Ancestry, findmypast, Fold3, GenealogyBank, MyHeritage, and Steve Morse. Click here for more information.
 * 1936-2007 U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007 at Ancestry ($) — index, click here for more information.
 * 1936-2007 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index

Tax Records

 * 1846-1910 Texas, County Tax Rolls 1846-1910 at Findmypast — index and images ($)

Birth

 * 1840-1981 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index
 * 1903-1935 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
 * 1903-1997 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index
 * 1926-1995 Texas Births, 1926 - 1995 at MyHeritage — index ($)

Marriage
Online Marriage Indexes and Records
 * 1802-2010 Texas, United States Marriages at Findmypast — index ($)
 * 1814-1909 and 1966-2011 Texas Marriage Collection at Ancestry — index ($)
 * 1837-1965 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
 * 1837-1973 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index
 * 1837-1977 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
 * 1837-1977 Texas Select County Marriage Index at Ancestry — index ($)
 * 1966-2010 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index
 * 1966-2016 Texas Marriages and Divorces at MyHeritage — index ($)

Death

 * 1890-1976 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
 * 1903-1973 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index
 * 1903-1982 Texas Death Certificates at Ancestry — index and images ($)
 * 1903-2000 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index
 * 1964-1998 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index
 * 1977-1986 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images

Divorce

 * 1966-2016 Texas Marriages and Divorces at MyHeritage — index ($)
 * 1968-2010 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index
 * 1968-2011 Texas Divorces at Ancestry — index ($)

FamilySearch Centers

 * Georgetown Texas FamilySearch Center
 * Killeen Texas FamilySearch Center
 * Waco Texas FamilySearch Center
 * Central Library - an affiliate library
 * East Waco Library - an affiliate library
 * Georgetown Public Library - an affiliate library
 * South Waco Library - an affiliate library
 * Temple Public Library - an affiliate library
 * Waco-McLennan County Library - an affiliate library

Libraries
County Genealogical Society c/o P.O. Box 1493 100 West Adams Avenue Temple, TX 76501 Email: [mailto:txbcgs@gmail.com txbcgs@gmail.com]   Bell Website Lena Armstrong Public Library (City of Belton) 301 E. 1st Avenue Belton, TX 76513 Phone: 254-933-5830 Fax: 254-933-5831 Email: [mailto:kkroll@ci.belton.tx.us kkroll@ci.belton.tx.us]  Lena Website Harker-Heights Public Library 400 Indian Trail Harker Heights, TX 76548 Phone: 254-953-5491  Harker Website Killeen Public Library 205 E. Church Ave Killeen, TX 76541 Phone: 254-501-8990  Killeen Website Temple Public Library 100 West Adams Ave Temple, TX 76501 Phone: 254-298-5556  Temple Website Temple College Hubert M. Dawson Library 2600 South First Street Temple, TX 76504 Phone: 254-298-8426 or 800-60-4636 ext 8426 (Texas only) Email: [mailto:library@templejc.edu library@templejc.edu]  Temple Website University of Mary-Hardin Baylor Townsend Memorial Library 900 College Street Belton, TX 76513 Phone: 254-295-4637 Email: [mailto:library@umhb.edu library@umhb.edu]  Website

Societies
County Historical Commission Bell County Historic Courthouse 101 E. Central Avenue First Floor, Room 117 Belton, TX 76513 Phone: 254-933-5917 Email: [mailto:HistoricalCommission@bellcounty.texas.gov HistoricalCommission@bellcounty.texas.gov]  Bell Website Texas Genealogical Society West Waco Library and Genealogy Center 5301 Bosque Blvd., Suite 275 Waco, TX 76710 Email: [mailto:webmaster@ctgs.org webmaster@ctgs.org] Website Salado Historical Society PO Box 251 Salado, TX 76571 Salado Website Texas Sons of the American Revolution  Website Sons of Confederate Veterans Website

Websites

 * The Bell County TXGenWeb Project, a member of The TXGenWeb Project, an affiliate of The USGenWeb Project.
 * The USGenWeb Archives Project for Bell County.
 * The USGenWeb Archives Project for Bell County. (Backup site)
 * USGenWeb Texas Counties
 * – The FamilySearch catalog contains descriptions and access information for all genealogical materials (including books, online materials, microfilm, microfiche, and publications) in their collection.  Use Historical Records to search for specific individuals in genealogical records.