Lee County, Texas Genealogy

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

Description
The county was named for Robert E. Lee, US and Confederate General. The County is located in the southeast central area of the state.

County Courthouse
Lee County Courthouse PO Box 419 Giddings, TX 78942 Phone: 409.542.3684 County Clerk has birth and death records from 1903 marriage, probate, court and land records from 1874; District Clerk has divorce records

County Clerk

P.O. Box 419 Giddings 78942 Phone: 979-542-3684 Fax: 979-542-2623

District Clerk

P.O. Box 176 Giddings 78942 Phone: 979-542-2947 Fax: 979-542-2444

Lee County has had two courthouses. The first one, a two-story courthouse completed in 1878, burned in 1897. The second and current courthouse, a Romanesque Revival structure, designed by famed San Antonio courthouse architect James Riely Gordon, was built in 1899. The courthouse is still in use today.

Lee County Government Website

Inventory of county records, Lee County Courthouse, Giddings, Texas, 1975 by Charles R. Schultz and Mary Pearson. Describes the records of the County Clerk, County Attorney, District Clerk, Justice of the Peace, Tax Assessor-Collector, Sheriff, Treasurer, County Surveyor, and School Superintendent. Read the book on line from the Portal to Texas History.

Parent County
1874--Lee County was created 14 April 1874 from Bastrop, Burleson, Fayette, and Washington Counties.
 * County seat: Giddings

Record Loss
1897 -- The Lee County Courthouse, built in 1878, burned in 1897.

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:

Neighboring Counties
Bastrop •  Burleson  •  Fayette  •  Milam  •  Washington  •  Williamson

African American

 * 1865-1870 Freedmen's Bureau Field Office Records(images) - FamilySearch
 * African American Griots ~ USGenWeb
 * AfriGeneas ~ African Ancestored Genealogy
 * Texas African American Genealogy ~ Access Genealogy

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

Additional Cemetery Sources


 * Giddings Cemetery ~  USGenWeb Archives Project
 * Lawhon Springs Cemetery ~  USGenWeb Archives Project
 * Mundine Cemetery ~  USGenWeb Archives Project
 * African American Cemeteries Online ~ Partial index/transcriptions of African American cemeteries
 * Texas Escapes Listing of Texas cemeteries with transcriptions and lots of pictures.

Census

 * 1880 Federal Census Transcription ~ USGenWeb Archives Project

Church

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

Land

 * Original Land Owners of Texas ~  USGenWeb Archives Project

Local Histories

 * Lee County: Historical and Descriptive, 1945 by Julia Jones.
 * A History of Lee County, 1974, by Lee County Historical Survey Committee.
 * History of Texas, together with a biographical history of Milam, Williamson, Bastrop, Travis, Lee and Burleson counties, 1893. Digital book online from the Portal to Texas History.
 * Texas Museums ~  List of all museums in Texas  ~  Hidden Ancestors

Maps

 * Lee County 1888 from Historic Map Works.
 * Historical Maps ~  From the Republic to the Turn of the Century  ~  Hidden Ancestors
 * Texas Counties Map. Click on the county to go to the Texas Genweb site

Military

 * 1838 - 1900 - Texas Muster Roll Index Cards 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 at Ancestry.com — index $

Civil War

 * 1861 - 1865 - at FamilySearch — index
 * 1861 - 1865 - at FamilySearch — index
 * Confederate Pension Applications ~ Texas State Library and Archives Commission
 * Confederate Pension Application Index ~ USGenWeb Archives Project

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 including interactive search function

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 https://www.familysearch.org/search/collection/show#uri=http://www.familysearch.org/searchapi/search/collection/1320964 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 at FamilySearch.org — index
 * 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 to 1998 Texas, Death Index, 1964-1998 - FamilySearch Historical Records 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 - Hidden Ancestors
 * 1968-2010 at FamilySearch.org — index
 * 1968-2011 Texas Divorces 1968-2011 at Ancestry.com — index $


 * '''1850-1930 USGenWeb Census Project Texas 1850 -1930

Societies and Libraries
Giddings Public Library 276 N Orange St Giddings, TX 78942 Telephone Number: 979-542-2716 Website

Black Bridge Library 1079 Sf Austin Blvd Dime Box, TX 77853 Telephone Number: 979-884-0124 Website


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

Websites

 * Lee County Archives ~  USGenWeb Archives Project
 * Lee County ~  TXGenWeb
 * TXGenWeb project. May have maps, name indexes, history or other information for this county. Select the county.
 * USGenWeb Texas Archives Vital statistics, maps, obituaries, Bible records, tombstone transcriptions and many other records.
 * The catalog is genealogical materials (including books, online materials, microfilm, microfiche, and publications) This catalog is different than the indexed Historical Records.