Zapata County, Texas Genealogy

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

Texas Online Genealogy Records

Description
The County was named for Colonel Jose Antonio de Zapata, a rancher in the area who rebelled against Mexico. The County is located in the south-central area of the state.

County Courthouse
Zapata County has had four courthouses. The first was built in 1874, the second in 1901, the third in 1953. The current courthouse was completed in 2005. Zapata County Courthouse


 * County Clerk : birth records 1870s-1930s, marriage and land records from 1800s, probate and court records from 1900s
 * District Clerk : divorce records
 * Justice of Peace : births from 1930s, deaths

County Clerk 200 E. 7th Ave. Ste. 138 Zapata, TX 78076 Phone: 956-765-9915

District Clerk 200 E. 7th Ave. Ste. 119 Zapata, TX 78076 Phone: 956-765-9930 Fax: 956-765-9931

Justice of the Peace As of 2019 there are four different precincts for the Justice of the Peace. A list can be found on their website.

History
1750 and 1848-- Spanish settlers arrived in 1750. The Texas claim to this land was assured under the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo in 1848.

Parent County
1858--Zapata County was created 22 January 1858 from Starr and Webb Counties.
 * County seat: Zapata

Record Loss
1863--Most, if not all, county records were destroyed during military action in 1863.

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
Jim Hogg •  Starr  •  Webb

African American

 * 1865 - 1870 (images) - FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection

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

Additional Cemetery Sources
 * Texas Historic Cemeteries ~ Partial indexes to historic cemeteries
 * African American Cemeteries Online ~ Partial index/transcriptions of African American cemeteries
 * Texas Escapes Listing of Texas cemeteries with transcriptions and lots of pictures.

Census

 * 1850-1930 USGenWeb Census Project Texas 1850 - 1930

Church
List of Churches and Church Parishes
 * Lopeno Church
 * Texas Christian Church Directory~ ChurchAngel
 * Catholic Parishes in Texas
 * FamilySearch Places

Local Histories

 * Texas' Last Frontier: A Brief History of the Lower Rio Grande Valley, 1917, by Frank Cushman Pierce.
 * Zapata County Roots Revisited, 1990 by Jean Y. Fish.
 * Zapata County Centennial Celebration, 1858–1958, published in 1958, by the Zapata County Centennial Commission.
 * Falcon Dam and the Lost Towns of Zapata, 1971 by Patsy Jeanne Byfield.
 * Zapata County History from the Handbook of Texas Online

Maps

 * Zapata County Maps
 * 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

 * 1838 - 1900 Texas Muster Roll Index Cards 1838-1900 at Ancestry — index and images $

Mexican-American War

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

Civil War

 * 1861 - 1865 at FamilySearch — index
 * 1861 - 1865 at FamilySearch — index
 * Confederate Pension Applications ~ Texas State Library and Archives Commission
 * 1890 Union Veteran Schedule for Zapata County

World War I

 * 1917 - 1920 at FamilySearch — index and images

Newspapers

 * w3newspapers -  Texas Newspaper Index with links
 * Newslink -  Texas Newspaper List (sorted by publication frequency)
 * The Olden Times  -   Historic Texas News Online
 * Texas Digital Newspaper Program at The Portal to Texas History

Obituaries

 * USGenWeb Archives Obituary Project ~  Texas
 * Afrigeneas ~ African American death notices, obituaries and funeral programs compiled by users from current newspapers and historical sources
 * Obituary Daily Times ~ Citations to over 15,000,000 obituaries including interactive search function

Probate
Online Probate Indexes and 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)

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

Taxation

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

Birth
Online Birth Indexes and Records


 * 1840 - 1981  at FamilySearch.org — index - How to Use this Collection
 * 1903 - 1935 (images and index) - FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
 * 1903 - 1997 (index only) - FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
 * 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 1814-1909 and 1966-2011 at Ancestry — 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 — index $
 * 1966 - 2010 - FamilySearch record collection - How to Use this Collection
 * 1966-2016 Texas Marriages and Divorces at MyHeritage ($) — index

Death

 * 1890-1976 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 — index and images $
 * 1903 - 2000 (index) - FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
 * 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

 * 1966-2016 Texas Marriages and Divorces at MyHeritage ($) — index
 * 1968-2010 at FamilySearch.org — index
 * 1968-2011 Texas Divorces 1968-2011 at Ancestry — index $

Societies and Libraries
Southwest Texas Genealogical Society PO Box 295 Uvalde 78802 [Southwest Texas Genealogical Society Website]

Zapata County Historical Commission Box 6305 Zapata, TX 78076 Facebook

FamilySearch Centers

 * Azle Texas FamilySearch Center
 * Decatur Texas FamilySearch Center
 * Weatherford Texas FamilySearch Center
 * Graham Texas FamilySearch Center
 * Mineral Wells Texas FamilySearch Center


 * Fort Worth Public Library - an affiliate library
 * Grapevine Public Library - an affiliate library
 * Southlake Public Library - an affiliate library

Websites

 * Zapata 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.