Texas

United States

An Introduction

Gen-Tool Kit

Researching

by Surname

Researching

by Location

Internet Resources

Contact Information

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introduction

Introduction

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General Description

Texas is the second-largest U.S. state in both area and population, and the largest state in the contiguous United States. The name had wide usage among native Americans, meaning "friends" or "allies"^[7]. Located in the South Central United States, Texas is bordered by Mexico to the south, New Mexico to the west, Oklahoma to the north, Arkansas to the northeast, and Louisiana to the east. Texas has an area of 268,820 square miles (696,200 km²), and a growing population of 24.6 million residents.^[8] Houston is the largest city in Texas and the fourth-largest in the United States, while Dallas–Fort Worth and Houston are the 4th and 6th largest United States metropolitan areas. Other major cities include San Antonio, El Paso, and Austin—the state capital. Texas is nicknamed the Lone Star State to signify Texas as an independent republic and as a reminder of the state's struggle for independence from Mexico. The "Lone Star" can be found on the Texas State Flag and on the Texas State Seal today.^[9]

Due to its size and geologic features such as the Balcones Fault, Texas contains diverse landscapes that resemble both the American Southeast and the Southwest.^[10] Although Texas is popularly associated with the Southwestern deserts, less than 10% of the land area is desert.^[11] Most of the population centers are located in areas of former prairies, grasslands, forests, and the coastline. Traveling from east to west, one can observe terrain that ranges from coastal swamps and piney woods, to rolling plains and rugged hills, and finally the desert and mountains of the Big Bend. Due to its long history as a center of the American cattle industry, Texas is associated with the image of the cowboy.

The term "six flags over Texas" came from the several nations that had rule over the territory. Spain was the first European country to claim the area of Texas. France held a short-lived colony in Texas. Mexico controlled the territory until 1836 when Texas won its independence, becoming an independent Republic. In 1845 it joined the United States as the 28th state. The state's annexation set off a chain of events that caused the Mexican–American War in 1846. Texas declared its secession from the United States in early 1861, joining the Confederate States of America during the American Civil War. After the war and its restoration to the Union, Texas entered a long period of economic stagnation.

In the early 1900s, oil discoveries initiated an economic boom in the state. Texas has since economically diversified. Today it has more Fortune 500 companies than any other U.S. state.^[12][13] With a growing base of industry, the state is a leader in many, including agriculture, petrochemicals, energy, computers and electronics, aerospace, and biomedical sciences. It leads the nation in export revenue and has the second-highest gross state product.

Historical Information

History of Texas

gen tool

Gen-Toolkit

GENEALOGICAL ARCHIVES & LIBRARIES

· Texas State Library and Archives Commission, P.O. Box 12927, Austin, TX 78711-2927

· Texas State Archives, Regional Historical Resource Depository, University Archives, East Texas State University, Commerce, TX 75428-2810

· Dallas Public Library, 1515 Young Street Dallas, TX 75201

· Houston Public Library, 500 McKinney Street Houston, TX 77002

· Catholic Archives of Texas, P.O. Box 13327, 1600 Congress Ave., Austin, TX 78811-3327

· Texas Land Office, Archives & Records Division, Stephen F. Austin Bldg., 1700 North Congress, Austin, TX 78701-1495

HISTORICAL & GENEALOGICAL SOCIETIES

· Texas Genealogical Society, 2505 Beluche Drive, Galveston 77551

· Texas Historical Commision
Central Texas Genealogical Society, Inc., c/o Waco-McLennan County Library, 1717 Austin Avenue, Waco, Texas 76701 [Counties Covered: McLennan, Limestone, Hill, Falls, Milam, Coryell, Bosque]

· East Texas Genealogical Society, P.O. Box 6967, Tyler 75711 [Counties Covered: Anderson, Henderson, Smith, Rusk, Gregg, Panola]

· SouthEast Texas Genealogical & Historical Society, c/o Tyrrell Historical Library, P.O. Box 3827, Beaumont, TX 77704-3827. [Counties Covered: Jefferson, Tyler, San Jacinto, Polk, Chambers, Newton, Hardin, Liberty, Orange, Jasper]

· South Texas Genealogical Society, Inc., PO Box 754, Beeville, TX 78104-0754 [Counties Covered: Bee, Goliad, Karnes, Live Oak, Refugio & San Patricio]

· East Texas Historical Association, P. O. Box 6223 SFA Station, Nacogdoches, TX 75962-6223; Phone: (936) 468-2407, FAX: (936) 468-2190

· Texas State Genealogical Society

· Texas State Historical Association, 2/306 Sid Richardson Hall, Austin 78712,

· Polish Genealogical Society of Texas, Rt. 1, Box 475-S, Navasota, TX 77868

· North Texas Cornish Society, 1300 Canterbury Court, Arlington 76013-1002

· Czech Heritage Society of Texas, 7411 Kite Hill, Houston, TX 77041

· Spanish American Genealogical Association

· German-Texan Heritage Society, 507 E. 10th St., P.O. Box 684171, Austin, TX 78768-4171

HISTORICAL PLACES

Select a County

Anderson Andrews Angelina Aransas Archer Armstrong Atascosa Austin Bandera Bastrop Bee Bell Bexar Blanco Bosque Bowie Brazoria Brazos Brewster Briscoe Brown Burleson Burnet Caldwell Calhoun Callahan Cameron Carson Cass Chambers Cherokee Clay Coke Collin Collingsworth Colorado Comal Concho Cooke Coryell Cottle Crockett Crosby Culberson Dallam Dallas Dawson De Witt Deaf Smith Denton Dickens Dimmit Donley Eastland Ector Edwards El Paso Ellis Erath Falls Fannin Fayette Fisher Floyd Fort Bend Franklin Freestone Frio Galveston Garza Gillespie Goliad Gonzales Gray Grayson Gregg Grimes Guadalupe Hale Hall Hamilton Hardeman Hardin Harris Harrison Hartley Hays Hemphill Henderson Hidalgo Hill Hood Hopkins Houston Howard Hudspeth Hunt Hutchinson Irion Jack Jackson Jasper Jeff Davis Jefferson Jim Wells Johnson Jones Karnes Kaufman Kendall Kenedy Kent Kerr Kimble Kinney Kleberg Knox Lamar Lampasas Lavaca Lee Leon Liberty Limestone Live Oak Llano Loving Lubbock Lynn Madison Marion Martin Mason Matagorda Maverick McCulloch McLennan McMullen Medina Menard Midland Milam Mills Mitchell Montague Montgomery Morris Motley Nacogdoches Navarro Newton Nolan Nueces Ochiltree Oldham Orange Palo Pinto Panola Parker Pecos Polk Potter Presidio Rains Randall Reagan Real Red River Refugio Roberts Robertson Rockwall Runnels Rusk Sabine San Augustine San Jacinto San Patricio San Saba Schleicher Shackelford Shelby Smith Somervell Starr Stephens Sutton Tarrant Taylor Terrell Throckmorton Titus Tom Green Travis Trinity Upshur Uvalde Val Verde Van Zandt Victoria Walker Waller Washington Webb Wharton Wheeler Wichita Wilbarger Willacy Williamson Wilson Winkler Wise Wood Young Zapata

Surname

The following are surnames of persons, found within our databases,

as having been either born, married or died in this U.S. State.

McVicker; Moreland; Pinnell; Scruggs and allied families

Azbell; Bennett; Billings; Bishop; Brown; Carlock; Dickson; Douglass; Elliott; Giddens; Hardy; Henderson; Higgins; Jones; Light; Martin; McInvale; McVicker; Moreland; Peachee; Peyton; Pinnell; Rhodes; Rucker; Scruggs; Thompson; Walker; Warren; Whitehead; Wolverton; Woolf

Bozarth; Peiffer; Quigley; Rhubart and allied families

Dellinger; Knecht; Pfeffer; Silar and allied families

To find out more about each surname listed above click on the corresponding LINK.

Additional information regarding these surnames may also be found at:

Surname Locator Resources

Free Genealogy Surname

Search Help from Google

Use this free genealogy site to help you get the best genealogy searches from Google™ by using your family tree, for your research. It will create a series of different searches using tips or "tricks"

that will likely improve your results. The different searches will give you many different ways of using Google and the Internet to find ancestry information about this or any other Surname.

research location

Our Ancestral Counties

Gazetteer of Places

County Research (Genealogical)

County Research (General Info.)

Where in the World are My Ancestors?

Our Ancestral Counties

The following named counties are associated with the history of our DIRECT ancestors. To select a specific ancestral county, go to our Ancestral Locations home page. Here you will find additional links to our county pages where you can obtain information about our family gen-sites, images of localities, and surnames of persons, in our database, who have lived in the selected county.

Click on this thumbnail map for a full-sized version.

El Paso County; Rusk County

Gazetteer

of Places

The following Links will take you to gazetteers that identify places within this U.S. State. These resources feature profiles of cities, towns, neighborhoods and subdivisions. In addition this site contains maps, data and directions for a wide variety of physical, cultural and historic features.

List of cities in Texas,

List of Texas metropolitan areas,

Towns in Texas

List of Texas counties

List of United States congressional districts#Texas

Texas Cities - profiles of 9,194 Texas cities, towns & neighborhoods

Texas Physical Features such as lakes, islands & steams

Texas Cultural Features such as schools, parks, hospitals & airports

Texas Civil Features such as Native Areas and Political Subdivisions

Search by Name, County, ZIP Code or Area Code

County Research

(Genealogical)

Clicking on a Link (below) will take you to the County’s website. Here you will find additional links to more information specific to that location. The USGenWeb Project also sponsors important Special Projects, at the national level, that were created to collect and disseminate data that goes beyond county and state lines.

Anderson

Andrews

Angelina

Aransas

Archer

Armstrong

Atascosa

Austin

Bailey

Bandera

Bastrop

Baylor

Bee

Bell

Bexar

Blanco

Borden

Bosque

Bowie

Brazoria

Brazos

Brewster

Briscoe

Brooks

Brown

Buchanan

Buchel

Burleson

Burnet

Caldwell

Calhoun

Callahan

Cameron

Camp

Carson

Cass

Castro

Chambers

Cherokee

Childress

Cibilo

Clay

Cochran

Coke

Coleman

Collin

Collingsworth

Colorado

Comal

Comanche

Concho

Cooke

Coryell

Cottle

Crane

Crockett

Crosby

Culberson

Dallam

Dallas

Davis

Dawson

Deaf Smith

Delta

Denton

De Witt

Dickens

Dimmit

Donley

Duval

Eastland

Ector

Edwards

El Paso

Ellis

Encinal

Erath

Falls

Fannin

Fayette

Fisher

Floyd

Foard

Foley

Fort Bend

Franklin

Freestone

Frio

Gaines

Galveston

Garza

Gillespie

Glasscock

Goliad

Gonzales

Gray

Grayson

Greer
Historical Site

Gregg

Grimes

Guadalupe

Hale

Hall

Hamilton

Hansford

Hardeman

Hardin

Harris

Harrisburg

Harrison

Hartley

Haskell

Hays

Hemphill

Henderson

Hidalgo

Hill

Hockley

Hood

Hopkins

Houston

Howard

Hudspeth

Hunt

Hutchinson

Irion

Jack

Jackson

Jasper

Jeff Davis

Jefferson

Jim Hogg

Jim Wells

Johnson

Jones

Karnes

Kaufman

Kendall

Kenedy

Kent

Kerr

Kimble

King

Kinney

Kleberg

Knox

La Salle

La Baca

Lamar

Lamb

Lampasas

Lavaca

Lee

Leon

Liberty

Limestone

Lipscomb

Live Oak

Llano

Loving

Lubbock

Lynn

Madison

Marion

Martin

Mason

Matagorda

Maverick

McCulloch

McLennan

McMullen

Medina

Menard

Midland

Milam

Miller

Mills

Mitchell

Montague

Montgomery

Moore

Morris

Motley

Nacogdoches

Navarro

Navasota

Neches

Newton

Nolan

Nueces

Ochiltree

Oldham

Orange

Palo Pinto

Panola

Parker

Parmer

Paschal

Pecos

Polk

Potter

Presidio

Rains

Randall

Reagan

Real

Red River

Reeves

Refugio

Roberts

Robertson

Rockwall

Runnels

Rusk

Sabine

San Augustine

San Jacinto

San Patricio

San Saba

Schleicher

Scurry

Shackelford

Shelby

Sherman

Smith

Somervell

Spring Creek

Starr

Stephens

Sterling

Stonewall

Sutton

Swisher

Tarrant

Taylor

Terrell

Terry

Throckmorton

Titus

Tom Green

Travis

Trinity

Tyler

Upshur

Upton

Uvalde

Val Verde

Van Zandt

Victoria

Waco

Walker

Waller

Ward

Washington

Webb

Wegefarth

Wharton

Wheeler

Wichita

Wilbarger

Willacy

Williamson

Wilson

Winkler

Wise

Wood

Yoakum

Young

Zapata

Zavala

County Research

(General)

Wikipedia is a multilingual, Web-based, free-content encyclopedia project based mostly on anonymous contributions. Clicking on a Link (below) will take you to the Wikipedia article about the county. Here you will find additional links to guide the user to related pages with additional information.

Where in the World

are My Ancestors?

Resources which enhance our knowledge of the places inhabited by our ancestors are almost as important as their names. The LINK

to the right will take you to Maps, Gazetteers, and other helpful resources that will assist you in discovering Ancestral Locations.

Internet
Resources

The Google search engine

button and following web

sites may provide you

with additional information

to assist with your research

about this U. S. State.

GENERAL RESOURCES

· Website & Webpages We Like

· Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

· Free Genealogy Search Help For Google

· Linkpendium > Genealogy > USA

· Genealogy Gateway

· Ancestry.com (Reference Materials & Finding Aids)

· Ancestry.com - Maps, Atlases & Gazetteers

· GenealogyLinks.net

· Cyndi's List - United States Index

· IGI Batch Numbers - British Isles & North America

· Libweb - Libraries on the Web

· 50states.com - States and Capitals

· RootsWeb Town Search 1.0

· USA Resources at RootsWeb

· StateGenSites - U.S. Genealogy Sites by State

· The USGenWeb Project

LOCATION SPECIFIC RESOURCES

·Texas - Wikipedia

·Texas State Facts and Information

·Texas Information (50 States.com)

·Linkpendium – Texas

·Cyndi’s List (Texas)

·Texas (historical societies)

·Texas Resources at RootsWeb

·Family Search (IGI Records for Texas)

OUR GENEALOGY REFERENCE LIBRARY

The following Link will take you to our library of genealogy reference books that pertain to this U.S. State. Here you will find books about the history and records of this State, as well as its counties and other localities such as towns and churches. The collection also contains research works about State military units and personnel during America’s wars. In addition, there are resource texts about the ethnic and religious groups who settled in this State.

U.S.A. Locations Library - States, Counties, & Localities

Contact Information

Email

Snail Mail:

Fred
889 Dante Ct.
Mantua, NJ 08051

USA

Email

Pony Express:

Tom
27 Christopher Dr.
Burton, NB E2V3H4
Canada