Grayson County, Texas Genealogy
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Guide to Grayson County Texas ancestry, family history, and genealogy research page. Birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.
| Grayson County, Texas | |||||||||
| Map | |||||||||
 Location in the state of Texas | |||||||||
 Location of Texas in the U.S. | |||||||||
| Facts | |||||||||
| Founded | May 17, 1846 | ||||||||
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| County Seat | Sherman | ||||||||
| Courthouse | |||||||||
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| Address | Grayson County Courthouse 100 W. Houston, Suite 17 Sherman 75090 | ||||||||
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Contents
- 1 County Information
- 2 History
- 3 Resources
- 4 Websites
- 5 References
County Information[edit | edit source]
Description[edit | edit source]
The county was named for Peter Wagener Grayson, an attorney general of the Republic of Texas. The County is located in the northeast area of the state.[1]
County Courthouse[edit | edit source]
County Clerk
100 W. Houston
Sherman, TX 75090
Phone: 903-813-4200
District Clerk
200 S. Crockett Ste. 120-A
Sherman, TX 75090
Phone: 903-813-4352
Grayson County, Texas Record Dates[edit | edit source]
| Birth* | Marriage | Death* | Court | Land | Probate | Census |
| 1900 | 1846 | 1900 | 1846 | 1846 | 1846 | 1829 |
History[edit | edit source]
The first courthouse was constructed in 1847 and torn down in 1858.
This old photograph had this statement attached; "I, J.P. Loving, do hereby certify that the above photograph is a true picture of the first court house built in the present town of Sherman, Texas, and that it was customary for juries trying cases in said court house to retire to the shade of the old Pecan tree, then standing on the public square to consider their verdict" signed Jesse P. Loving.
The pecan tree he mentioned was used as a bank of sorts. People would hang their saddlebags and other personal property on or under the old pecan tree and they knew everything would be safe on their reurn. Even bags of gold were left there undisturbed. No one is ever known to have violated the sanctity of this 'bank'.
Grayson County is located at the top of Texas and is home to the famed Preston Road. This road was a major pioneer road, crossing the Red River into Texas. Just to the east of the Preston Road was the Shawnee Trail, the first cattle drive road in Texas. This cattle trail crossed the Red River in a natural rock formed cattle shute and herds passed through the Indian Nations in Oklahoma to reach the railheads in Kansas.
The Butterfield Overland Mail route also passed through Grayson county, this land was a vital link for pioneers entering the West.
Above is an Old Bois d' Arc Tree in a field of Indian Blanket Flowers. This area of Texas is a rich land, beautiful with rolling hills, prairie grasses; native pecan, oak, hackberry, elms, black walnut, chinaberry, blackjack, and more, and of course our famous Bois d'arc trees forrest the land.
Bois d'arc trees were a cash crop in the 1800's, used as a windbreak and a living livestock fence, this tree originated in Grayson County and its neighbor to the east, Fannin County, Texas and is one of the few trees left in the world that is prehistoric. It was ironic for the American Soldiers from Texas to have to break through the Bois d'arch hedges of France and Germany in WWI and WWII. Every one of the trees that impeded our tanks and troops, came from 'back home'. This tree is called by many names, hedgeapple, horseapple, Texas orange, Osage Orange, ironwood and other names. It was of course named for its main historical use, 'Wood of the Bow'. Bows made of Bois d'arc wood were found anciently deep in South America. The Natives traded the bows and the wood far and wide.
Grayson County is home to the two Americans' to receive France's highest honor, and the French Legion of Honor. Dwight D. Eisenhower, who was born in Denison, Grayson County and Thomas V. Munson, who saved Europe's grape and wine industry by his research and development of using grafts of our Texas native grapevine stock to save them from extinction.
Lake Texoma, one of largest reservoirs in the United States was a project involving placing a large dam just North of Denison,Texas in the 1940's and is a very popular vacation spot today. It is the home of two wildlife habitats. This lake ended most of the flooding from the Red River.
Grayson County is a beautiful place to live.
- Read about early Grayson County, Texas
- Read More about Grayson County, Texas
- Articles about Grayson County History
Parent County was Fannin County - Grayson County was formed May 17, 1846
County seat: Sherman [3]
Grayson County Frontier Village in Denison, Texas is a place where Grayson County history is brought to life. It also houses a database of Katy Railroad Workers and has a research center in the museum building. They are glad to help patrons with their genealogical search.
Record Loss[edit | edit source]
1930 Fire--The Third Grayson County courthouse was burned by a mob on May 9, 1930.[4] However ALL of the vital records, land records, and most court records were saved from this fire. The courthouse had records in fire proof rooms and storage areas.
Places / Localities[edit | edit source]
Town/city records in the FamilySearch Catalog
Populated Places[edit | edit source]
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:[5]
| Cities | ||
| Towns | ||
| Unincorporated communities | ||
| Census-designated places | ||
‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties
Neighboring Counties[edit | edit source]
Bryan County, Oklahoma • Collin • Cooke • Denton • Fannin • Marshall County, Oklahoma
Resources[edit | edit source]
- Grayson County,Texas ~ TXGenWeb- maps, biographical and historical data, cemeteries, obituaries, articles and all kinds of useful information.
- Grayson County, Texas - Official County Website
- Online books about Grayson County, Texas
- The Handbook of Texas Online - Searchable
- Biographical Souvenir of Texas - 1889
- Inventory of county records, Grayson County courthouse, Sherman, Texas
Cemeteries[edit | edit source]
Cemetery records often reveal birth, marriage, death, relationship, military, and religious information.
| Tombstone Transcriptions Online | Tombstone Transcriptions in Print | List of Cemeteries in the county |
| FindAGrave | Family History Library | FindAGrave |
| Linkpendium | WorldCat | Tombstone Project |
| BillionGraves (name) | Cemeteries of TX | |
| GenWeb Archives | Texas Cemeteries | |
| BillionGraves) | TX Gravestones | |
| TXGenWeb | Epodunk | |
| Names in Stone | Interment | |
| See Texas Cemeteries for more information. | ||
Additional Cemetery Sources
Grayson County's beautiful rolling green hills hold more than 200 cemeteries.
Census[edit | edit source]
Churches[edit | edit source]
Church records and the information they provide vary significantly depending on the denomination and the record keeper. They may contain information about members of the congregation, such as age, date of baptism, christening, or birth; marriage information and maiden names; and death/burial date and place. For general information about Texas denominations, view the Texas Church Records wiki page.
- Grayson County Churches, Photographs, Historical Markers, Links Books ~ onlne!
- St Stephens Episcopal Church, Sherman
- Many Grayson County Books are online and complete!
Schools[edit | edit source]
Historical Markers[edit | edit source]
Railroads[edit | edit source]
Court[edit | edit source]
Land[edit | edit source]
After land was transferred to private ownership, subsequent transactions, including deeds and mortgages, have been recorded by the county. You can obtain copies of these land records by writing to the county clerk at the county courthouse. For more information, see Texas Land and Property.
The FamilySearch Catalog lists microfilm copies of deeds, trust deeds, and mortgages of many counties.
- Land Records are kept in the Grayson County Clerk's Office.
- Very early records made during the Republic of Texas are found in Fannin County's Courthouse and in the Texas State Archives.
- 1908 Grayson County, Texas Plat Book This book has biographcial sketches as well as detailed maps with land owners. It even shows the location of individual houses around the countryside. Some cemetery locations are visible in this book.
Local Histories[edit | edit source]
Local histories are available for Grayson County, Texas Genealogy. County histories may include biographies, church, school and government history, and military information. For more information about local histories, see the wiki page section Texas Local Histories.
- A history of Grayson County, Texas / Mattie Davis Lucas (Mrs. W. H. Lucas) and Mita Holsapple Hall (Mrs. H. E. Hall) 1936
- 1830's-1870 An Illustated History of Grayson County, Texas , by Graham Landrum, 1960- Included in this book is a "pioneer index" that covers people from the 1830's to 1870.
- Ancestors and Decendants of Grayson County, Texas - by the Grayson County Genealogical Society 1980
- A Biographical Souvenir of Texas, 1889 This book contains biographical sketches of families written by themselves. It contains a lot of Grayson County people.
- Glimpses of Grayson County From the Early Days, 1894
- 1896 Black Friday ~ May 15, 1896 ~ The Sherman Cyclone
- Denison, The Texas-Gateway, Busy, Progressive City with Golden Opportunities, 1908
- Grayson County, Texas Plat Book, 1908 ( Includes biographical sketches and all land owners)
- Online Books about Grayson County and Grayson County people.
- 1879-1899 The Old Settlers Association of Grayson Co. Vol 1.1879-1899
- 1989-1944 The Old Settlers Association of Grayson Co. Vol 2.1898-1944
- 1911-1925 The Old Settlers Association of Grayson Co. Vol 3.1911-1925
- 1926-1960 The Old Settlers Association of Grayson Co. Vol 4.1926-1960
- Sherman Texas Indelible Photographs 1890
- 1926-1946 Grayson County, Texas in the Depression and War : 1929 - 1946 by David Park
- A HISTORY OF TEXAS AND TEXANS by Frank W. Johnson
- 1979 and 1981 History of Grayson County, Texas ( 2 Vols 1979 &1981) by Grayson County Frontier Village
City Directories:
1976 Sherman - Denison City Directory 1876
1887-1888 Morrison & Formby's General Directory of the City of Sherman 1887-1888
1893-1894 Sherman - Denison City Directory 1893- 1894
1898-1899[http://usgenwebsites.org/TXGrayson/DenisonSoc/1898DenSherDir/dir1898-1899.html Maloney's Denison - Sherman City Directory, 1898 - 1899
1899-1900 Maloney's Denison - Sherman City Directory, 1899 - 1900
1887-1888 Morrison &Formby's Sherman City Directory, 1887 - 1888
1910-1911 R.L. Polk Co.'s Sherman City Directory, 1910 - 1911
1912-1913 R.L. Polk Co.'s Sherman City Directory, 1912 - 1913
1918 R.L. Polk Co.'s Sherman City Directory, 1918
1923 R.L. Polk Co.'s Sherman City Directory, 1923
1925 R.L. Polk Co.'s Sherman City Directory, 1925
1935 Worley's Sherman City Directory, 1935
1940 History and Business Guide of Sherman & Grayson County, 1940
1947-1948 Worley's Sherman City Directory, 1947-8
1948 History and Business Guide of Sherman & Grayson County,1948
1973 Grayson County Rural Directory 1973
Maps[edit | edit source]
Click a neighboring county
for more resources
for more resources
- Texas Land Survey Maps for Grayson County, Texas Genealogy (land patent maps) at HistoryGeo.com ($). Free surname search.
- Texas Counties Map. Click on the county to go to the Texas Genweb site
- Maps of Grayson County &Texas
- 1897 Map of 1897 Grayson County, Texas with numerous small settlements. (My Genealogy Hound)
Military[edit | edit source]
- Grayson County Military history is a proud one.Useful links and information.
- Perrin Air Force Base was located in Grayson County. View various webpages about it, in the link listed for military history above.
- 1838 - 1900 Texas Muster Roll Index Cards at Ancestry.com — index and images $
Mexican-American War[edit | edit source]
- 1845 - 1848 - US American Volunteer Soldiers Mexican War at Ancestry.com — index $
Civil War[edit | edit source]
- 1861 - 1865 - Texas, Civil War Service Records of Confederate Soldiers, 1861-1865 at FamilySearch — index
- 1861 - 1865 - Texas, Civil War Records of Union Soldiers, 1861-1865 at FamilySearch — index
- Historical Research Center - Hillsboro, Tx., has one of the worlds best Confederate Research & Civil War collections.
World War I[edit | edit source]
- 1917 - 1920 - Texas, World War I Records, 1917-1920 at FamilySearch — index and images
World War II[edit | edit source]
Newspapers[edit | edit source]
Additional newspapers abstracts can sometimes be found using search phrases such as Grayson County, Texas Genealogy newspapers in online catalogs like:
- TX Newspaper Abstracts (For instructions see WorldCat Online Catalog).
- Census Diggins 1830-1930
- Do a Grayson County, Texas Genealogy Place-name search for these and other records in the FamilySearch Catalog (For instructions see FamilySearch Catalog Place-name Search).
Probate[edit | edit source]
Probate records of Texas have been kept by the probate clerk in each county courthouse. You can obtain copies of the records from the clerk's office. In most counties, all information pertaining to a probate case is recorded in the "probate minutes."
Content: Probate Records may give the decedent's date of death, names of his or her spouse, children, parents, siblings, in-laws, neighbors, associates, relatives, and their places of residence.
Record types: Wills, estates, guardianships, naturalizations, marriage, adoption, and birth and death records.
See the Wiki page Texas Probate Records for information about how to use probate records.
Online Probate Records
- 1800–1990 Texas Probate Records at FamilySearch — images
- 1800–2000 Texas Wills and Probate Records at Ancestry.com — index and images $
- All Probate records, insanity hearings and guardianship records are in the County Clerk's Office. Email the clerk's office for details about the record you are requesting.
Taxation[edit | edit source]
Texas tax records complement land records and can be used in place of censuses or to supplement the years between censuses. Because only persons who owned taxable property were listed, many residents were not included in tax lists. There may also be gaps of several years in the tax records of some counties. For more information, see the wiki page Texas Taxation.
1846-1910 Texas County Tax Rolls lists FHL films with county tax lists. The lists vary by county and year. Most records are between the years of 1846 - 1910.
- Tax Rolls are available through interlibrary loan and also through any FHC near you 1846-1910.Many of them are online, here is a page of links.
- Tax records are kept in the County Clerks Office with more recent records in the Tax Assessors Office.
- City of Denison (Land) Tax records are being placed online. this is an ongoing project by the Denison, Texas Genealogical Society's Online Document Project
Vital Records[edit | edit source]
Vital Records consist of births, adoptions, marriages, divorces, and deaths recorded on registers, certificates, and documents.
Certified birth and death certificates or birth and death verifications can be ordered online or by mail at the Texas Vital Records State Department of Health. Copies can also be obtained from the County Clerk's office of the county where the event occurred and are often less expensive. You can also order them online through a third party company.
Marriages records can be obtained from the county the marriage occurred. Only marriage verifications can be obtained from the Texas Vital Records State Department of Health.
See Texas Vital Records for more information about Vital records in Texas.
Birth[edit | edit source]
Online Birth Indexes and Records
- 1840-1981 Texas, Births and Christenings - FamilySearch
- 1903-1935 Texas, Birth Certificates (images and index) - FamilySearch
- 1903-1997 Texas Birth Index (index) - FamilySearch
Marriage[edit | edit source]
Online Marriage Indexes and Records
- 1802-2010 Texas, United States Marriages at FindMyPast — index $
- 1814-1909 and 1966-2011 Texas Marriage Collection at Ancestry.com — index $
- 1837-1965 Texas, County Marriage Records, 1837-1965 at FamilySearch — index and images
- 1837-1973 Texas, Marriages, 1837-1973 at FamilySearch — index
- 1837-1977 Texas, County Marriage Index, 1837-1977 at FamilySearch — index
- 1837-1977 Texas Select County Marriage Index at Ancestry.com — index $
- 1966-2010 Texas, Marriages - FamilySearch record collection
Death[edit | edit source]
Online Death Indexes and Records
- 1903-1973 Texas Deaths and Burials (index) - FamilySearch
- 1903-1982 Texas Death Certificates at Ancestry.com — index and images $
- 1964-1998 Death Records Texas, Death Index, 1964-1998 - FamilySearch Historical Records
- 1977-1986 Texas Deaths at FamilySearch.org — index
Divorce[edit | edit source]
- 1968-2005 Texas Divorce Records (index) ~ Hidden Ancestors
- 1968-2010 Texas Divorce Index at FamilySearch.org — index
- 1968-2011 Texas Divorces at Ancestry.com — index $
Societies and Libraries[edit | edit source]
Sherman Public Library
421 N. Travis
PO Box 1106
Sherman, TX 75090-0190 [
Website
Grayson County Genealogical Society
421 N. Travis
Sherman 7509
Denison Public Library
Historical Genealogical Society
300 W. Gandy St.
Denison, TX 75020
Website
Family History Centers[edit | edit source]
Family History Centers provide one-on-one assistance and free access to premium genealogical websites. In addition, many centers have free how-to genealogy classes.
- For current information about a center near you, go to the Family History Center Map
Websites[edit | edit source]
- Grayson County,Texas ~ TXGenWeb web site. Has maps, biographical and historical data, online books, cemeteries, obituaries, articles and all kinds of useful information.
- Inventory of county records, Grayson County Courthouse, Sherman, Texas
- FamilySearch Catalog The catalog is genealogical materials (including books, online materials, microfilm, microfiche, and publications) This catalog is different than the indexed Historical Records.
References[edit | edit source]
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Grayson County, Texas," in https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grayson_County,_Texas. accessed 08/09/2019
- ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Grayson County, Texas . Page 658-677 At various libraries (WorldCat); FHL Book 973 D27e 2002; Alice Eichholz, ed. Ancestry’s Red Book: American State, County, and Town Sources, Third ed. (Provo, Utah: Ancestry, 2004), 655-665.
- ↑ The Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America,10th ed. (Draper, UT:Everton Publishers, 2002).
- ↑ Sherman, TX Grayson County Courthouse Burned by Mob, May 1930 http://www3.gendisasters.com/texas/17865/sherman-tx-grayson-county-courthouse-burned-mob-may-1930
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Grayson County, Texas," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grayson_County,_Texas, accessed 18 April 2019.
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