Records that survive
These are the record series from Austin County that were microfilmed for the Texas State Library and Archives Commission (TSLAC), with the office that kept each and the earliest and latest years filmed. A span can include gaps. Not every county, or every record in a county, was filmed.
Marriages, births and deaths
- Marriage Bonds · County Clerk1824–1835
- Marriage Record · County Clerk1838–1938
- (Marriage) Notice of Intention to Marry · County Clerk1929–1933
- Birth Certificates · County Clerk1933–1941
- Death Certificates · County Clerk1933–1965
- Birth Certificates, Admendments to · County Clerk1939–1991
- Birth Record, Delayed · County Clerk1939–1957
Deeds and land
- Survery Records · County Surveyor1824–1942
- Deed Record · County Clerk1837–1902
- Board of Land Commissioners, Minutes · County Clerk1838–1855
Wills and estates
- (Probate) Succession Record · County Clerk1837–1919
- Probate Minutes · County Clerk1837–1919
Naturalization
- Naturalization Papers · Distict Clerk1849–1906
- (Naturalization) Record of Foreign Citizenship · County Clerk1854–1877
- Naturalization Record · Distict Clerk1854–1906
- (Naturalization) Declarations of Intention · County Clerk1856–1906
- (Naturalization) Declarations of Intention · Distict Clerk1881–1917
- Naturalization Record · County Clerk1896–1906
- (Naturalization) Petition and Record · Distict Clerk1907–1938
Military and pensions
- Discharge Record · County Clerk1918–1951
Tax records
- Tax Rolls · Tax Assessor-Collector1837–1910
Court records
- District Court Civil Case Papers · Distict Clerk1839–1940
- District Court Civil Minutes · Distict Clerk1841–1949
- Commissioners Court Minutes · County Clerk1849–1866
- District Court, Civil Fee Book · Distict Clerk1875–1912
- County Court Civil Minutes · County Clerk1876–1914
Other records
- Colonial Records · County Clerk1824–1837
- Miscellaneous Record · County Clerk1849–1865
- Census Record · County Clerk1850–1858
See every reel at the Texas State Library
Source: Texas State Library and Archives Commission, County Records on Microfilm. Texas began statewide registration of births and deaths in 1903, though many went unrecorded until the 1920s.
Where to find the records
- Find Austin County's official website
We haven't checked this county's website yet, so this opens a web search. Look for an address ending in .gov, then find the county clerk, the district clerk and the Texas General Land Office.
- The county clerk
Deeds, marriage licenses and probate records (wills and estates), plus copies of births and deaths for many counties.
- The district clerk
District court cases, including divorces, and in many counties naturalizations.
- The Texas General Land Office
In Austin: the original files for nearly all land granted from the public domain, from Spanish and Mexican grants through the Republic and the state, since Texas kept its public land.
- Texas State Library: Austin County records on microfilmfree
Every filmed series with its reel numbers. The film can be used in Austin or borrowed through interlibrary loan at many libraries.
- Texas General Land Office: Search Our Collectionsfree
The Land Grant Database and surname index: search original Texas land grants by name and county.
- FamilySearch Catalogfree
Search by place for "Texas, Austin" to find filmed and digitized records, many viewable free online with a FamilySearch account.
Offices change their hours and access rules; call before you visit.
Boundaries and parent counties
Formed from: A Mexican municipality, made one of the Republic of Texas's original counties in 1836
Later formed partly from Austin County: Brazoria County, Colorado County, Fort Bend County, Harris County, Montgomery County, Waller County, Washington County
Records stay with the county that created them. If your ancestor lived here before 1828, search the parent county. The Atlas of Historical County Boundaries shows each boundary change.
Research tip
Texas land was granted by the state, not the federal government, so an ancestor who received land directly from the government will usually have a file at the General Land Office as well as deeds in the county.