Records that survive
These are the record series from Bell 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 Record · County Clerk1850–1935
- Divorce Minutes · District Clerk1893–1946
- Death Record · County Clerk1903–1937
- Birth Record (Delayed) · County Clerk1942
Deeds and land
- Deed Record · County Clerk1850–1902
Wills and estates
- Probate Minutes · County Clerk1850–1933
- Probate Record · County Clerk1850–1856
- (Probate) Exhibits of Estates · County Clerk1854–1870
- (Probate) Sales of Estates · County Clerk1856–1883
- (Probate) Administration Bonds · County Clerk1858–1885
- (Probate) Will Record · County Clerk1858–1882
- (Probate) Application Docket · County Clerk1859–1869
- (Probate) Orders for Partition and Distribution · County Clerk1859–1880
- (Probate) Citations and Returns · County Clerk1866–1881
- Probate Docket · County Clerk1874
- (Probate) Inventories and Appraisals · County Clerk1880–1884
Naturalization
- (Naturalization) Declaration of Intention · District Clerk1886–1920
- Naturalization Record · District Clerk1892–1921
Tax records
- Tax Rolls · Tax Assessor-Collector1852–1910
Court records
- Commissioners Court Minutes · County Clerk1850–1856
- District Court Civil Case Papers · District Clerk1852–1933
- District Court Civil Minutes · District Clerk1852–1934
Schools
- Scholastic Census · Superintendent of Schools1928–1946
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
- Bell County official website
Hours, addresses and phone numbers for the county clerk, the district clerk and the Texas General Land Office, and any online record search the county offers.
- 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: Bell 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, Bell" 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: Milam County
Check the parent county for earlier records: Milam County
Records stay with the county that created them. If your ancestor lived here before 1850, 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.