Records that survive
These are the record series from Bowie 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 Clerk1889–1938
- Divorce Minutes, 5th District Court · District Clerk1909–1918
- Death Record, City of Texarkana · County Clerk1910–1929
- Divorce Minutes, 102nd District Court · District Clerk1926–1942
- Death Record · County Clerk1932–1966
Deeds and land
- Deed Record · County Clerk1889–1901
Wills and estates
- Probate Case Index · County Clerk1889–1940
- Probate Minutes · County Clerk1889–1931
Naturalization
- (Naturalization) Declaration of Intention · District Clerk1907
Court records
- District Court Civil Case Papers, 5th District Civil Court · District Clerk1883–1901
- District Court Civil Minutes, 5th District Civil Court · District Clerk1889–1930
- District Court Civil Case Papers, Special District Court of the 5th Judicial District · District Clerk1913–1914
- District Court Civil Minutes, Special District Court of the 5th Judicial District · District Clerk1913–1914
- District Court Civil Case Papers, 102nd District Civil Court · District Clerk1925–1944
- District Court Civil Minutes, 102nd District Civil Court · District Clerk1925–1941
Schools
- Consolidated Scholastic Census Rolls · Superintendent of Schools1928–1941
- Scholastic Census · Superintendent of Schools1928–1946
Other records
- Medical Register · County Clerk1907–1951
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
- Bowie 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: Bowie 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, Bowie" 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: Red River County
Check the parent county for earlier records: Red River County
Later formed partly from Bowie County: Cass County, Titus County
Records stay with the county that created them. If your ancestor lived here before 1840, 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.