Records that survive
These are the record series from Cooke 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 Clerk1848–1941
- Marriage Record (Freeman) · County Clerk1866–1874
- Marriage Affidavits · County Clerk1886–1900
- Death Record · County Clerk1903–1964
- Death Record (Gainesville City) · County Clerk1910–1940
- Divorce Minutes · District Clerk1911–1939
Deeds and land
- Deed Record · County Clerk1850–1902
Wills and estates
- Probate Minutes · County Clerk1849–1936
- Probate Record · County Clerk1876–1936
Naturalization
- (Naturalization) Declarations of Intention · District Clerk1868–1924
- Naturalization Record · District Clerk1886–1918
- (Naturalization) Declarations of Intention · County Clerk1889–1904
Military and pensions
- Discharge Record · County Clerk1919–1948
Tax records
- Tax Rolls · Tax Assessor-Collector1848–1906
Court records
- District Court Civil Minutes · District Clerk1857–1936
Schools
- Scholastic Census (Gainesville Isd) · Superintendent of Schools1908–1947
- Scholastic Census (Myra Isd) · Superintendent of Schools1911–1938
- Scholastic Census (Valley View Isd) · Superintendent of Schools1911–1947
- Scholastic Census (Hood Isd) · Superintendent of Schools1912–1913
- Scholastic Census (Girl's Training School) · Superintendent of Schools1924–1947
- Scholastic Census (Muenster Isd) · Superintendent of Schools1943–1947
Other records
- Official Bond Record · County Clerk1854–1866
- Voter Registration List · County Clerk1867–1869
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
- Cooke 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: Cooke 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, Cooke" 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: Grayson County
Check the parent county for earlier records: Grayson County
Later formed partly from Cooke County: Clay County, Jack County, Montague County, Wise County
Records stay with the county that created them. If your ancestor lived here before 1848, 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.