Records that survive
These are the record series from Zapata 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 Clerk1873–1915
Deeds and land
- Survey Record · County Surveyor1835–1945
- Deed Record · County Clerk1868–1891
- Deed of Trust Record · County Clerk1885–1919
Wills and estates
- (Probate) Will Record · County Clerk1886–1944
- Probate Minutes · County Clerk1895–1910
Naturalization
- (Naturalization) Declarations of Intention · County Clerk1885–1906
Tax records
- Tax Rolls · Tax Assessor-Collector1858–1910
Other records
- Patent Record · County Clerk1854–1961
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
- Zapata 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: Zapata 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, Zapata" 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: Starr County, Webb County
Check the parent counties for earlier records: Starr County, Webb County
Later formed partly from Zapata County: Brooks County
Records stay with the county that created them. If your ancestor lived here before 1858, 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.