Collin County was created on April 3, 1846
and formed from Fannin County. Collin County was named for Collin McKinney, an author of the Texas Declaration of Independence and its oldest signer (age 70 when he signed it), and early settler in the county. The County Seat is McKinney. The Official County website is located at http://collincountytx.gov/. The Collin County courthouse was built of brick in Contemporary style in 1979. The original 1874 Second Empire courthouse still stands in the town square as one of the oldest courthouses in the state.
PLEASE READ!! Please call the clerk's department to confirm hours, mailing address, fees and other specifics before visiting or requesting information because of sometimes changing contact information.
Collin County Clerk has Court Records from 1846, Land Records from 1846, Probate Records from 1846 , Marriage Records from 1846 and Birth/Death Records from 1903 is located at Main
Office,
Collin County Government Center,
Annex A, First Floor,
200 S. McDonald,
Suite 120,
McKinney, Texas 75069;
Email: (County Clerks),
(Land Recording),
(Vitals);
Phone: 972-424-1460 ext. 4151 or 4134 (Metro) . The
County Clerk's office was created
in 1857. The County Clerk is the trusted
guardian of all instruments of public
record. The office's duties are to keep
records safe, maintain their integrity
and facilitate public access to the files
during normal working hours. The clerk
has various responsibilities which include
taking minutes of each Commissioners'
Court meeting and keeping Commissioners'
Court records. The County Clerk is the
Local Registrar for filing and recording
all birth and death certificates in the
county. Trust Fund Records, Official
Bond Records, Military Discharge Records,
Mental Health Indexes and miscellaneous
records are maintained by the Clerk.
The County Clerk is responsible for legal
instruments which include real and personal
property, bonds, plats, marks and brands,
assume names, deputation records, issuing
bail bond checks, going out of business
sales, beer and wine hearing, safekeeping
of wills and probate. Records:
Birth Records begin 1903, County Clerk's
Office; Marriage begin 1846, County Clerk's
Office; Death begin 1903, County Clerk's
Office; Land begin 1846, County Clerk's
Office; Probate 1846, County Clerk's Office;
Court Records from 1846; Divorce 1846,
District Clerk's Office; Criminal Records
1846, District Clerk's Office
Probate
Clerks Office,
University Drive Courts Facility,
1800 N. Graves Street, Suite 115
McKinney, TX 75069; Email:
probate@collincountytx.gov , Phone: 972-424-1460 ext. 6463 (Metro)
Clerks: 972-548-6461 (McKinney), 972-548-6462 (McKinney) Probates
Clerks maintain all cases filed
for probate of a decendants estate in
which a probate proceeding has been filed.
Probate court deals with 1) Decendant's
estates (generally most property owned
by a person at the time of death), whether
the person passes away with or without
a will, and 2) Guardianships of the person
(where one person is empowered by the
court to make decisions for another)
and the estate (where one person is empowered
by the court to take care of the property
of another) of an individual who has
become incapacitated.
Below is a list of online resources for Collin County Court Records. Email us with websites containing Collin County Court Records by clicking the link below:
Texas Immigration & Emigration Records - Immigration records help the family historian to understand the movements of their ancestry as they relocated to different parts of the world.
Click Here to Search Texas Birth, Marriage & Death Records! - Birth, marriage, and death records are connected with central life events. They are prime sources for genealogical information. Look also for baptism, christening, and burial records in this collection.
Vital Records,1100 West 49th Street,
Austin, TX 78756, Please allow up to approximately 6-8 weeks for processing of all type of certificates when ordered through the mail. They have the following records:
Birth Certificates: Birth records maintained by Bureau of Vital Statistics, Dept. of Health since 1903 through the present. For births that occurred within the past 75 years, copies can be requested only by the immediate family of the person whose name is on the birth certificate.
Cost: The cost of a birth record is $22.00. If no record is found or no copy is made, state law requires that we keep $22.00 for a searching fee. Please do not send cash in the mail.
Processing Time: 6-8 weeks when ordered by MAIL or 2-5 Days when you order ELECTRONICALLY
Death Certificates: Death records maintained by Bureau of Vital Statistics, Dept. of Health since 1903 through the present.
For deaths that occurred in the past 25 years, copies can be requested only by immediate family members of the deceased.
Cost: The cost of a certified death certificate is $20.00 for the first copy and $3.00 for each additional copy issued at the same time for the same certificate. If no record is found or no copy is made, state law requires that we keep $20.00 for a searching fee. Please do not send cash in the mail.
Processing Time: 6-8 weeks when ordered by MAIL or 2-5 Days when you order ELECTRONICALLY
Marriage & Divorce Certificates: Marriage Verifications from Jan 1966 and Divorce Verifications from Jan 1968. Certified copies of marriage licenses or divorce decrees are only available from the county clerk (marriage) or district clerk (divorce) in the county or district in which the event occurred. Marriage verification or divorce verification letters can now be ordered ELECTRONICALLY
Cost: $20 - Fee is for verification only.
Processing Time: 6-8 weeks when ordered by MAIL or 2-5 Days when you order ELECTRONICALLY
Order Online: You can also order Order Electronically and get the certificates within 2-5 days by ordering below
Order In Person: The certificates may be ordered by coming into this office. If you want the copy the same day, our hours for same day service are 8:00 A.M. until 5:00 P.M. Monday – Friday. The Texas Vital Statistics Office in Austin is located at 1100 W. 49th Street,
Austin, TX 78756.
Order By Mail: Mail a check or money order (no cash) payable to the "Texas Vital Records " along with the necessary information to the following address: Texas Vital Records, Department of State Health Services, PO Box 12040,
Austin TX 78711-2040. Please include return address on envelope and application form.
Search the Social Security Death Index for FREE - Search over 82 million death records and get genealogical information crucial to your family research. New content added weekly! Most comprehensive SSDI site online!
Research Death records In The World's Largest Newspaper Archive at NewpaperArchive.com! - Find thousands of historical Texas newspaper articles about deaths. Search for local articles about an old family friend that died many years ago or a celebrity that committed suicide. Historical newspapers contain a wealth of information about the deceased.
Texas Birth Certificates, 1903-10, 1926-29 - Browse by county, then year, then surname, beginning with the first letters of the last name of the person you seek. If you're unsure of the year or location, use the search box under the browse menu. These records can be searched by father's first and last names, mother's first and maiden names, year, county, and city. The certificates include the child and parents' full names, residence, occupations, age, time and date of the birth, and the name of the physician attending the birth.
Texas Death Certificates, 1890-1976 - These records are searchable by first and last name of the deceased, year, county, and city. A certificate may include the decedent's date, place, and cause of death; age; date of birth; last residence; and marital status. If known, it will also include occupation, birth place, parents' names, and place of burial. Browse by county, then year, then surname, beginning with the first letters of the last name of the person you seek. If unsure of the year or location, use the search box under the browse menu.
Click Here to Search Texas Voter Lists & Census Records! - Few, if any, records reveal as many details about individuals and families as do government census records. Substitute records can be used when the official census is unavailable.
Countywide Records: Federal Population Schedules that exist for Collin County, Texas are 1850, 1860, 1870, 1880, 1890 (fragment, see below), 1900, 1910, 1920 and 1930. The Texas State Library holds microfilm editions for all of Texas' federal censuses. Although the 1850, 1860, and part of the 1870 mortality schedules have been published, all the original mortality schedules are at the Texas State Library and on microfilm The 1830 territorial census of Miller County, Arkansas, enumerates an area that is in today's Texas boundaries. The remaining 1890 population schedules which exist for Texas include: Ellis County (Justice Precinct 6, Mountain Peak, and Ovilla Precinct); Hood County (Precinct 5); Rusk County (No. 6 and Justice Precinct No. 7); Trinity County (town of Trinity and Justice Precinct 2); and Kaufman County (Kaufman). Although Greer County in present-day Oklahoma functioned as part of Texas between 1886 and 1896, the 1890 census for this county was enumerated under Oklahoma Territory.
Other Federal Schedules to look at when researching your family tree in Collin County, Texas are Industry and Agriculture Schedules availible for the years 1850, 1860, 1870 and 1880. Slave Schedules exist for 1850 & 1860. The Mortality Schedules for the years 1850, 1860, 1870 and 1880. There are free downloadable and printable Census forms to help with your research. These include U.S. Census Extraction Forms and U.K. Census Extraction Forms
Below is a list of online resources for Collin County Census Records. Email us with websites containing Collin County Census Records by clicking the link below:
Genealogy Atlas has images of old American atlases during the years 1795, 1814, 1822, 1823, 1836, 1838, 1845, 1856, 1866, 1879 and 1897 for Arkansas and other states.
You can view rotating animated maps for Texas showing all the county boundaries for each census year overlayed with past and present maps so you can see the changes in county boundaries. You can view a list of maps for other states at Census Maps
You can view rotating animated maps for Texas showing all the county boundary changes for each year overlayed with past and present maps so you can see the changes in county boundaries. You can view a list of maps for other states and State Department of Transportation Maps at County Maps.
Below is a list of online resources for Collin County Maps. Email us with websites containing Collin County Maps by clicking the link below:
Click Here to Search Texas Military Records! - Military and civil service records provide unique facts and insights into the lives of men and women who have served their country at home and abroad.
The uses and value of military records in genealogical research for ancestors who were veterans are obvious, but military records can also be important to re-searchers whose direct ancestors were not soldiers in any war. The fathers, grandfathers, brothers, and other close relatives of an ancestor may have served in a war, and their service or pension records could contain information that will assist in further identifying the family of primary interest. Due to the amount of genealogical information contained in some military pension files, they should never be overlooked during the research process. Those records not containing specific genealogical information are of historic value and should be included in any overall research design.
Below is a list of online resources for Collin County Military Records. Email us with websites containing Collin County Military Records by clicking the link below:
Revolutionary War Rolls, 1775-1783 (The National Archives): View, Print Copy & Save Original Documents in NARA publication M246 include muster rolls, payrolls, strength returns, and other miscellaneous personnel, pay, and supply records of American Army units, 1775-83.
Southern Claims Commission from the State of Texas (The National Archives): View, Print Copy & Save Original Documents In the 1870s, southerners claimed compensation from the U.S. government for items used by the Union Army, ranging from corn and horses, to trees and church buildings.
Texas tax records constitute one of the most complete sets of available records generated at the county level (by the Commissioners Court) because these documents are maintained by the state. These lists may only include approximately sixty percent of eligible males over the age of twenty-one. Persons exempted from taxes included native Americans, "idiots," "incompetents," and those exempted because of age. This final category of exemptions varied over time. Years without an older age exemption were 1840 and 1862-70. Between 1841-44 exemptions began at forty-five years; in 1845 and from 1850-61 the upward age was set at fifty years. In 1837, 1848, and 1849 the limit was established as fifty-five, and in 1846-7, and 1871 the upward limit was set at sixty years.
Texas Ad Valorem (poll, personal, and real property) tax records for 1836 through 1976 are available in microfilm at the Texas State Library from the date of respective county organization; these are arranged by county and date and are somewhat alphabetized within each division. Microfilm copies are housed in the Genealogy Section. Tax lists for the various counties from creation to 1901 may be borrowed through interlibrary loan. Tax records through 1901-1947 are readily accessible, but not on interlibrary loan. Those for 1948 through 1976 can be obtained upon request.
Below is a list of online resources for Collin County Tax Records. Email us with websites containing Collin County Tax Records by clicking the link below:
The Repositories
in this section are Archives, Libraries, Museums, Genealogical
and Historical Societies. Many County Historical and Genealogical
Societies publish magazines and/or news letters on a monthly,
quarterly, bi-annual or annual basis. Contacting the local societies
should not be over looked. State Archives and Societies are
usually much larger and better organized with much larger archived
materials than their smaller county cousins but they can be
more generalized and over look the smaller details that local
societies tend to have. Libraries can also be a good place to
look for local information. Some libraries have a genealogy
section and may have some resources that are not located at
archives or societies. Also, take a special look at any museums
in the area. They sometimes have photos and items from years
gone by as well as information of a genealogical interest. All
these places are vitally important to the family genealogist
and must not be passed over.
Below is a list of online resources for Collin County Genealogical Addresses. Email us with websites containing Collin County Genealogical Addresses by clicking the link below:
Texas State Library and Archives Commission, P.O. Box 12927, Austin, TX 78711-2927 Holdings under the auspices of the Texas State Library are divided. Most important for genealogical research are the Texas State Archives with its Local Records Department, the Records Management Division, and the Information Services Division, which includes a Genealogy Section and a Reference Department.
The Genealogy Section maintains vertical ties that contain notes, clippings, pamphlets, and correspondence on Texas families. These files may be accessed in person, by phone (512-463-5463, forty-five minute limit), or through correspondence.
Texas Historical Commision The Texas Historical Commission (THC) is the state agency for historic preservation. THC staff consults with citizens and organizations to preserve Texas' architectural, archeological and cultural landmarks. The agency is recognized nationally for its preservation programs.
Texas Newspapers & Periodicals Records - Newspapers and periodicals are the diaries of local communities. They are excellent sources of family history details - often recorded nowhere else. Look for obituaries, marriages, legal notices, and more found in our Historical Newspaper Archives.
Click Here to Search Texas Obituary Records! - This database is a compilation of obituaries published in U.S. newspapers, collected from various online sources. Obituaries can vary in the amount of information they contain, but many of them are genealogical goldmines, including information such as names, dates, places of birth and death, marriage information, and family relationships.
During Texas's colonization period Roman Catholics were the most numerous, but early citizens included those representing other religious faiths such as Baptist, Methodist, Presbyterian, and Christian or Disciples of Christ.
Many cemetery records have been collected and transcribed, including the largest of which is multi-volumes compilation by the DAR and two volumes for Peters Colonists and descendants. The DAR collection, also microfilmed, is available at the Texas State Library and through the FHL.
Some Texas county historical and genealogical societies have published local cemetery and/funeral home records. These are normally available for purchase through the respective society. Two references can help determine which cemeteries have been recorded: Kim Parsons', A Reference to Texas Cemetery Records (Humble, Tex.: by author, 1988), arranged by county; and Sharry Crofford-Gould's, Texas Cemetery Inscriptions: A Source Index (San Antonio, Tex.: Limited Editions, 1977).
Below is a list of online resources for Collin County Cemetery & Church Records. Email us with websites containing Collin County Cemetery & Church Records by clicking the link below:
Find Obituaries in The World's Largest Newspaper Archive at NewpaperArchive.com! - Find thousands of Texas obituaries to help you research your family history. Search for a Texas newspaper obituary about your ancestor or a celebrity. Begin your search today and find death notices and funeral announcements printed in newspapers from Texas.
Click Here to Search Texas Family Tree Records! - The use of published genealogies, electronic files containing genealogical lineage, and other compiled sources can be of tremendous value to a researcher.
When view family trees online or not, be sure to only take the info at face value and always follow up with your own sources or verify the ones they provide. Below is a list of online resources for Collin County Family Trees, web forums and other family type information. Email us with websites containing Collin County Family Trees, web forums and other family type information by clicking the link below:
Genealogy Encyclopedia: General Abbreviations, Early Illnesses, Nickname Meanings, Worldwide Epidemics, Early Occupations, Common Terms, Censuses Explained, Free Genealogical Forms
Nichols and Related Families of Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Florida, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virgina.
Texas Family & Local History Records - The Family & Local Histories Collection lets you read journals, memoirs, and other first-hand historical narratives right on your computer. Gathered from some of the world's finest libraries, these materials may provide hard-to-find town, county, and state information; tax records and wills; military, church, and court records; as well as photographs, stories, and maps.
Branches of the Caddo Indians inhabited the area before the arrival of the first white settlers. Occasional outbreaks of violence occurred between the two groups, but there was no extended period of conflict since the Caddos withdrew from the county by the mid-1850s. The absence of organized Indian resistance, combined with the county's fertile soil and an offer of land grants by the Peters colony attracted settlers to the area in the early 1840s. Even with the offer of free land, the estimated population of the county was only 150 when it was demarked from Fannin County on April 3, 1846, and named for Collin McKinney, one of the first settlers of the county and a signer of the Texas Declaration of Independence. The original county seat was Buckner. Because this town Buckner was not within three miles of the center of the county, however, McKinney became the county seat in 1848. Like the county, McKinney was named for Collin McKinney.
The settlement of Collin County can be divided into two phases. The first occurred during the early period of the county's history, from 1840 to 1860. The second phase took place during and after the arrival of railroads. The settlements established before the construction of rail lines seldom survived if the railroads bypassed them. The majority of the first settlers of Collin County were farmers who lived near streams, where water and wood were easily obtained. They established small, family-operated farms that produced mostly wheat and corn. The slave and cotton economy that characterized most of the South, with its large plantations, failed to take hold in the county. In part this was a result of the lack of navigable rivers and railroads to transport cash crops to retail centers. The nearest market was Jefferson, more than 150 miles to the east. In addition, the farmers who settled the county were from the upper South and had little experience in slaveholding or raising cotton. In 1860 only 1,047 of the 9,264 residents were black, and the cotton harvest was of no significance.
These factors, plus the influence of James W. Throckmorton, a native of McKinney and Texas state senator, resulted in Collin County's vote against secession, 948 to 405, in 1861. Once Texas joined the Confederacy, however, more than 1,500 residents of the county enlisted in the defense of the South, led by Throckmorton, who rose to the rank of brigadier general. During the war isolated incidents of violence occurred between Union sympathizers and Confederates, including the participation of an undetermined number of county residents in the events that led to the Great Hanging at Gainesville in 1862. Outbreaks of violence continued after the war. Farmersville, twelve miles east of McKinney, was the site of one of the killings that took place during the Lee-Peacock feud. By 1869 gunplay between the two groups had ended. Except for the military appointments of a few public officials in 1867-68, the county remained under the control of the Democratic party during Reconstruction.
For the first thirty years of the county's history farmers had little incentive to take advantage of the fertile soil of the Blackland Prairie, considered the richest agricultural region of Texas. Between the 1840s and 1870s the lack of transportation facilities, limited markets, and absence of mechanized farm equipment restricted the agricultural production of the county. The arrival of the railroad removed these obstacles and initiated a fifty-year period of economic growth. In 1872 the Houston and Texas Central Railway, the first to reach the county, connected McKinney and Plano to tracks that reached as far south as Houston. The Missouri, Kansas and Texas followed four years later and was joined in a decade by the Gulf, Colorado and Santa Fe. By the mid-1890s six railroads crisscrossed the county, connecting farmers to retail markets throughout Texas. With an outlet for their products farmers began to cultivate the unplowed fertile land in the eastern and central sections of the county. Between 1870 and 1920 the number of farms and crop production increased dramatically. In 1870, 903 farms valued at just over three million dollars produced 674,565 bushels of corn, 4,371 bales of cotton, and 42,827 bushels of wheat. In 1920 the number of farms had increased to 6,001, with a value estimated at well over $84 million. Production of corn had increased to 2,574,689 bushels, cotton to 49,311 bales, and wheat to 956,412 bushels.
By the 1920s, twenty-three Collin County communities had voted road bonds totaling just under $4 million. New roads, combined with State Highway 289, provided county residents with easy access to Dallas, Fort Worth, and Waco. By the end of the decade thirteen communities had electricity, natural gas, and a telephone exchange. Three had a population of over 1,000. In 1920 the county seat had 6,677 residents, and the population of the county was 49,609.
During the next forty years, however, the population declined. The Great Depression, mechanization of farms, and employment opportunities outside the county contributed to the drop in population. Although Collin County did not suffer the extreme hardships that befell other areas of Texas, the number of county farms declined from 6,069 in 1930 to 4,771 by 1940. The value of all crops harvested dropped from just over $10 million to just over $6.5 million during the same period. As late as 1940 Collin County's unemployment rate stood at 19 percent.
By the mid-1950s the economy had recovered. The average value of farmland per acre increased from $58.91 in 1940 to $145.52 in 1954. In part this improvement was a result of the efforts of the Texas Research Foundation and the Collin County Soil Conservation District. The Texas Research Foundation, established at Renner in 1944, used the latest scientific discoveries to improve farming practices. In 1946 the Collin County Soil Conservation District was formed and planned the construction of 144 flood-retarding structures, including Lake Lavon, to prevent the flooding of thousands of acres of rich bottomland in southeastern Collin County. Farmers also benefited from the electric cooperatives established by the Rural Electrification Administration in the late 1930s. The Hunt-Collin Co-operative (1937), the Fannin County Electric Co-operative (1939), and the Grayson-Collin Electric Co-operative (1937) combined to bring electricity to the isolated communities of the county. New roads also assisted county farmers. In 1946 the county had 138 miles of paved roads. By the early 1970s the paved miles had increased to 2,333. The work of the Texas Research Foundation and improved soil-conservation practices increased the production of wheat, the county's primary cash crop, from 352,229 bushels in 1949 to 1,224,664 bushels in 1959.
The mechanization of farming, however, reduced the number of farms from 3,166 in 1950 to 2,001 in 1960. A corresponding decline in the county's population occurred. Historically the percentage of tenant farmers in Collin County was high; it reached a peak of 74 percent in 1925. By 1960 that figure had dropped to 38 percent. Because of the lack of business opportunities outside farming in the county, the majority of those forced to leave farming also left the county. The population decreased from 47,190 in 1940 to 41,247 in 1960.
Although agriculture, especially developing dairy farming, continued to be an important factor in the county's economy, by 1980 the introduction of light industry, combined with the growth of the Dallas metropolitan area, produced a successful diversified economy. In 1980 the number of business establishments totaled 2,388; 25 percent of the population was employed in manufacturing and 23 percent in wholesale and retail trade. Most of the population, 59 percent, worked outside the county. The economic growth between 1960 and 1980 accompanied a comparable population growth. Plano, eighteen miles northeast of Dallas, had the most dramatic increase of all Collin County towns: in 1960 Plano's population was 3,695, and twenty years later it was 72,331. Overall, Collin County's population increased from 41,692 in 1960 to 144,576 in 1980. Subsequently it continued to grow, largely as a result of the development of the suburbs in and around Plano. By 1990 the number of residents in Plano increased to 128,673, and the population of the county as a whole grew to 264,036, nearly double what it had been only a decade before. Many of the new arrivals in the county are from areas outside of Texas.
Though before 1970 the voters of the county were staunchly Democratic, from 1972 to 1992 they consistently chose Republican presidential candidates, and Republicans also made inroads in state and local races. Other changes have occurred. Due to the large number of young families that have moved to the area, the average age has dropped considerably, and education levels have been steadily rising. Hispanics, traditionally only a small minority in the county, now outnumber African-Americans, and the number of Asians is increasing rapidly. In 1990 nearly 90 percent of the population was white, 6.9 percent Hispanic, 4.1 percent black, and 2.8 percent Asian. Collin County is well on its way to being one of the most densely populated counties in Texas. The largest city, Plano, overshadows the county seat as the business and educational center of the county. The diversified economy continues to diminish the number of farms. At its 150th anniversary the county little resembled what was settled in the 1840s.
Texas Birth Certificates, 1903-10, 1926-29