Midland County, Texas
History, Records, Facts and Genealogy

Court Records | Vital Records | CENSUS Records | TAX Records | Military Records | Church & Cemetery |
Maps & Atlases | Genealogy Addresses | Genealogy Related Sites |
Midland County Facts

Midland County was created in 1885 and formed from Tom Green County. Midland County was named for its location midway between Fort Worth and El Paso on the Texas and Pacific Railroad. The County Seat is Midland. The Official County website is located at http://www.co.midland.tx.us/. See also Extended History for more historical details.

Areas adjacent to Midland County are Martin County (north), Glasscock County (east), Upton County (south), Ector County (west), Andrews County (northwest)

  • Midland County, Texas History Books at Amazon.com
  • Family History Library - The largest collection of free family history, family tree and genealogy records in the world.
  • Search Historical Newspapers from Texas (1802 - 1993) - Quickly find names and keywords in over 450 million articles, obituaries, marriage notices, birth announcements and other items published in over 2,800 historical U.S. newspapers. New content added monthly!
  • Stories, Memories & Histories - Stories and histories compiled by others researching a person or area can be an amazing source of information about your ancestors. Not only do they generally contain dates and places of vital events like birth, marriage, and death, but they often relate stories and memories that help you really get to know the character of your ancestors.
  • Search Texas Historical Records - Databases include Court, Land, Wills & Financial Records; Birth, Marriage & Death Records; Voter Lists & Census Records; Immigration & Emigration Records; Obituary Records; Military Records; Family Tree Records; Pictures; Stories, Memories & Histories; Directories & Member Lists and much more....

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Midland County Court Records

See Also Texas Land Records, Marriage Records, Court & Probate Records

Researchers often overlook the importance of court records, probate records, and land records as a source of family history information.

PLEASE READ FIRST!!!! 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.

Midland County Clerk has Court Records from 1886, Land Records from 1885 , Probate Records from 1885, Marriage Records from 1885 and Birth/Death Records from 1903 is located at 200 W. Wall, Suite Number 105, Midland, TX 79701; Phone: 432.688.4401 .

The County Clerk's Office is the record keeper of the county. The county records include birth certificates, death certificates, marriage licenses, brand registrations, DD214s (military discharges), land / real estate / property records, probate and civil filings.

There are a few online databases for Court, Land and Probate Records which include: Texas Birth Index, 1903-1997, Texas Deaths, 1964-98, Texas Marriage Collection, 1814-1909 & 1966-2002, and Texas Divorce Index, 1968-2002. You may also search the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) which does cover Texas. Many pioneers and settelers bought land from the government instead of individuals.

Below is a list of online resources for Midland County Court Records. Email us with websites containing Midland County Court Records by clicking the link below:

  • Order County Court, Civil or Criminal Records Online
  • Midland County, Texas Court Books at Amazon.com
  • Bureau of Land Management (BLM) which covers the State of Texas. Many pioneers and settelers bought land from the government instead of individuals.
  • Court, Land, Wills & Financial - Court records are an often overlooked, yet very valuable tool for finding information to assist you in your research. Land records, such as deeds, allow you to tie an ancestor to a specific place at a point in time. Other court records like those dealing with finances and estates often list related family members or give interesting details like the total value of property owned by your ancestors to add interest to your family history.
  • Immigration & Emigration - As our ancestors moved from one country to another, details about their lives were recorded on passenger lists and government documents. Immigration and emigration records can help you learn where your ancestors originally came from, where they went, when they left, who they traveled with, and more.
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Midland County Vital Records

See Also Vital Records in Texas

Birth, marriage, and death records are connected with central life events. They are prime sources for genealogical information.

Texas Department of State Health Services, 1100 W. 49th Street, Austin, TX 78756; (888) 963-7111 or (512) 458-7111; Fax: (512) 458-7711. Please allow up to approximately 6-8 weeks for processing of all type of certificates when ordered through the mail, or 2-5 Days when you order through VitalChek Express Certificate Services. The Vital Records Department has 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.
  • 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.
  • 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 Online. Cost is $20 - Fee is for verification only.

ORDERING

  • Order Online: You can also order Order Electronically Online to obtain a certified copy of a birth, marriage, death or divorce record with a credit or debit card and get the certificates within 2-5 days by ordering from VitalChek Express Certificate Service.
  • 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. Print Aplication for Birth Certificates, Death Certificates and Marriage & Divorce Certificates.

There are a few online marriage databases which include: Texas Birth Index, 1903-1997, Texas Deaths, 1964-98, Texas Marriage Collection, 1814-1909 & 1966-2002, and Texas Divorce Index, 1968-2002. Below is a list of online resources for Midland County Vital Records. Email us with websites containing Midland County Vital Records by clicking the link below:

  • VitalChek Express Certificate Service - Some documents are just too important to wait six weeks for. With VitalChek Express Certificate Service you won’t have to. VitalChek is the fast and convenient way to order certified government-issued vital records online. They make it easy for you to purchase the documents to which you are legally entitled. Beware of other online services that do not have relationships directly with the agencies that store your vital records. VitalChek's order process usually takes less than 10 minutes --And you can select express courier service for even faster delivery when time is running out.
  • Click Here to Search the Social Security Death Index for FREEicon - 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, 1926-29icon - 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, 1890-1976icon - 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.
  • Midland County, Texas Birth, Marriage & Death Books at Amazon.com
  • Birth, Marriage & Death - Vital records (births, deaths, marriages, and divorces) mark the milestones of our lives and are the foundation of family history research. Vital records, usually kept by a civic authority, can give you a more complete picture of your ancestor, help you distinguish between two people with the same name, and help you find links to a new generation.
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Midland County Census Records

See Also Research In Census Records & Statewide Records that exist for Texas

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 Midland County, Texas are 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.

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 Midland County Census Records. Email us with websites containing Midland County Census Records by clicking the link below:

  • Midland County, Texas Census Books at Amazon.com
  • Census & Voter Lists - A census is an official list of the people in a particular area at a given time, while voter lists show those who were registered to vote in a certain area. The valuable information found on census records helps you to understand your family in their time and place. Voter Lists serve as a confirmation of residence in between the years that the census was taken.
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Midland County Maps & Atlases

See Also Research In State Map Collections

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 Midland County Maps. Email us with websites containing Midland County Maps by clicking the link below:

  • Texas General Land Office Map Collection
  • Midland County, Texas Map Books at Amazon.com
  • Maps, Atlases & Gazetteers - Maps are an invaluable part of family history research, especially if you live far from where your ancestor lived. Because political boundaries often changed, historic maps are critical in helping you discover the precise location of your ancestor's hometown, what land they owned, who their neighbors were, and more.
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Midland County Military Records

See Also Military Records in Texas

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 Midland County Military Records. Email us with websites containing Midland County Military Records by clicking the link below:

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Midland County Tax Records

See Also Research In Tax Records

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 Midland County Tax Records. Email us with websites containing Midland County Tax Records by clicking the link below:

  • Midland County, Texas Tax Books at Amazon.com
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Midland County Genealogical Addresses

See Also Other Texas Genealogical Addresses

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 Midland County Genealogical Addresses. Email us with websites containing Midland County Genealogical Addresses by clicking the link below:

  • Midland Genealogical Society, P.O. Box 1191, Midland 79702
  • Midland Genealogical Society, P.O. Box 1191, 301 W. Missouri, Midland, TX 79701
    Meets 2nd Thurs.each month at 7 p.m. location published in monthly newsletter "The Thorny Trail" is published 2 times each year
  • Redfern Genealogical Research Center, 301 W. Missouri, Midland, TX 79701
  • 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 Genealogical Society, 2505 Beluche Drive, Galveston 77551
  • 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.
  • Newspapers & Periodicals - The Newspapers & Periodicals Collection lets you discover a wealth of information about your ancestors from many historical newspapers, magazines, and other periodicals. These types of sources can often supplement public records and provide information that is not recorded anywhere else. Here, you can learn more about your ancestor's possible daily activities by placing them in the context of their time.
  • Directories & Member Lists - Directories and member lists are typically compilations of information about people who belonged to various associations and groups or lived within city boundaries. They can be thought of as the predecessors to the modern-day phone book and usually list names, addresses, and sometimes the occupations of your ancestors.
  • Texas Genealogical Society Books at Amazon.com
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Midland County Church & Cemeteries

See Also Church & Cemetery Records in Texas

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.

There are many churches and cemeteries in Midland County. Some transcriptions are online. A great site is the Midland County Tombstone Transcription Project.

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 Midland County Cemetery & Church Records. Email us with websites containing Midland County Cemetery & Church Records by clicking the link below:

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Family Trees & Genealogy Tidbits

 

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 Midland County Family Trees, web forums and other family type information. Email us with websites containing Midland County Family Trees, web forums and other family type information by clicking the link below:

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Extended History

 

In 1953 archaeologists discovered the fossilized remains of "Midland Minnie" on the Scharbauer Ranch in the county. Though "Minnie's" age could not be conclusively established, the remains were tentatively determined to belong to the Folsom culture of the late Pleistocene age, when the area had a cool, humid climate. Fossil evidence of extinct species of horse, antelope, peccary, wolf, mammoth, and sloth were also found at the site. Long before settlers entered what is now Midland County, the region was crossed by a number of early transportation routes. The Comanches used the Great Comanche War Trail, which ran through the area from Indian territory to the south. In 1839 Mexican travelers blazed the Chihuahua Trail, which ran northwesterly from the site of Big Spring to Castle Gap and Horsehead Crossing on the Pecos River. Another trail was the Emigrant Road, which led to the site of Preston on the Red River. Wagon roads also crossed through the area. One led from the head of the North Concho to the Double Mountain Fork of the Brazos; another, also beginning at the head of the North Concho, ran to Five Wells and Laguna Cuates. There were also two wagon roads that led from Five Wells to Monument Spring in New Mexico. After 1850 these two roads were familiar to various surveying parties charged with marking out the Texas-United States boundary lines. In the 1870s buffalo hunters decimated the great herds occupying the region, forcing Indian migration and setting the stage for a new era of land use. The last recorded incident of white-Indian strife in what is now Midland County occurred in 1879. Twenty-five Comanches led by Chief Black Horse were given permission to leave their reservation to hunt buffalo. After the Indians resorted to eating horses from local ranches when no buffalo could be found, they were attacked by Texas Rangers, who surprised them while they were eating one of the stolen horses.

Ranching began in the area after Herman Garrett shipped sheep from California to El Paso on the Southern Pacific Railroad. Garrett drove 300 sheep across the Pecos River, at the present site of the town of Midland, before moving on to Mustang Draw and settling in as the county's first permanent settler. Promotions by the Texas and Pacific Railway, which built into the area in 1881, brought other sheepmen to what is now Midland County. Nelson Morris, a Chicago meatpacker who bought 200,000 acres from the state for his Black Angus ranch, was the first to fence county land. Cattle were introduced after ranchers discovered that abundant water could be obtained from wells. In 1885, when 300 people were living in the area, the Texas state legislature established Midland County from lands previously assigned to Tom Green County, and the county was organized later that same year. The town of Midland, originally named Midway to suggest its place on the Fort Worth-El Paso rail line, became county seat. The Staked Plains, the county's first newspaper, began publication in 1885, and another paper, the Midland Gazette, was in circulation by 1889; the county's first school house was built the next year. By 1890 twenty-nine ranches had been established in the county, and the agricultural census reported 14,867 cattle and 13,364 sheep in the area. No crops were reported in the county that year, though some early settlers did grow limited amounts of corn and grain, sometimes using irrigation. The United States Census counted 1,033 people living in Midland County in 1890. The area had good soils but only sparse rainfall, and in 1891 the United States Department of Agriculture conducted a rain-making experiment in the county; watermelons and pumpkins were planted in another experiment. Further settlement in the area was encouraged when the Texas legislature passed the Four-Section Act of 1895; this law enabled stockmen to buy four sections for each family member at favorable terms, and provided opportunities for leasing range lands for a modest price. By 1900 there were seventy-three ranches in Midland County, and cattle dominated the local economy. Almost 45,000 cattle were reported in the area that year, while the number of sheep had declined to only 2,257. Only one acre of cropland was reported in the county that year; it was planted in oats.

Farmers moved into Midland County in increasing numbers between 1900 and 1930, though ranching continued to dominate the local economy until the oil boom of the 1920s. By 1910 there were 178 ranches and farms in Midland County. While 29,000 cattle were reported on local farms that year, crop farming was beginning to become established: 2,438 acres of sorghum, 1,755 acres of cotton, and 421 acres of corn were grown in the county that year. Some sectors of the county's economy contracted during the droughts of the late 1910s; by 1920 the number of farms and ranches in the county had declined to 133. Midland College, established in the city of Midland by the Christian Church in 1910 as a junior college, failed in 1921. That same year the Midland and Northwestern Railway ceased service; it had operated as a short line serving farmers and cattlemen near the towns of Midland, Fasken, and Florey since 1917. Cotton cultivation continued to expand across county lands, however, as irrigation projects after 1911 showed farmers and ranchers how to increase production. By 1920 over 4,600 acres in Midland County were devoted to cotton, and 2,449 people were living in the area. Cotton farming continued to expand in the county during the 1920s. By 1930 more than 31,200 acres in the county were planted in cotton, and there were 361 farms and ranches in the area. Midland County's economy also benefitted when oil was discovered in neighboring counties. After strikes were made in Reagan County in 1923 and in Ector County in 1926, the city of Midland became the corporate headquarters for oil companies. Farm expansion and the oil boom combined to attract thousands of new people to the county, and by 1930 the area's population had increased to 8,005. The oil boom also helped to buoy the area economy during the Great Depression of the 1930s. Cotton production dropped by more than 60 percent during the 1930s, and by 1940 only 9,622 acres in the county were devoted to the fiber; during that same period, however, the population of the county increased to 11,721. A great boom in 1945 resulted from production of Midland County wells, and the Midland South Pool success in 1947 established the wealth of the Permian Basin. Yet another boom followed between 1949 and 1952, assuring long-range prosperity for the county; the town of Midland came to be called "The Tall City of the Plains," as oil companies built high-rise buildings there. The county became one of the more productive petroleum areas in the state. Almost 17,060,000 barrels of crude were produced in Midland County in 1956, 11,747,000 barrels in 1965, 11,274,000 barrels in 1974, and more than 7,615,000 barrels in 1982. In 1990 the county produced 8,693,000 barrels of crude oil; by January 1, 1991, 455,926,000 barrels of oil had been taken from county lands since discovery in 1945.

In 1982 90 percent of the land in the county was in farms and ranches, and 9 percent of the land was cultivated; about 24 percent of the population worked in agriculture. Local farmers grew cotton, hay, wheat, sorghum, pecans, and watermelons; the primary livestock were cattle, sheep, and hogs. Much of the area's economy revolved around oil and gas extraction and related industries, though many workers were employed in construction, trucking, the production of plastics, and other industries; the county's non-farm income in 1981 reached $1,452,334,000. Except for a slight dip in the 1960s Midland County's population has grown steadily since the boom of the 1940s, when the population more than doubled. The United States Census counted 25,785 people living in the county in 1950, 67,717 in 1960, 65,433 in 1970, and 82,636 in 1980. By 1990 there were 106,611 people living in Midland County. Most of the area's population lives in the city of Midland (1990 population: 89,443). Other communities include Odessa (195 in Midland County, mostly in Ector County), Germania (27), and Spraberry (46). Midland is also the location of the Permian Basin Petroleum Museum, the Museum of the Southwest, the Midland County Historical Museum, and the Pliska Aeroplane Museum.

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