Potter County was created in 1876
(Organized in 1887) and formed from Bexar and Young Territories. Potter County was named for Robert Potter, an early legislator, secretary of the navy for the Republic of Texas, and signer of the Texas Declaration of Independence who was killed in the Regulator-Moderator War. The County Seat is Amarillo. The Official County website is located at ?. See also Extended History for more historical details.
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.
Potter County Clerk has Court Records from 1889, Land Records from 1887 , Probate Records from 1887, Marriage Records from 1887 and Birth/Death Records from 1903 is located at 511
South Taylor,
or P.O. Box 9638,
Amarillo, TX 79105; Telephone:
(806) 379-2250 . 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.
Below is a list of online resources for Potter County Court Records. Email us with websites containing Potter 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 Potter County, Texas are 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.
Below is a list of online resources for Potter County Census Records. Email us with websites containing Potter 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 Potter County Maps. Email us with websites containing Potter 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 Potter County Military Records. Email us with websites containing Potter 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 Potter County Tax Records. Email us with websites containing Potter 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 Potter County Genealogical Addresses. Email us with websites containing Potter County Genealogical Addresses by clicking the link below:
Amarillo Public Library, 300 East 4th, P.O. Box 2171, Amarillo, TX 79189-2171
Amarillo Genealogical Society, c/o Amarillo Public Library, 300 East 4th, P.O. Box 2171, Amarillo, TX 79189-2171
Amarillo Genealogical Society,
413 East Fourth Street,
Amarillo 79189
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 Potter County Cemetery & Church Records. Email us with websites containing Potter 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 Potter County Family Trees, web forums and other family type information. Email us with websites containing Potter 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.
Evidences of pre-Columbian man in what is now Potter County have been found in the Alibates Flint Quarries, which are believed to have been worked as early as 13,000 years ago, and in Pueblo dwelling sites discovered along the Canadian River. An Apachean culture occupied the Panhandle-Plains area in prehistoric times; the modern Apaches subsequently emerged but were pushed out of the region about 1700 by the Comanches. The area was probably crossed by Francisco Vásquez de Coronado in 1541, and Pedro Vial may well have traversed the region in 1786 as he searched for the most feasible route between Santa Fe and Natchitoches. The first known Anglo-American expedition through the area was led by Maj. Stephen H. Long, who followed the Canadian River east to its junction with the Arkansas in August 1820. During the California gold rush, gold seekers passed through the area following trails blazed by Josiah Gregg in 1840 and by Randolph B. Marcy in 1849. Lt. James W. Abert and Lt. Amiel W. Whipple crossed the area during their surveys of the Canadian valley in 1845 and 1853, respectively. Comanchero traders and New Mexican pastores camped at Tecovas Springs, where the remains of a plaza are still evident. In the 1870s buffalo hunting decimated the herds that once roamed the area and forced the Indians, who were dependent upon the buffalo, to leave. In 1876 the Texas legislature formed Potter County from the Bexar District, and ranchers soon found their way into the area.
Most of the first Caucasian residents were employees of cattlemen who took their herds into the county. In 1877 David T. Beals and W. H. Bates established their LX Ranch headquarters on Ranch Creek, near the north bank of the Canadian. The range of George W. Littlefield's LIT Ranch extended into the western portion of the county. In 1880 the census found twenty-eight people, two of whom were black, living on the three ranches that had been established in the county by that time. The county had more than 14,000 cattle and 4,200 sheep that year; no crops were reported. In 1881 Henry B. Sanborn established the Frying Pan Ranch, with headquarters at Tecovas Springs. Warren W. Wetzel, the ranch bookkeeper and later Amarillo's first mayor, resided at the adobe headquarters. His wife Katherine was for nearly six years the only woman in the county.
Settlement of Potter County increased dramatically with the construction of the Fort Worth and Denver City Railway across the Panhandle in 1887. A construction camp grew overnight into a tent and buffalo-hut settlement known as Ragtown. When Oldham County officials ordered an election held on August 30 for the purpose of organizing Potter County, several townsites vied to be county seat. William B. Plemons, the first county judge, had a prospective townsite near the head of Amarillo Creek. Two miles southeast was J. T. Berry's townsite of Oneida, in which Plemons soon merged his interest. Frank Lester, backed by Henry Sanborn, dubbed a third site Plains City, while Jesse Jenkins, a Tascosa saloon owner, promoted Ragtown under a new name, Odessa. To attract the support of the cowhands of the LX Ranch, who constituted the majority of the county's qualified voters, Berry promised each of them a business lot and residence lot in his town. The election returns favored Berry's townsite, which was renamed Amarillo. The railroad was completed into the town in October 1887, soon after the elections, and a post office was established there the next month. People from surrounding townsites began to move to the new county seat. The county's first newspaper, the Amarillo Champion, began publication in May 1888, and that same year a school was established in the town. Partly because of the efforts of Henry Sanborn, who had been establishing another townsite east of "Old Town" Amarillo, and partly because of flood dangers, most of the town was moved to a new, higher site by 1890. By that time cattle ranching had become firmly established in the area and dominated Potter County's economy and its culture. Twenty ranches, encompassing more than 511,000 acres, had been established in the county by 1890, and more than 44,000 cattle, but no sheep, were reported in the county that year. By 1900 there were seventy-nine ranches in the county, and the population had increased to 1,820.
The county's economy grew and diversified rapidly during the late 1890s and early 1900s as new railroads built into the area. In 1899 the Santa Fe line established a large divisional office in the town and built an eight-stall engine house, a blacksmith shop, and a machine shop there. By 1904 the Southern Kansas, the Pecos and Northern Texas, and the Choctaw, Oklahoma and Texas railroads had also built lines through the county. In 1908 the Santa Fe extended a branch line to Canyon, Lubbock, and Sweetwater. Amarillo, already the marketing center for ranchers in the Panhandle, South Plains, and eastern New Mexico, grew rapidly during this time. Railroad employees and construction workers moved into the area, followed by an influx of "sharks, grafters, pickpockets and bums" who hoped to take advantage of the boom. As old ranchlands in the Panhandle began to be subdivided into farmland, the town also became the terminus of excursion trains carrying hundreds of prospective farmers, who were met by the agents of land companies and taken out to view property. Amarillo grew from a population of 1,442 in 1900 to about 5,000 in 1906 and 9,957 in 1910. Farms were beginning to be established in the county, but cattle ranching remained by far the most important component of the county's agricultural economy. Though there were 162 farms and ranches in the county by 1910 (more than double the figure for 1900), that year only 500 acres was planted in corn, the county's most important crop at the time.
The subdivision of ranchlands in Potter County began in earnest after 1910, encouraged by the Santa Fe Railroad, which established agricultural demonstration centers in the area, hired agricultural agents to work with local farmers, and ran excursion trains from Chicago and elsewhere into Amarillo. By 1920 more than 16,000 acres in the county was planted in wheat, the county's most important crop, and another 7,400 was devoted to sorghum; by 1930 almost 24,500 acres was planted in wheat, and about 3,200 acres in sorghum. Meanwhile, cattle remained an important part of the local economy, and the area began to develop a dairy industry. More than 36,000 cattle were reported in Potter County in 1920, and about 28,500 in 1930. The number of farms and ranches in the county increased to 166 by 1920, to 284 by 1925, and to 322 by 1930.
The discovery of vast reserves of natural gas and petroleum in the region during this period fundamentally altered the local economy. A gas field discovered in 1918 about twenty-five miles northwest of Amarillo was soon found to be the largest one in the world. In 1926 enormous oil deposits were found in nearby Hutchinson County. Though very little oil was found in Potter County at this time, Amarillo quickly became the headquarters of such oil companies as Phillips Petroleum, Shamrock Oil and Gas, Magnolia Petroleum Company, and the Texas Company (Texaco), which built a large refinery just east of Amarillo. Helium production and zinc smelters also added to the local economy. As thousands of workers and others looking for opportunity flooded into the area, Amarillo's population jumped from about 15,500 in 1920 to 43,122 in 1930. New towns such as Bushland, Cliffside, Ady, Soncy, Pullman, and St. Francis sprouted up along the railroads. Largely because of the gas and oil boom, but also because of the expansion of farming in the area, the population of Potter County rose to 16,710 by 1920 and 46,080 by 1930.
The economy declined during the Great Depression of the 1930s, however, as a number of oil companies were forced out of business. The area's farmers were particularly afflicted by the droughts and dust storms associated with the Dust Bowl. Cropland harvested in the county declined from 42,546 acres in 1930 to 38,037 acres by 1940, when only 302 farms and ranches remained there. Amarillo became the regional center for federal New Deal programs, however, which provided work and sustenance for many families; the Work Projects Administration, for example, helped to fund improvements of Amarillo streets and sewerage. The Veterans Affairs Medical Center was built west of Amarillo in the 1930s and opened in 1940. In spite of problems associated with the depression, the population of Potter County increased to 54,265 by 1940.
Agriculture revived during World War II. By 1945 there were 540 farms and ranches in the county. The local economy was also stimulated by the federal government's establishment of Amarillo Army Air Field and the Pantex Munitions Plant, which drew servicemen and new jobs to the area. Though the economy suffered when the airfield was closed in 1946, by 1950 there were 54,265 people living in the county. The establishment of Amarillo Air Force Base in 1951, combined with the continuing development of Panhandle mineral resources, helped to spur further growth, as Amarillo became one of the fastest-growing cities in the United States during the 1950s. Despite farm consolidations, the county's population rose to 115,580 by 1960. The closing of the air force base in 1968 was a severe blow to the local economy, however, and by 1970 the county's population had dropped to 90,511.
Since World War II, Potter County's manufacturing income has been derived largely from helium, natural gas, oil, and sand and gravel; approximately 60 percent of the world's helium has been produced there. Though natural gas has been produced in the area since before 1920, petroleum production was insignificant until the late 1960s and early 1970s. The county produced more than 250,000 barrels of oil in 1974, more than 436,000 barrels in 1978, about 382,000 barrels in 1982, and just over 198,000 barrels in 1990; by January 1, 1991, 6,351,486 barrels of oil had been produced in the county since discovery in 1925. Large cattle ranches occupy the greater portion of the county and in the 1980s accounted for 80 percent of the agricultural income. There are more than 20,000 acres of irrigated land in Potter County, mainly in the southern sections. In 1982, 304,092 bushels of wheat and 269,555 bushels of sorghum were harvested there. Dairy products and poultry production also contribute to the farm income. By 1982 the county had 178 farms, 163 manufacturing plants, and 872 service industries.
The voters of Potter County supported Democratic candidates in virtually every presidential election between 1888 and 1948; the only exception occurred in 1928, when the county rejected Catholic Democrat Al Smith in favor of Republican Herbert Hoover. A majority of the county's electorate voted Republican in almost every election between 1952 and 1988, however. The only exception occurred in 1964, when Democrat and Texas son Lyndon B. Johnson beat Barry Goldwater in the county. In 1992 a plurality of the county's voters supported Republican George H. W. Bush over Democrat William J. Clinton and independent Ross Perot.
Most institutions and projects of the county are joint operations with the city of Amarillo. Among these are a child-welfare unit, a library, a cerebral palsy clinic, and Harrington Regional Medical Center. Amarillo College serves both Potter and Randall counties, and the Amarillo branch of Texas State Technical College serves most of Northwest and West Texas. The Amarillo Globe-News Company publishes the Amarillo News and Globe-Times. Interstate Highway 40 has greatly increased the cross-country flow through the area, and during the 1980s Interstate 27 was constructed through the county. More than 90 percent of the people in Potter County live in urban areas. Amarillo (1990 population, 168,693, partly in Randall County) remains the seat of government and is by far the largest center of population. Other communities include Cliffside (206) and Bushland (130). The annual Tri-State Fair attracts visitors to Potter County, as do Lake Meredith and the Alibates Flint Quarries. The county also benefits from the tourist trade at Palo Duro Canyon State Scenic Park, which stages the popular summer outdoor drama Texas.
Texas Birth Certificates, 1903-10, 1926-29