This is a multi-part message in MIME format. --------------54AC5C521C7622CAAC73B8E8 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit The following is my response to another lister's questions as to why there were no vital records in Texas prior to 1900. Thought I would pass this along. --------------54AC5C521C7622CAAC73B8E8 Content-Type: message/rfc822 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Content-Disposition: inline X-Mozilla-Status2: 00000000 Message-ID: <38CB3B6A.C0E33240@swbell.net> Date: Sun, 12 Mar 2000 00:38:35 -0600 From: Vanessa Burzynski <burzynsk@swbell.net> Organization: Southwestern Bell Internet Services X-Mailer: Mozilla 4.61 [en]C-SBIS-NC404 (Win95; I) X-Accept-Language: en MIME-Version: 1.0 To: ORANGEBURGH_SC-L@rootsweb.com Subject: Re: Passenger Lists and Texas Records References: <25.2e2cff1.25fad762@aol.com> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Dear Fellow Listers, I am a native Texan, and although Texas as a state did not keep birth or death records in the 1800's, most all Catholic churches did keep birth/baptism, marriage and death records. Don't forget this valuable resource. Texas also has census records beginning in 1850. You can write or visit the Catholic Arhives of Texas at this address: 1600 N. Congress, P. O. Box 13327, Capitol Station, Austin, Texas 78711 or call (512) 476-4888. They do charge $10/hour and $2.50 per record found or you can do your own research. You must know the name of the church or parish and/or the area (county) they lived in. There is no central index of names. My ancestors came to Texas in 1846 and my husband's in 1889. We have found a wealth of information through church records. Each church was responsible for keeping their own records. Some records were destroyed in fires as was the case in St. Stanislaus Catholic Church in Grimes County. "The earliest Catholic churches in what is now the State of Texas were: San Fernando (in modern day San Antonio) established 1739, San Elizario (El Paso), established 1777, San Augustin (Laredo), established 1789, St. Mary's (Victoria), established 1840, Sacred Heart (Nacogdoches), established 1847, and smaller missions sponsored by these churches. In 1847, the Diocese of Galveston was founded and new parishes were established." Vanessa Burzynski Katy, Texas DaneBowen@aol.com wrote: > There were no passenger lists from the Deep South to Texas because it was not > international travel---at least after 1845 and no records much anywhere > before---and no immigration records involved. > > Texans seemed to be too busy fighting Mexicans and Indians and scratching out > an existence to care for records. Incredibly my Gfather Bowen was b. to a > woman b in Texas 1850 and there are no death records o