Brown County Texas Genealogy and History - presented by Genealogy Trails


Welcome to Brown County, Texas

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Brown County Texas

The county was formed on the western frontier in 1856 from Comanche and Travis counties and organized in 1858, with Brownwood designated as the county seat; the town was also awarded the county's first post office that year. The original site of the Brown County seat of Brownwood was east of Pecan Bayou. A dispute arose over land and water rights, and the settlers were forced to find a new location. Greenleaf Fisk donated 60 acres to relocate the county seat to the west side of the bayou, on what is now the current site of Brownwood, and 100 additional acres for county use. The town was incorporated in 1884.

The county developed slowly between its founding and the 1870s, primarily because conditions were not secure for settlement until the late 1870s or early 1880s, as settlers were harassed by Indians and white predators for twenty years after the county was formed. The original settlers had to resist Comanches and white desperados.

In 1875 the Fort Worth-Brownwood stage was robbed five times in two months. Much of the criminal activity during the 1870s was attributed to John Wesley Hardin's gang; in 1874 Brown County citizens were among those who lynched suspected gang members at Comanche, and Hardin himself was forced to flee.

[Excerpted from John Leffler, "BROWN COUNTY," Handbook of Texas Online; Published by the Texas State Historical Association]

Photo by Larry D. Moore CC BY-SA 3.0.

BROWN COUNTY COURTHOUSE

CITIES, TOWNS, AND POPULATED PLACES

Brownwood * Early * Bangs * Lake Brownwood * Thunderbird Bay *
Blanket * Brookesmith * Cross Cut * Indian Creek * May * Owens * Winchell * Zephyr

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Online Data
Biographies	Birth Records
Cemeteries	Census Records
Church Records	County Records
Death Records	Family Records
History Topics	Marriage Records
Military Records	Miscellaneous Records
Newspaper Gleanings	Obituaries and Death Notices
School Records	Wills/ Probate Records
Website Updates: Mar 2025: Death News: BUSCH; Sick List News: CHAMPION; Ads: PENCE, BELL, DOWTY, SEITZ; Visiting News: TRUMBULL, CAMP, ROGERS, ARVIN, WAYMAN, CONNELL, RENFRO, PRATER, SWEET Dec 2024: History: Book: Six Years with the Texas Rangers Nov 2024: Death News: JONES; Visiting News: ROBNETT, BROWN, JORDAN, DECLARK, DEWEY, ADAMS, COLLINS, GALLAGHER, LINN, HICKOX, SON, JOHNSON, DRY, MOORE, DOUTHITT, MILK, SANDERS, GROVES, RAGSDALE, MITCHELL, WALL, ELGIN, ROBERTS, RAINEY, GILLIAM, HAYES, WILLIS, NEWMAN, HOOPER, LIGHT, BAKER, HENDSPETH, KEATON, MAPLES Aug 2024: Ads: SKELTON Jul 2024: Sick List News: NOVIAN, THOMPSON; Visiting News: SMITH, TOTTENHAM, LEDBETTER, GRINNAN, MCKNIGHT, HALE, CHANDLER, MCCURDY, LIVINGSTON, MAGILL, MILHOLLAND, HICKMAN, COGGIN, VERNON, MCDONALD, LOONEY, RICE, NANNY, KERSEY, WOOLSLEY, EOFF, RENFRO; Ads: GORDON, MCINNIS, RENFRO, BELL, SULLIVAN, SCHARRENBECK, WARREN, RANKIN, MCMINN, MCHUTCHON, JOHNSON, FARRIS Apr 2024: Marriage News: ALLEN, BOWEN, SIKES, UTZMAN Mar 2024: Death News: OSBORN, ODEN; CARNES, HEAD, SPIVEY; Marriage News: WHEELER, DUNLAP, TANDY, CROCKETT, WRIGHT, JARVIS, WARREN, McINTOSH, GARNER, TAYLOR, CHANDLER, KIDD, GREEN, VICK, SNODDY, BRATTON, MILLER, GIBBS, MAY, STANDIFER, SCOTT, HEATHERLY Dec 2023: Marriage News: NUSON, FLOYD; Ads: THURMOND, GOODWIN Nov 2023: Marriage News: STEWART, GRAHAM; Ads: AYERS, INGRAM, STEWART, BROAD, BARBER, SULLIVAN, BRIN, WOODS, SPECK, LOONEY, MALLOW SCOTT, ARMSTRONG Aug 2023: Sick List News: GAINES; Ads: MCCHESNEY, LATHEM, BOYED, ANDERSON, LOW, WOODWARD, SANDERS, DUNNING, SMITH, JACKSON, CAMERON, SWINDEN, KIRKSEY, Brownwood Steam Laundry, FLESHER, HURLBUT, BOYSEN, TALBOT, Club Restaurant Apr 2023: Crime News: SPARKS, THOMAS Mar 2023: Marriage News: TABER, ROSEBOROUGH; Death News: OSBURN, JARRET, SENTENIS, SIMMONS

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Surrounding Counties

Eastland County (north)

Comanche County (northeast)

Mills County (southeast)

San Saba County (south)

McCulloch County (southwest)

Coleman County (west)

Callahan County (northwest)

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