Nacogdoches Archives | TSLAC (2024)

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We are pleased to inform you that the Nacogdoches Archives has been digitized and are now available online from Ancestry.com and Ancestry Library Edition. If you or your local library has access to one of these resources, you may wish to search, view and print entries from that site. The title of the database containing these records is Nacogdoches, Texas, Spanish and Mexican Government Records, 1729-1836. Free access to Ancestry.com Texas is available to Texas residents.

Internal Links
Entrance Certificates and Certificates of Citizenship | Censuses (Padrones)| Elections (Eleciones) | Military Reviews | Microfilm Listing

Related Links
Voters' Registration of 1867| Election Registers| Executive Records Books

The Nacogdoches Archives Record Group includes a variety of records maintained by national, regional, and local officials--both political and military--of the Mexican government from the mid-eighteenth into the early nineteenth century. The records include Spanish colonial and Mexican national government correspondence, decrees, and reports; the correspondence and reports of military and political officials stationed in the Provincias Internas (1776-1824) and, later, the State of Coahuila y Texas; records of the Department of Nacogdoches (northeastern area of Texas), 1830-1836; and municipal records of Nacogdoches and vicinity. Until the 1830s, the records are written in Spanish. The records of the Municipality of Nacogdoches (not to be confused with the Department of Nacogoches) are a mixture of both English- and Spanish-language documents after 1830.

Most of the records concern only the northeastern portion of the state of Coahuila y Texas. If the person being researched arrived during this time period, but did not come to Texas through Nacogdoches or did not settle in northeastern Texas, his records may be in the Bexar Archives at the Center for American History at the University of Texas at Austin.

Researchers should be aware that the Nacogdoches Archives were microfilmed during two periods of time. The first 27 reels were filmed during the 1982-1983 period. The first 26 reels contain documents considered to be official government documents at the time of the filming--those that could be shown to be part of a series of similar records maintained in the official archives. Reel 27 contains copies of items that are on file in the Archives and Records Division of the Texas General Land Office.

In 2003, the Clayton Library Friends arranged for the microfilming of two additional boxes of records which were not considered to have been part of the Nacogdoches Archives at the time of the original processing of the collection. These records are contained on reel 28. Unfortunately, there is no broad category or description which can be assigned to this grouping of records. The dates of the documents contained in the individual folders that have been filmed are provided in the microfilm listing below.

Copies of all 28 reels of microfilm are available for viewing at 1201 Brazos inAustin, Texas. There are also copies of the microfilm that are available to be borrowed through the interlibrary loan program of a local library. Entrance Certificates and Certificates of Citizenship (reels 16 and 17), the Censuses (reels 22 and 23), Election Returns (reels 23 and 24), and Military Reviews (reel 24) all contain potential genealogical information. Original materials from the Nacogdoches Archives are not pulled for research purposes unless the film copy is illegible.

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Entrance Certificates and Certificates of Citizenship Nacogdoches (1821-1828, 1835)

Foreigners arriving in the state of Coahuila y Texas had to "prove, by certificate from the authorities of the place from whence they came, that they are Christians, and also the morality and propriety of their conduct." To become a citizen, the foreign settler had to go before the municipal authorities and swear to "abide by and obey the general Constitution, and that of the State; to observe the religion as stipulated by the former; and in a book (the register of foreigners) which shall be kept for that purpose, his name and those of the members of his family, if he has any, shall be set down; noting the country from whence he comes, whether married or single, his employment; and he having taken the requisite oath, shall be considered thenceforward, and not before that time, a fellow-citizen."

The registers of foreigners and oaths of citizenship found in the Nacogdoches Archives cover the 1820s and 1835. Other, scattered certificates appear occasionally in the records of the alcalde.

Entrance certificate registers give the newcomer's name, marital status, and the date the certificate was issued. Citizenship certificates provide the person's name, age, place immigrating from, marital status, religion, and occupation. Certificates of citizenship issued in the 1820s also give length of residence in Texas.

The original records are written in Spanish (except for a few of the 1835 citizenship certificates). A translation of these records is cataloged under the title Certificates of Entrance Relative to Admission to Settle in Texas Under Colonization Laws.

The volume of translations should not be confused with Betty fa*gan Burr's similarly titled Nacogdoches Archives 1835 Entrance Certificates. This book extracts the genealogical information contained in the Certificates of Entrance translations and provides an index to names, both of colonists and witnesses, that appear in the volume. The information is recorded in columns labeled: "Number," "Type," "Status," "Date-1835," and "Witnesses."

The small group of Entrance certificates for the 1820s have no individual certificate numbers. The approximately 822 certificates for 1835 have been numbered. They were written some three to five per page on 16" x 14" sheets, folded in half to create five "ledgers." Certificates #1-152 cover January through May 1835; #153-385, May through June; #386- 498, June through September; #499-637, also June through September; and #638-822, September through December. A separate series, Citizenship Certificates for 1835, includes 45 additional names.

The State Archives has retained a copy of this finding aid for the convenience of patrons, but the records must be searched on the microfilm reels 16 and 17.

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Censuses (Padrones) (1783-1835)

Census records for the period 1783-1796 include mission rolls, reports of foreigners, and statistical recapitulations. For the period between 1797 and 1826, several ranch censuses are included. From 1826 to 1828 all census rolls are statistical except for one list of persons married by a judge. Thereafter, for Nacogdoches the series includes one regular census and a statistical summary annually. From time to time lists of foreigners occur.

• Mission rolls: information varies, but most give names of Indians as heads of household and all other names in the family
• Census and Report of Foreigners (18th century): Name, Residence or nationality, Age, Marital status, Wife's name, Children--their sexes and ages
• Ranch Censuses: Family names and information, Listing of "goods" (broken down by numbers and types of cattle, horses, sheep, etc.)
• Padron or full Census (1828 and following): Name, Marital status, Occupation, Religion, Age, Family members
• Lists of Foreigners (19th century): Name, Country, Entered from, Profession, Passport, Passport number and issuing date, Date of "presentation", Where residing

Census records are located on microfilm reels 22 and 23.

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Elections (Eleciones) (1823-1835)

Election returns present something of a challenge to the researcher. They include the names of persons who voted in election and the names of persons voted for.

The records, when they are "alphabetized" are arranged alphabetically by first name. Thus, when listing the vote totals for the "E's," the roll includes:

Estevan Austin
Erasmo Seguin
Eugenio Flores
Encarnacion Vasques
Eligio Gortari

The names are ranked according to the number of votes received.

Election and voter rolls are located on microfilm reels 23 and 24.

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Military Reviews (1773-1830s)

Military Company Lists: includes Names arranged in descending rank, Rank, Reason for absence from muster (where applicable).

Military diaries: occur most frequently in the later records and list the unit operations from day to day, rather like the entries in a ship's log.

Military Reviews are recorded on microfilm reel 24.

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Microfilm Listing

The Nacogdoches Archives are filmed on 28 reels of microfilm. They are available to be viewed on-site at 1201 Brazos inAustin, Texas.

Copies of the reels are also available to be borrowed through the interlibrary loan program. Contact your local library to arrange an interlibrary loan of the materials you wish to view. In order to help you identify the specific reels you need, a detailed listing of contents is provided below.