Abstracts of Parker County, Texas Pre-Emption Land Records, 1850-1858

Parker County lies just west of Ft. Worth in north central Texas in an area that was first settled in the 1840’s. Parker County was created in 1855 from parts of Milam, Robertson, and Denton Land Districts. The Surveyors of each of those land districts made copies of all the surveys in their offices that pertained to lands that were in the new county and sent them to the Parker County Surveyor who maintained the records from that point forward. The present volume contains abstracts of these and subsequent surveys, which take on special importance because of an early morning fire which swept through the county court house on May 13th, 1874 destroying all the deed, probate, and other court records of the previous nineteen years. Fortunately, a deputy surveyor was sleeping in the building at the time, and was able to rescue the survey records and escape the blaze. This important volume contains a brief historical introduction, a very welcome explanation of the many types of Texas land grants which were made, and detailed genealogical abstracts of the following survey records pertaining to Parker County: Milam Land District, 1850–1857; Robertson Land District, 1852–1853; Denton Land District, 1854–1855; Denton Land District, Record Book B, 1855; Denton Land District, 1854–1857; Denton Land District Index Records, A, C, D; Parker County Record Book B, 1856–1858; Parker County Record Book C, 1856–1858; and, Parker County Record Book D, 1857. Also included is a transcription of the petition of residents requesting the creation of Parker County, a copy of the legislative act creating the county, several maps, and a complete full-name index.