Native Americans moved into present-day Nacogdoches County hundreds of years prior to their last settlement, abandoned in 1840. Europeans settled in the area by the end of the 17th century, and under both Spanish and Mexican rule, Anglo-American settlers began populating the region. Following the Texas Revolution, the new republic established Nacogdoches County in March 1836. Inhabited for over a century, the city of Nacogdoches instituted an aldermanic government, and growth of the county led to the establishment of Nacogdoches University in February 1845, which remained open for fifty years. The county rose from 3,758 citizens in 1850 to nearly 10,000 in 1870.
Sources:
Blake, Robert Bruce.
Long, Christopher.
McDonald, Archie P.
Comprising minute books, court records, account and fee books, newspapers, a scrapbook, and other items, the Nacogdoches County (Tex.) Records, 1737-1925, document the administration of Nacogdoches County and the city of Nacogdoches governments as well as the history of local businesses and individuals. The primary component of the collection, the Nacogdoches County District Court records contain civil and criminal court minute books, dockets, and a fee book concerning legal trials and hearings in the county during the Texas republic period. Original papers and archives contain originals and Photostats of legal documents concerning the administration of the area from the Spanish through early American government. Additional minute books describe the actions of the Nacogdoches board of aldermen and the Nacogdoches Lodge G. S. and D. of S. Furthermore, the collection includes two Photostatic account books, one from the Planters Hotel in Nacogdoches dating to the mid-19th century; an original 19th and 20th centuries scrapbook (reused from an account book) containing newspaper clippings, legal documents, and other items; Photostats of the
This collection is open for research use.
Nacogdoches County (Tex.) Records, 1737-1925, Dolph Briscoe Center for American History, The University of Texas at Austin.
Basic processing and cataloging of this collection was supported with funds from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC) for the Briscoe Center’s