Ark-La-Tex Genealogical Association Presents a Seminar, August 8, 2026, on Land Records and Wills

Welcome

Gaines County was created on August 21, 1876 from the Bexar District but not formally organized until 1905. The county seat is Seminole. The county was named for James Gaines, a signer of the Texas Declaration of Independence. It's a leading producer of crude oil but farming and ranching are the most prominent occupations.

There is a large (for Texas) group of Mennonites in Gaines and Andrews counties.
Historically, part of the Hat Ranch, headquartered in New Mexico, was located in Gaines County and our contributions to fame included Tanya Tucker and Larry Gatlin.

Many thanks to Carolyn Griffith, Jo Ann Clark Fox, Rosanna Urban Parra, and Carla Clifton for their hard work in the past as coordinators for Gaines County.

Resources

On-Site

Cemeteries Census Records Churches History Land Records Local Information Lookups Maps Military Records Photographs Surnames Surrounding Counties Vital Records

Off-Site

Gaines Archives Other TXGenWeb Counties Portal to Texas History Query Board

Communities

It's possible that some of these are actually ranches instead of towns.

(g) is a ghost town
(PO) is post office only
Ashmore
Bessie (g)
Blythe/Seagraves
Caput (g)
Denver City
Eclipse (g)
Fairview (g)
Hatchton (g)
Higginbotham
Loop
Payne's Corner
Seagraves
Seminole
Trixie (PO)
Wasson (g)
White City (g)

Newspapers

The Brownfield News (Not in Gaines County but contains news about its residents.)
Lubbock Online (Not in Gaines County but contains news about its residents.)
Seminole Sentinel