Falls County, Texas · 1867 voter registration

Falls County, Texas: freedmen, slavery and the 1867 voter registration

Slavery in Falls County

In 1860 the census counted 1,716 enslaved people in Falls County, 47% of everyone living there. Seven years later 52 freedmen registered to vote there, 3% of the county's voters. 58 reported reaching Texas before 1865.

Map of Texas counties in 1870 with Falls County highlighted
Falls County on the 1870 county map
1,716
Enslaved in 1860
47%
Of the county in 1860
1,615
Registered voters
52
Freedmen
3%
Freedmen
12 years
Median time in Texas
41
Register pages

When they arrived in Texas

Decade each registrant reported arriving in Texas, as recorded in Falls County.

Reported arrival decades for Falls County registrants
DecadeRegistrants
1850s
58
1860s
54

Surnames of freedmen in Falls County

Falls County genealogy: search the register by name

The first 50 names in the Falls County register, alphabetically. Each opens a search for that name.

Falls County registrants, by surname
NameBirthplaceArrivedGap
Abes, JohnUnited States
Adams, BurrellUnited States
Adams, SpencerUnited States
Adison, MackUnited States
Alexander, ColumbusUnited States
Alexander, PeterUnited States
Alexander, SandyUnited States
Allen, GeorgeUnited States
Allen, JamesUnited States
Alloday, AnthongyUnited States1856
Anderson, DavidUnited States
Anderson, DavidUnited States
Anderson, GeorgeUnited States1856
Anderson, HenryUnited States
Anderson, Jr., DavidUnited States
Andrews, SamuelUnited States
Arington, EllisUnited States
Armstead, WilliamUnited States
Arnold, JoUnited States1857
Austin, MathewUnited States
Bailey, AdenUnited States
Bailey, FedrichUnited States
Bailey, HenryUnited States
Bailey, MosesUnited States
Bailey, ThorntonUnited States
Bailey, WestleyUnited States1857
Baker, JordenUnited States
Baldin, JerryUnited States
Baley, GeorgeUnited States
Banks, ReubenUnited States18681
Banks, WalkerUnited States
Banore, EdmondUnited States
Barksdale, GabrielUnited States
Barnes, AnthonyUnited States
Barnes, WilliamUnited States
Bartlett, StephenUnited States
Bartlett, ThomlinUnited States
Bartley, JacksonUnited States
Barton, CalipUnited States
Barton, David G.United States
Barton, SimonUnited States1857
Barton, SimonUnited States18681
Bates, DanielUnited States
Bates, JohnUnited States
Bates, Marsel JohnUnited States
Batey, FlandersUnited States
Battle, AnthonyUnited States
Battle, CalvinUnited States
Battle, DanielUnited States
Battle, DanielUnited States

Search Falls County freedmen records by name

Sources and county history

Figures come from the 1867 to 1870 Texas voter registration held by the Texas State Library and Archives Commission. The 1860 population figures come from Population of the United States in 1860, printed by the Census Office in 1864. Falls County's entries fill 41 pages of the handwritten register. Race was recorded for part of the statewide register, so the freedmen count is the number identified.

Falls County was formed out of Milam County by 1850.

Questions about the Falls County records

How do I find African American ancestors in Falls County, Texas?

Search the Falls County records by surname, then open the entry to read the original handwritten register page. Each entry gives the man's name, his birthplace and the year he reached Texas. Spellings vary, so try the sound of a name as well as its spelling, and names appear in the order men came to register, so a family can sit pages apart.

How many freedmen registered to vote in Falls County in 1867?

52 freedmen registered in Falls County between 1867 and 1870, 3% of the county's 1,615 registered voters.

Was slavery widespread in Falls County, Texas?

In 1860 the census counted 1,716 enslaved people in Falls County, 47% of everyone living there. In 1867, 3% of Falls County's registered voters were freedmen, 52 of 1,615. 58 of them reported reaching Texas before 1865.

Keep looking

Counties that share a boundary history with Falls County: Milam County.

For African American genealogy beyond Falls County, browse the register by birthplace, search it by name or follow the migration map.

All countiesBrowse by birthplaceSee the migration mapSearch Falls County