TEXAS LAND & MINERAL TITLE RESEARCH

Texas Courthouse Land Research
& Title Examination

Independent landman research, patent-to-present runsheets, and Railroad Commission filings across all 254 Texas counties. Grounded in original General Land Office (GLO) abstract records, county deed vaults, and regulatory dockets.

254 Texas Counties Covered
Patent-to-Present Chain of Title Research
12 RRC Oil & Gas Districts
GLO Abstract Grant Archives
PRACTICE AREAS

Core Title & Regulatory Services

We provide thorough courthouse research and regulatory examination for operators, attorneys, mineral owners, and family trusts across Texas.

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Sovereign Patent Examination

Texas title begins at the sovereign grant—Spanish and Mexican land concessions, Republic headright certificates, and State of Texas patents. We trace chains of title from the sovereign GLO Abstract forward to verify mineral reservations and patent boundaries.

  • GLO abstract and patent verification
  • Spanish league and labor conversions
  • Original survey and boundary reconciliation
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Mineral & Royalty Ownership

Detailed examination of severed mineral estates, non-participating royalty interests (NPRI), executive leasing rights, and fractional ownership calculations to produce complete Mineral Ownership Reports (MOR).

  • Mineral ownership reports (MOR)
  • NPRI and burden calculations
  • Leasehold and working interest schedules
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Heirship & Title Curative

Reconstructing family genealogies and unprobated estates to resolve title defects, prepare affidavits of heirship under Texas Estates Code § 203.001, and assist with royalty suspense clearance.

  • Texas Estates Code § 203.001 affidavits
  • Family tree and probate docket research
  • Suspense royalty release documentation
COUNTY REFERENCE 254 COUNTIES

Texas County Clerk & Appraisal District Hub

Direct telephone contacts, deed room locations, online index access, and Railroad Commission district assignments for every county in Texas.

Showing 254 Texas Counties Select any county to view clerk contacts, recording portals, and appraisal links.
REGIONAL COVERAGE

Texas Basins & Regional Experience

Courthouse title examination across Texas producing fairways, each with distinct conveyance patterns and local deed room practices.

PERMIAN MIDLAND

Midland Basin Core

Midland • Martin • Howard • Upton • Glasscock • Reagan

Stacked horizontal benches (Wolfcamp A/B, Lower Spraberry, Jo Mill). Deeply severed mineral estates requiring extensive examination of historical conveyance chains.

RRC District 08 / 08A
PERMIAN DELAWARE

Delaware Basin

Reeves • Loving • Ward • Winkler • Pecos • Culberson

Active lateral drilling fairways. Large-scale ranchland title chains, early mineral severances, and Pugh clause depth limitation audits.

RRC District 08
SOUTH TEXAS

Eagle Ford Trend

Karnes • DeWitt • Gonzales • Atascosa • LaSalle • Dimmit

Oil and condensate windows. Historic Spanish and Mexican land grant roots, family partition deeds, and pooled unit declarations.

RRC District 01 / 02
EAST TEXAS

Haynesville & Bossier

Robertson • Leon • Freestone • Anderson • Panola • Harrison

Deep gas formations. Complex timber tract histories, unprobated family estates, and undivided fractional mineral interests.

RRC District 05 / 06
REGULATORY JURISDICTION

Railroad Commission (RRC) Regulatory Reference

In Texas, the Railroad Commission regulates oil and gas exploration and production. We cross-reference courthouse tracts against active RRC regulatory filings:

Form W-1
Application to Drill, Deepen, or Re-enter: Verification of operator acreage allocation, certified lease plats, and Rule 37/Rule 38 spacing exceptions.
Form P-4
Producer's Transportation Authority & Gathering: Confirmation of designated operator of record and purchaser contracts.
Form P-12
Certificate of Pooling Authority: Auditing pooled unit declarations against lease agreements and tract depth clauses.
RRC Austin Headquarters
William B. Travis Bldg, 1701 N Congress Ave, Austin, TX 78701
District 08 (Midland)
10 Desta Dr, Suite 500 E, Midland, TX 79705 • (432) 684-5581
District 01 (San Antonio)
1122 Nogalitos St, San Antonio, TX 78204 • (210) 227-1313
DELIVERABLES & METHODOLOGY

Texas Chain of Title Runsheet Standards

Every title runsheet compiled by independent landmen follows structured courthouse indexing guidelines, tracking every conveyance from sovereignty to present.

01

Instrument Reference

Precise recording citation including Volume/Book and Page, official Clerk Instrument Number, Instrument Date, and Recording Date. Cross-verified against county index books.

Volume • Page • Instrument #
02

Tract & Sovereign Grant

Complete grantor and grantee identification, legal description, Texas General Land Office (GLO) Abstract number, section, block, and surveyed acreage breakdown.

GLO Abstract • Section • Block
03

Severances & Burdens

Verbatim transcription of mineral reservations, royalty burdens (NPRI), executive rights, depth severances, mortgage liens, and unprobated heirship notations.

Mineral Reservations • NPRI • Burdens
RESEARCH INQUIRY

Request Title Research or Records Scoping

Submit tract, county, or abstract information for research scoping, mineral ownership reports, or title examination across Texas.

REFERENCE & CONTEXT

Frequently Asked Questions

Texas was an independent Republic prior to statehood in 1845 and retained ownership of all public lands under its Annexation Agreement. The federal Public Land Survey System (PLSS) was never implemented. Land titles originate from sovereign land grants issued by Spain, Mexico, the Republic of Texas, and the State of Texas, cataloged by Abstract Numbers in the Texas General Land Office (GLO).

While digital portals host records for recent decades in many counties, historical conveyances—including original sovereign patents, early oil and gas leases, partition deeds, and probate files—often exist only in bound volumes in the physical county clerk vault. Thorough drill-site examination frequently requires reviewing physical courthouse records.

Under Duhig v. Peavy-Moore Lumber Co. (Tex. 1940), when a grantor conveys real property by warranty deed, purporting to reserve a mineral interest while failing to except an outstanding third-party interest, the grantor is estopped from claiming their reserved interest to the extent necessary to satisfy the grant. We examine Duhig over-conveyance risk in every chain of title.

Under Texas Estates Code § 203.001, a recorded Affidavit of Facts Concerning Identity of Heirs serves as prima facie evidence of heirship after remaining of record for five years. We assist in reconstructing family genealogies, verifying marital history under community property rules, and preparing curative affidavits.

🏛️ OUR LANDMEN HOLDINGS • SOVEREIGN ECOSYSTEM