Find Waller County Obituary Records
Waller County death records and obituaries are maintained by the County Clerk in Hempstead, Texas. Located northwest of Houston on the Coastal Prairie, Waller County has vital records dating from 1903.
Waller County Overview
Waller County Clerk Death Records
The Waller County Clerk's office in Hempstead is the local registrar for vital records. Death certificates for events occurring in Waller County from 1903 to the present are held here. The clerk accepts in-person and mail requests. Under Texas Health and Safety Code Chapter 193, records less than 25 years old require qualified applicant status. Records 25 years or older are open to the public.
Waller County lies northwest of Houston on the Coastal Prairie, where the greater Houston metropolitan area meets the rural prairies of Southeast Texas. Hempstead is the county seat. Prairie View A&M University, one of the historically Black universities in the Texas A&M system, is located in Waller County and has been present since 1876. The county has seen significant population growth as Houston's suburban expansion has reached into the area. Agriculture -- primarily rice, sorghum, and cattle -- continues in the western portions of the county. The DSHS online system is available for certified death certificate requests.
| Office | Waller County Clerk |
|---|---|
| Address | P.O. Box 471, Hempstead, TX 77445 |
| Phone | (979) 826-7711 |
| Hours | Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM |
| Website | co.waller.tx.us |
Searching Waller County Obituaries
Order Waller County death certificates online at ovra.txapps.texas.gov. The DSHS statewide index covers Waller County from 1903. For genealogy, FamilySearch at familysearch.org and the Texas State Library at tsl.texas.gov are the main free resources. Legacy.com at legacy.com may carry obituary notices from area Houston-area and Waller County papers.
Note: The DSHS statewide index covers Waller County death records from 1903. Online ordering avoids a trip to the Hempstead courthouse.
Requesting Waller County Death Certificates
Mail a completed application, notarized signature, copy of your photo ID, and a check or money order for $21 to: Waller County Clerk, P.O. Box 471, Hempstead, TX 77445. Additional copies are $4 each. State requests go through dshs.texas.gov/vs. Requirements are at dshs.texas.gov/vs/requirements.aspx.
Historical Waller County Obituary Records
Waller County death records from the early 1900s reflect the cotton farming and cattle ranching communities on the Upper Coastal Plain. The county was organized in 1873 and named for Edwin Waller, one of the signers of the Texas Declaration of Independence. Cotton was the major cash crop for much of the 19th and early 20th century, and the county had a large African American population engaged in sharecropping after the Civil War. Prairie View Normal School -- now Prairie View A&M -- was founded in 1876 to educate freedpeople, and its presence shaped the social history of the county. The Texas State Library holds microfilm of early county vital records. FamilySearch has indexed Texas death collections with Waller County entries.
The Waller County Clerk's website provides information on vital records requests and county services in Hempstead.
The Waller County Clerk in Hempstead maintains death certificates and vital records for this Coastal Prairie county from 1903 forward.
Texas Law and Waller County Death Records
Under Texas Health and Safety Code Section 193.003, death certificates must be filed within 10 days. Records under 25 years are restricted per Chapter 193. Older records are public. Section 193.007 covers delayed registration. The DSHS at dshs.texas.gov/vs/death maintains the statewide index including Waller County.
Waller County Obituary Resources
Contact the clerk at (979) 826-7711, order online at ovra.txapps.texas.gov, search at FamilySearch and the Texas State Library at tsl.texas.gov. Obituaries appear on Legacy.com.
Nearby Counties
Waller County is located northwest of Houston on the Upper Coastal Plain.