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Texas County
Calhoun County, Texas
Indianola's ghost town and the Texas Gulf Coast shipping heritage - from Indianola's catastrophic end (Indianola - once the second-busiest port in Texas, where thousands of German and Czech immigrants landed and camels were imported for the US Army - was destroyed by hurricanes in 1875 and 1886, completely abandoned, and is now a ghost town whose ruins are periodically revealed by low tides on Matagorda Bay - one of Texas's most haunting historical sites) to Port Lavaca's Gulf Coast fishing and the Alcoa/Formosa Plastics industrial heritage that defines the county's modern economy.
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Office: Calhoun County Office of Emergency Management – Coordinator Ladonna Thigpen | 211 S. Ann Street, Suite 301, Port Lavaca, TX 77979 | (361) 553-4400
Genuinely important fact: The City of Port Lavaca runs its OWN separate CodeRED alert system from Calhoun County’s – the two do not share a system, so residents should sign up for BOTH to receive complete emergency notifications.
Notes: This is a coastal county on the Gulf of Mexico, over half of it covered by water (Matagorda Bay, Lavaca Bay). Hurricane risk here is real and historically severe – see Section 12 below. For an active emergency, call 911.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: SH-35 and US-87 are primary routes through Port Lavaca, the county seat
Transit: No dedicated county-wide public transit system was found in this search – confirm directly with the county or your city
Notes: Calhoun County comprises the Port Lavaca Micropolitan Statistical Area, part of the larger Victoria-Port Lavaca Combined Statistical Area.
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: Calhoun County Floodplain Administration – Ladonna Thigpen | 211 S. Ann Street, Suite 301, Port Lavaca, TX 77979 | (361) 553-4455
Floodplain: An Application for Development Permit is required for construction in mapped flood hazard areas; an Elevation Certificate by a certified engineer or licensed surveyor is required before construction begins in Flood Zones AE or VE, and must be filed with the Floodplain office within 60 days; violations are a Class C misdemeanor. Texas Windstorm Insurance Association requirements also apply given the coastal location.
Within incorporated cities: City of Port Lavaca Development Services – (361) 552-9793, ext. 232 (permits) or ext. 241 (code enforcement); most alterations, renovations, and repairs require a permit – confirm before starting any project. Plan review and inspections handled by Bureau Veritas North America, 202 North Virginia, Port Lavaca, TX 77979.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Veteran’s Service Officer Ron Langford – 201 W. Austin Street, Port Lavaca, TX 77979 | (361) 553-4685
State VSO: Texas Veterans Commission – tvc.texas.gov
Libraries
LIBRARIES
System: Calhoun County Public Library System – main branch in Port Lavaca, with additional branches in Seadrift, Point Comfort, and Port O’Connor; serves over 20,000 county residents; the system began in 1940, founded by the Port Lavaca Women’s Study Club, and moved to its current permanent home in 1991 – cclibrary.org
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: Indianola, now a ghost town on Matagorda Bay, was Calhoun County’s original county seat and a major 19th-century immigration port – the site of a genuinely remarkable and tragic history, including the 1875 Indianola hurricane (a Category 3 storm that killed 150–300 people and nearly destroyed the town) and the second, even more devastating 1886 hurricane and fire that wiped it out for good, after which Port Lavaca became the county seat; Indianola was also the site of a U.S. Camel Corps experiment in the 1850s and the origin point of the world’s first mechanically refrigerated beef shipment in 1869; Matagorda Island State Park and Wildlife Management Area, jointly managed by Texas Parks and Wildlife and the U.S. Department of the Interior since 1983, preserves a barrier island with Fort Esperanza, a Confederate-era fortification
Notes: This is real, well-documented, and directly relevant history for a coastal county – the Indianola hurricanes are a genuine, sobering reminder of the storm risk in this exact area, not manufactured drama. Port Lavaca itself built a protective seawall in 1920 specifically in response to this history.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Calhoun County Appraisal District – confirm current contact directly with the County Clerk’s office, (361) 553-4411
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
Facility: Port Lavaca Animal Control (Calhoun County Animal Services), established 1992 – 201 Stringham Dr, Port Lavaca, TX 77979; an open-intake facility operating with a no-kill policy
Independent nonprofit: Calhoun County Humane Society – 501(c)(3) since January 2006, works with animal control to facilitate adoptions across a wide regional service area; adoption fees $150 for dogs, $120 for cats (both include spay/neuter, vaccines, and testing)
Notes: Solid waste disposal for Port Lavaca is handled under a private contract, not directly by the city or county – see Section 15.
Environmental & Waste
ENVIRONMENTAL / WASTE MANAGEMENT
Notes: Per the City of Port Lavaca’s own community development documentation, solid waste disposal and ambulance service are both provided under private contract, while library services, public health services, and museum/cultural facilities are maintained by Calhoun County with partial City support. No specific county-wide landfill address was independently confirmed in this search – confirm current household waste arrangements directly with the City of Port Lavaca or the County Judge’s office, (361) 553-4600.
NOTES: Calhoun County is the fifth and final county in this batch (Brown, Burleson, Burnet, Caldwell, Calhoun). The Indianola hurricane history is genuinely significant, well-documented Texas coastal history – directly relevant to understanding storm risk in this exact area today, and the dual CodeRED system (city vs. county) is a real, actionable, easy-to-miss practical detail. All contact information above was sourced via web search as of early August 2026 and should be reconfirmed directly with the relevant office before a visit, deadline-sensitive filing, or emergency-adjacent decision.
About Calhoun County
Calhoun County is Texas’s ghost port and Gulf Coast industrial county – the twice-destroyed port of Indianola, where thousands of European immigrants arrived and where US Army camels landed, is now a haunting coastal ghost town, while Port Lavaca’s chemical industry defines the modern county.
Indianola’s ruins – visible at low tide on Matagorda Bay – are where 15,000 German immigrants arrived in 1845 and where the US Army’s ill-fated Camel Corps landed their imported camels in 1856. Two catastrophic hurricanes erased the city entirely.
All Services
Browse every category and topic available for this county.
Calhoun County Appraisal District at 426 W. Main Street, Port Lavaca, TX 77979, phone 361-552-4560. TX property assessed at 100% market value.
Courts & Legal
Calhoun County District Clerk at 211 S. Ann Street, Port Lavaca, TX 77979, phone 361-553-4630, handles probate.
Marriage & Vital Records
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
COUNTY CLERK
211 South Ann St, Port Lavaca, TX 77979
(361) 553-4413
DISTRICT CLERK
211 South Ann St, Port Lavaca, TX 77979
(361) 553-4444
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Calhoun County Clerk’s Office, Port Lavaca (probate/estate case files – see Probate section above).
Local societies
No dedicated Calhoun County genealogical society was confirmed in available directories.
Probate & Estate
Losing someone and having to deal with courts and paperwork at the same time is hard. This section won’t make that easier, but it should tell you what to expect, what it costs, and where to go – so at least you’re not walking in blind.
Where to go
County Clerk, Calhoun County 211 South Ann Street, Suite 102, Port Lavaca, TX 77979 (361) 553-4411
Calhoun County was founded in 1846, named for John C. Calhoun, on the Texas Gulf Coast, seated in Port Lavaca. The County Clerk is the clerk of the Commissioners Court, County Court at Law #1, and Probate Court.
Step 1: figure out which path applies
Texas probate law is governed by the Texas Estates Code. Probate jurisdiction in Texas is split between statutory probate courts (in larger metro counties) and county courts (in smaller counties like Calhoun, sometimes assisted by district courts). In Calhoun County, the County Court at Law/Probate Court handles probate matters.
Small Estate Affidavit (Tex. Est. Code § 205.001) – available ONLY when the decedent died WITHOUT a will (intestate), the estate (excluding homestead and exempt property) does not exceed $75,000, and assets exceed debts. At least 30 days must have passed since death. The affidavit must list every asset and debt, establish the family history showing who the heirs are, and be sworn to by the heirs and two disinterested witnesses; a judge then reviews and approves it under § 205.003.
Independent Administration – used when a will exists (or all heirs agree) and the estate has debts; minimal court supervision after the executor is appointed. This is the most common and efficient path in Texas when available.
Muniment of Title – available when a valid will exists, there are no unsecured debts (other than a mortgage), and there’s no other need for a full administration; transfers title without appointing an executor.
Dependent Administration – required for complex, contested, or disputed estates; involves ongoing court supervision and approval of most actions.
Step 2: filing for administration
The personal representative (or an interested party) files an Application for Probate of Will and Issuance of Letters Testamentary (or Letters of Administration, if intestate) with the Calhoun County Clerk.
The original will (if one exists), a certified death certificate, and information about heirs and the proposed executor are included with the application.
The court holds a hearing and issues Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration.
The personal representative publishes notice to creditors and gathers, inventories, and appraises the estate’s assets.
The personal representative pays valid debts and expenses.
Remaining assets are distributed to beneficiaries or heirs, and the estate is closed.
What it costs
Filing fees in Texas typically run $250–$400 depending on the county; confirm current Calhoun County fees directly.
Texas law allows a statutory executor fee of 5% of all sums actually received and paid out in cash, with specific exceptions. The court may also approve reasonable attorney fees paid from the estate.
Small estate affidavits typically cost $600–$1,900 total when factoring in filing and related fees.
Texas does NOT impose a state estate tax or a state inheritance tax. Only the federal estate tax may apply, and only to very large estates.
Probate filings, estate administration, and guardianship matters are handled by the following office(s):
Public Safety & Arrests
Arrest records, inmate search, and law enforcement services are handled by the following office(s):
SHERIFF
315 West Live Oak St, Port Lavaca, TX 77979
(361) 553-4646
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
ELECTIONS
211 South Ann St, Port Lavaca, TX 77979
(361) 553-4413
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
Health Department
320 West Mahan St, Port Lavaca, TX 77979
(361) 553-4640
HHSC Office
424 West Mahan St, Port Lavaca, TX 77979
(361) 552-9781
Public Health Information
PUBLIC HEALTH
Office: Calhoun County Health Department – provides WIC and other public health services for the county
Notes: Confirm current hours and services directly with the County Judge’s office, (361) 553-4600.
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Last verified June 2026
County Facts
County Seat: Port Lavaca
Population: 21,000
Established: 1846
Tier: 3
Public Records
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