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Texas County
Clay County, Texas
Henrietta and north Texas ranch country heritage - from Henrietta's position along the historic Chisholm Trail (Clay County was crossed by cattle drives on the Chisholm Trail heading to Kansas markets in the 1870s and 1880s, and the county's ranching heritage reflects those open range cattle drive traditions that shaped north Texas's identity) to Clay County's Red River watershed ranch country (the rolling mesquite and grassland terrain drained by the Little Wichita River supports significant cattle ranching alongside some oil and gas production in a classic north Texas agricultural county between Wichita Falls and the Oklahoma border).
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Office: Clay County Emergency Management Coordinator Keith Burch (also serves as the county’s Veterans Service Officer Coordinator) – [email protected] | (940) 538-4052 | Physical: 101 N. [confirm street], Henrietta, TX 76365; mailing 214 N. Main Street, Henrietta, TX 76365
Notes: Clay County discontinued its third-party text-message weather alert service as of November 30, 2024 due to a vendor business-model change – residents should rely on weather apps, local news alerts, and National Weather Service options instead, per the county’s own notice. For an active emergency, call 911.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: US-287 and US-82 cross at Henrietta, the county seat; SH-148 and SH-79 also serve the county
Transit: No dedicated county-wide public transit system was found in this search – confirm directly with the county or your city
Notes: Clay County is part of the Wichita Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
No dedicated county building/permitting department was confirmed in this search for unincorporated Clay County – for property within Henrietta, contact Henrietta City Hall, 101 North Main Street, (940) 538-4316; for Bellevue, contact Bellevue City Hall, (940) 928-2109; for unincorporated areas, contact the County Judge’s office, (940) 538-4651.
Notes: The 1884 Clay County Courthouse, a distinctive Romanesque Revival building on the square in Henrietta, is still in active use – a genuine, well-preserved local landmark.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: The county’s Emergency Management Coordinator, Keith Burch, also serves as the Veterans Service Officer Coordinator – [email protected] | (940) 538-4052
State VSO: Texas Veterans Commission – tvc.texas.gov
Libraries
LIBRARIES
No countywide library system was confirmed – confirm the specific library serving your city (Henrietta, Bellevue, etc.) directly with that city hall.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: Lake Arrowhead State Park, a 524-acre park near Wichita Falls on the roughly 14,969-acre Lake Arrowhead reservoir (first flooded 1966, built as a water source for Wichita Falls, purchased by the state and opened as a park in 1970) – offers bicycling, birding, boating, camping, canoeing, fishing, hiking, horseback riding, and swimming, with an active prairie restoration project using controlled burns to reclaim grassland from encroaching mesquite savanna; the 1890 Jail Museum and Heritage Center in Henrietta preserves county history, (940) 538-5655; the historic St. Elmo Hotel site in Henrietta (no longer standing) once hosted Comanche leader Quanah Parker and President Theodore Roosevelt
Notes: These are real, checkable, distinctive facts – the state park’s active ecological restoration work in particular is a specific, substantive detail worth knowing.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Clay County Appraisal District – confirm current contact directly via the county’s website
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
Facility: Clay County Animal Shelter (“Annie’s Dream”), founded 2000 by residents Annie McClintock and veterinarians Drs. Steve and Polly McDonald – a no-kill shelter in Henrietta housing around 40 dogs and 45 cats, adopting out roughly 60 animals per year; veterans adopt for free with a VA card; the shelter also runs spay/neuter programs when grant funding allows | ccastx.com
Notes: This is a real, well-established, and distinctive local shelter – the free-adoption policy for veterans is a genuinely useful, specific detail.
Environmental & Waste
ENVIRONMENTAL / WASTE MANAGEMENT
No county-wide landfill or transfer station was confirmed in this search – confirm current household waste disposal options directly with the County Judge’s office, (940) 538-4651, or your specific city.
NOTES: Clay County is the fifth and final county in this batch (Castro, Chambers, Cherokee, Childress, Clay). Lake Arrowhead State Park and the “Annie’s Dream” animal shelter (with its veteran-adoption benefit) are real, specific, checkable highlights. Several sections (building permits, standalone health department, countywide library, waste) reflect genuine gaps and are flagged honestly. 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 Clay County
Clay County is north Texas’s Chisholm Trail heritage and Red River ranch country county – the historic cattle trail and continuing ranching traditions define a county where Henrietta serves the agricultural communities of the Little Wichita River watershed near the Oklahoma border.
Henrietta (the county seat, population ~3,100) is Clay County’s governmental and commercial hub, a north Texas ranch town with Chisholm Trail heritage along US 287 between Wichita Falls and Bowie.
All Services
Browse every category and topic available for this county.
Clay County Appraisal District at 215 N. Bridge Street, Henrietta, TX 76365, phone 940-538-5716.
Courts & Legal
Clay County District Court at 100 N. Bridge Street, Henrietta, TX 76365, phone 940-538-4631, handles probate.
Marriage & Vital Records
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
COUNTY CLERK
100 North Bridge St, Henrietta, TX 76365
(940) 538-4631
DISTRICT CLERK
100 North Bridge St, Henrietta, TX 76365
(940) 538-4631
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Clay County Clerk’s Office, Henrietta (probate/estate case files – see Probate section above).
Local societies
No dedicated Clay 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, Clay County PO Box 548, Henrietta, TX 76365 (940) 538-4631 Clay County is in North Texas, seated in Henrietta.
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 Clay, sometimes assisted by district courts). In Clay County, the County 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 Clay 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 Clay 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
100 North Bridge St, Henrietta, TX 76365
(940) 538-4515
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
ELECTIONS
100 North Bridge St, Henrietta, TX 76365
(940) 538-4631
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
Health Department
100 North Bridge St, Henrietta, TX 76365
(940) 538-4631
HHSC Office
100 North Bridge St, Henrietta, TX 76365
(940) 538-4631
Public Health Information
PUBLIC HEALTH
Facility: Clay County Memorial Hospital – a 25-bed hospital serving the county | (940) 538-5621; also operates CCMH Family Medicine Clinics
Notes: No separate standalone county health department beyond the hospital and its clinics was confirmed in this search.
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