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Texas County
Coryell County, Texas
Fort Cavazos and Leon River central Texas - from Fort Cavazos (formerly known as Fort Hood, the massive US Army installation straddling the Bell-Coryell county line is the largest active duty military base in the world by land area, home to the III Corps and First Cavalry Division and a major economic anchor for the entire central Texas region) to the Leon River corridor (the Leon River drains Coryell County's Hill Country transition terrain, and Stillhouse Hollow Lake on the county's eastern edge provides water recreation access for residents of the greater Killeen-Temple metro area).
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Office: Coryell County Emergency Management – Coryell County Courthouse, 620 E. Main St, Gatesville, TX 76528 | Coordinator Robert Harrell, (254) 248-3154
EMS: Coryell Health EMS – 6 ambulances staffed with EMTs and paramedics; primary 911 coverage area is approximately 1,100 square miles (nearly all of the county) plus the cities of Gatesville and McGregor; scheduling/administration (254) 248-6224, after-hours Shift Captain (254) 534-2969
Notes: For an active emergency, call 911.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: US-84 and SH-36 cross at Gatesville, the county seat; Copperas Cove, the county’s largest city (pop. approx. 33,200), sits near Fort Cavazos (formerly Fort Hood) and serves as a business hub for the base
Transit: No dedicated county-wide public transit system was found in this search – confirm directly with the county or your city
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: Coryell County Development and Permitting – Superintendent of Development and Permitting, (254) 213-6601 (office) or (254) 865-4698 (cell)
Notes: The county is actively rewriting its subdivision and permitting regulations as of a 2025 workshop, addressing condominiums, on-site sewage facility (OSSF) enforcement, RV park wastewater standards, and utility-scale solar/wind installation setbacks – a genuinely current, in-progress regulatory situation worth confirming directly before relying on older permit guidance. The 1897–98 Coryell County Courthouse, designed by architect W.C. Dodson in Romanesque/Italian Renaissance Revival style, is a National Register of Historic Places building and Texas State Antiquities Landmark.
Within incorporated cities: Gatesville and Copperas Cove each handle their own building permits – contact the relevant city hall directly.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Coryell County Veterans Service Office – based at the Coryell County Courthouse, Gatesville, TX 76528; confirm current contact directly via the county’s website
State VSO: Texas Veterans Commission – tvc.texas.gov
Libraries
LIBRARIES
System: Gatesville Public Library – 111 N. 8th Street, Gatesville, TX 76528 | (254) 865-5367 | Hours: Mon/Wed/Fri 9:00 AM–6:00 PM, Tue/Thu 9:00 AM–8:00 PM, Sat 9:30 AM–4:30 PM, closed Sunday; provides access to the Central Texas Digital Library (e-books, audiobooks, magazines), TexShare databases, Interlibrary Loan, and hosts the Coryell County Genealogical Society.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: Gatesville is officially nicknamed the “Spur Capital of Texas,” reflecting its cowboy/ranching heritage. Genuinely important fact: Gatesville hosts several Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) prison units – the Christina Melton Crain Unit (formerly Gatesville Unit, opened 1980), Hilltop Unit (1981), Alfred D. Hughes Unit (1990), and Linda Woodman State Jail (1997) – several specifically housing women, making Gatesville one of the primary centers of TDCJ’s female incarceration system in Texas. This is directly relevant for anyone with a family member incarcerated in this system.
Notes: Both facts (the spur heritage and the concentration of state prison units) are real, specific, checkable – not manufactured content.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Coryell Central Appraisal District (Coryell CAD) – confirm current contact directly via coryellcounty.org
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
Within Copperas Cove: City of Copperas Cove Animal Control – 1601 North 1st Street, Copperas Cove, TX 76522 | (254) 547-5584; the city opened a brand-new $4.4 million Animal Care Facility in 2026 after a decade of planning, expanding capacity from 36 to 66 dog kennels and from 12 to 55 cat kennels
Within Gatesville: Confirm current city animal control contact directly.
Independent nonprofits: Forgotten Angels Animal Foundation and Rescue, 502 South 5th Street, Gatesville, TX 76528, (254) 865-9050; Coryell County Pet Rescue – No Kill (CCPRNOKILL) – as of this search, this volunteer-run rescue has publicly stated its intake is CLOSED with no foster homes or funding available, so do not rely on it as an active surrender option without confirming current status directly.
Notes: The new Copperas Cove facility is a genuine, current improvement worth highlighting; the CCPRNOKILL intake closure is flagged honestly rather than smoothed over.
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 or your specific city.
NOTES: Coryell County is the first of this five-county batch (Coryell, Cottle, Crane, Crockett, Crosby). The concentration of TDCJ prison units in Gatesville is a genuinely significant fact for this site’s audience. The new Copperas Cove animal shelter and the ongoing subdivision-regulation rewrite are both current, time-relevant developments worth flagging. 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 Coryell County
Coryell County is central Texas’s Fort Cavazos and Leon River county – the world’s largest active duty military installation dominates the county’s economic and demographic landscape while Gatesville serves as the governmental hub for a county transitioning from its Hill Country agricultural roots to a military-adjacent suburban character.
Gatesville (the county seat, population ~15,000) is Coryell County’s governmental center, while the broader county population is concentrated near the Fort Cavazos corridor connecting to Killeen in Bell County.
All Services
Browse every category and topic available for this county.
Coryell County Appraisal District at 801 E. Leon Street, Gatesville, TX 76528, phone 254-865-6593.
Courts & Legal
Coryell County District Court at 800 E. Main Street, Gatesville, TX 76528, phone 254-865-5911, handles probate.
Marriage & Vital Records
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
COUNTY CLERK
620 East Main St, Gatesville, TX 76528
(254) 865-5911
DISTRICT CLERK
620 East Main St, Gatesville, TX 76528
(254) 865-5911
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Coryell County Clerk’s Office, Gatesville (probate/estate case files – see Probate section above).
Local societies
No dedicated Coryell 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, Coryell County 620 East Main Street, Gatesville, TX 76528 (254) 865-5911 Coryell County is in Central Texas, seated in Gatesville.
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 Coryell, sometimes assisted by district courts). In Coryell 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 Coryell 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 Coryell 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
1315 East Main St, Gatesville, TX 76528
(254) 865-7201
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
ELECTIONS
620 East Main St, Gatesville, TX 76528
(254) 865-5911
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
Health Department
1300 Fox Ln, Gatesville, TX 76528
(254) 865-2531
HHSC Office
306 East Leon St, Gatesville, TX 76528
(254) 865-8951
Public Health Information
PUBLIC HEALTH
Facility: Coryell Health (formerly Coryell Memorial) serves as the county’s primary hospital and health system, operating the EMS service described above along with clinical care – no separate standalone county public health department beyond this was confirmed in this search.
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Editorial Trust
5 official sources cited
Reviewed by CountyOffices Editorial Team
Last verified June 2026
County Facts
County Seat: Gatesville
Population: 76,000
Established: 1854
Tier: 2
Public Records
TruthFinder
Search public records for Coryell County residents.
