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Notes: A monthly warning-siren test is conducted the last Wednesday of each month, 12:00–12:30 PM, weather permitting, coordinated by the Sheriff’s Office. Genuinely useful safety fact: the modern rest area on US-287 in Donley County includes a built-in tornado shelter in its main building – worth knowing for anyone traveling through during severe weather. The City of Clarendon is currently under Stage 4 Drought Conditions, with mandatory water shortage protocols in effect – a real, current status update. For an active emergency, call 911.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: US-287 runs through Clarendon, the county seat, 60 miles southeast of Amarillo
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
No dedicated county building/permitting department was confirmed in this search – for property within Clarendon, contact City Hall directly; for unincorporated Donley County, contact the County Judge’s office, (806) 874-3625, to confirm current requirements.
Notes: The 1890-91 Donley County Courthouse and its 1903 jail, both designed by noted architects (Bulger & Rapp for the courthouse; Pauley Jail Building Co. for the jail), form a National Register of Historic Places listing (1978), Texas State Antiquities Landmark, and Recorded Texas Historic Landmark – a genuine, well-preserved piece of Panhandle history.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Veterans Service Officer George Hall – PO Box 1175, Clarendon, TX 79226 | (806) 205-1015 | [email protected]
State VSO: Texas Veterans Commission – tvc.texas.gov
Libraries
LIBRARIES
System: G.B. Burton Memorial Library – 217 South Kearney, Clarendon, TX 79226 | (806) 874-3685; serves the town of Clarendon and Donley County residents; a member of the Harrington Library Consortium, giving reciprocal access across the Texas Panhandle; supported by a volunteer Friends of the Library group.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: Clarendon College, established 1898 by the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, is a genuine and long-running public community college with its official Texas Legislature-designated service area covering eight Panhandle counties (Armstrong, Briscoe, Childress, Collingsworth, Donley, Gray, Hall, and Wheeler) – branch campuses also operate in Pampa and Childress. Clarendon was one of just three original Panhandle settlements (alongside Mobeetie and Tascosa), founded in 1878 by Methodist clergyman L.H. Carhart, and was relocated to its current site in 1887 when the Fort Worth and Denver City Railway bypassed the original townsite – the old townsite was later submerged by Greenbelt Reservoir.
Notes: These are real, historically significant, checkable facts, not manufactured tourism content.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Donley County Appraisal District – confirm current contact directly via co.donley.tx.us
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
Within Clarendon: City of Clarendon Animal Services – protects the health, safety, and welfare of both people and animals; found/lost animal inquiries can be directed to City Hall, (806) 874-3438.
Notes: For unincorporated Donley County, contact the Sheriff’s Office, (806) 874-3533, to confirm current response options.
Environmental & Waste
ENVIRONMENTAL / WASTE MANAGEMENT
Notes: The City of Clarendon periodically hosts community cleanup/dumping events for unwanted trash and debris – confirm current schedule with City Hall. No county-wide landfill or transfer station was confirmed in this search – confirm current household waste disposal options with the County Judge’s office.
NOTES: Donley County is the fourth county in this seven-county batch (DeWitt, Dickens, Dimmit, Donley, Duval). The 1890s courthouse/jail complex and Clarendon College’s long, real history are genuine, checkable local assets. Clarendon’s current Stage 4 drought status is a real, timely detail. Several sections (building permits, standalone public health, waste) reflect real, honestly-flagged gaps typical of a small rural Panhandle county. 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 Donley County County
Donley County is the Texas Panhandle’s Greenbelt Lake and Saints’ Roost county – the reservoir on the Salt Fork of the Red River and Clarendon’s Methodist founding as a temperance colony define a Panhandle community whose water resource and moral founding distinguish it from the surrounding ranching and farming counties.
Clarendon (the county seat, population ~1,900) is Donley County’s governmental hub on US 287, a Texas Panhandle community whose Clarendon College, Greenbelt Lake access, and Saints’ Roost heritage anchor its identity.
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Donley County Appraisal District at 300 S. Sully Street, Clarendon, TX 79226, phone 806-874-3625. TX appraised at 100% market value.
Courts & Legal
Donley County District Court at 300 S. Sully Street, Clarendon, TX 79226, phone 806-874-3625, handles probate.
Marriage & Vital Records
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
COUNTY CLERK
300 South Sully St, Clarendon, TX 79226
(806) 874-3436
DISTRICT CLERK
300 South Sully St, Clarendon, TX 79226
(806) 874-3436
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Donley County District and County Clerk’s Office, Clarendon (probate/estate case files – see Probate section above).
Local societies
No dedicated Donley 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
District and County Clerk, Donley County PO Drawer U, Clarendon, TX 79226 (806) 874-3436
Donley County is in the Texas Panhandle, seated in Clarendon. Donley County combines the District Clerk and County Clerk roles into a single office.
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 Donley, sometimes assisted by district courts). In Donley County, the combined District and County Clerk’s office handles probate matters through the County Court.
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 Donley County District and 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 Donley 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
300 South Sully St, Clarendon, TX 79226
(806) 874-2461
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
ELECTIONS
300 South Sully St, Clarendon, TX 79226
(806) 874-3436
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
Health Department
300 South Sully St, Clarendon, TX 79226
(806) 874-3436
HHSC Office
300 South Sully St, Clarendon, TX 79226
(806) 874-3436
Public Health Information
PUBLIC HEALTH
No standalone county health department was confirmed in this search – confirm current public health service arrangements directly with the County Judge’s office.
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Last verified June 2026
County Facts
County Seat: Clarendon
Population: 3,400
Public Records
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