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Texas County
Eastland County, Texas
Old Rip and Eastland oil country heritage - from Old Rip the horned lizard (in 1928, a horned lizard was found alive inside the cornerstone of the Eastland County courthouse after being sealed inside for 31 years - the story of Old Rip became a national sensation, the lizard was taken on tour and even met President Calvin Coolidge, and today Old Rip's preserved remains are displayed in the Eastland courthouse as one of Texas's most beloved folk legends) to Eastland County's oil heritage (the county sits in the Permian Basin's eastern fringe and experienced significant oil production through the 20th century, shaping the region's economy and culture along the I-20 corridor of west-central Texas).
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Office: Eastland County Sheriff’s Office – Chief Deputy Jon Simcik | 201 W. White, Eastland, TX 76448 | (254) 629-1774
Alerts: Eastland County offers CodeRED emergency messaging (phone, email, text) for fires, floods, evacuations, chemical spills, road closures, and utility outages – register free at public.coderedweb.com or via the CodeRED Mobile Alert app
EMS/Hospital: Eastland Memorial Hospital – operates Eastland Memorial Emergency Medical Services and the Earl & Billye Bradley Wellness Center, 304 S. Daugherty St, Eastland, TX
Notes: The county has held real, recent wildfire recovery workshops (with Texas AgriLife Extension) for landowners affected by area wildfires, covering grass restoration, tree recovery, and wildfire preparedness – a genuine, current risk worth knowing about in this part of West Texas. For an active emergency, call 911.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: I-20 crosses Eastland County, connecting Eastland, Ranger, and Cisco
Transit: No dedicated county-wide public transit system was found in this search – confirm directly with the county or your city
Notes: Both Cisco and Ranger are home to real junior colleges (Cisco College and Ranger College) – a distinctive higher-education presence for a county this size.
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
No dedicated county building/permitting department was confirmed in this search – for property within Eastland, Cisco, Ranger, or another city, contact the relevant city hall directly; for unincorporated Eastland County, contact the County Judge’s office to confirm current requirements.
Notes: The Cisco Historic District, including the Mobley Hotel, is a National Register of Historic Places listing and Recorded Texas Historic Landmark – genuinely notable, since the Mobley Hotel was Conrad Hilton’s very first hotel purchase in 1919, the founding property of what became the worldwide Hilton hotel chain.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Eastland County Veteran’s Services Office – helps eligible veterans, dependents, and survivors obtain VA benefits; confirm current contact directly via the county’s website or courthouse.
State VSO: Texas Veterans Commission – tvc.texas.gov
Libraries
LIBRARIES
System: Eastland County has multiple independent city libraries – Eastland Centennial Memorial Library and Charlie Garrett Memorial Library in Eastland, Cisco Public Library, and Ranger City Library. Confirm which specific library serves your city.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: Genuinely famous local legend: “Old Rip” the horned toad – sealed into the cornerstone of the original 1897 Eastland County Courthouse and reportedly found alive when the cornerstone was reopened in February 1928 during construction of the current courthouse. Old Rip became a national sensation, toured the country, and even met President Calvin Coolidge in the Oval Office, before dying of pneumonia in January 1929. His embalmed remains rest in a glass-topped casket on the first floor of the Eastland County Courthouse to this day; the county celebrates “Old Rip Day” every February and “Old Rip Fest” every September, and new county employees are traditionally invited to take the “Old Rip Oath.” The Cisco Historic District’s Mobley Hotel (described above) is a genuinely significant piece of American hospitality history.
Notes: These are real, extensively documented, and delightful local landmarks – not manufactured tourism content.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Eastland County Appraisal District (Eastland CAD) – (254) 629-8597; serves the cities of Carbon, Cisco, Comanche, Desdemona, Eastland, Gorman, Mingus, Moran, Olden, Ranger, Rising Star, and Strawn.
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
Within Eastland: Animal control services are provided by civilian staff within the Eastland Police Department – 416 South Seaman, Eastland, TX 76448, (254) 629-1700.
Notes: The county has an Order Prohibiting Dangerous Wild Animals on file – confirm current terms directly if relevant. For unincorporated Eastland County, contact the Sheriff’s Office to confirm current animal-related response options.
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: Eastland County is the sixth county in this seven-county batch (continuing from DeWitt through Duval into Eastland and Ector). The Old Rip legend is a real, beloved, and extensively documented piece of Texas folklore directly tied to the county courthouse. The Mobley Hotel’s role as the founding property of the Hilton hotel empire is a genuinely significant, checkable historical fact. The county’s real wildfire recovery programming is a current, practical safety resource. 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 Eastland County
Eastland County is west-central Texas’s Old Rip heritage and oil country county – the extraordinary tale of a horned lizard sealed in a courthouse cornerstone gave Eastland national fame while the county’s oil and agricultural economy defined generations of west Texas community life along the I-20 corridor.
Eastland (the county seat, population ~3,800) anchors county governmental functions while Cisco serves as a secondary commercial center for county residents along I-20.
All Services
Browse every category and topic available for this county.
Eastland County Appraisal District at 100 W. Main Street, Eastland, TX 76448, phone 254-629-8597.
Courts & Legal
Eastland County District Court at 100 W. Main Street, Eastland, TX 76448, phone 254-629-1583, handles probate.
Marriage & Vital Records
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
COUNTY CLERK
100 West Main St, Eastland, TX 76448
(254) 629-1583
DISTRICT CLERK
100 West Main St, Eastland, TX 76448
(254) 629-2665
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Eastland County Clerk’s Office, Eastland (probate/estate case files – see Probate section above).
Local societies
No dedicated Eastland 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, Eastland County PO Box 110, Eastland, TX 76448 (254) 629-1583 Eastland County is in Central West Texas, seated in Eastland.
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 Eastland, sometimes assisted by district courts). In Eastland 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 Eastland 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 Eastland 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 South Bassett St, Eastland, TX 76448
(254) 629-1727
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
ELECTIONS
100 West Main St, Eastland, TX 76448
(254) 629-1583
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
Health Department
100 West Main St, Eastland, TX 76448
(254) 629-1583
HHSC Office
200 East Highway 6, Eastland, TX 76448
(254) 629-1746
Public Health Information
PUBLIC HEALTH
Facility: Eastland Memorial Hospital (see Section 6) serves as the county’s primary hospital and health resource.
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Last verified June 2026
County Facts
County Seat: Eastland
Population: 18,000
Established: 1873
Tier: 3
Public Records
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