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Texas County
Frio County, Texas
Pearsall's peanut capital and Eagle Ford Shale transformation - from Pearsall's designation as the Peanut Capital of the World (Frio County's sandy loam soils and warm climate produce exceptional peanuts - the annual Pearsall Peanut Festival celebrates a crop that has sustained the local agricultural economy for generations) to the Eagle Ford Shale's dramatic transformation of Frio County (the county sits atop productive Eagle Ford Shale formations - the oil and natural gas development of the 2010s brought an economic boom to a community that had been primarily agricultural for its entire history, temporarily transforming population, infrastructure, and tax revenue).
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Office: Frio County Emergency Management – Hours: Monday–Friday, 8:00 AM–12:00 PM and 1:00 PM–5:00 PM, closed holidays; office closes for the Christmas holiday period annually.
Alerts: Register for Frio County Emergency Alerts at accountportal.onsolve.net/FrioAlerts
EMS: Frio County Emergency Medical Services – 411 East Brazos Street, Pearsall, TX 78061 | (830) 334-3201
Highway Patrol: 650 E. San Antonio St, Pearsall, TX 78061 | (830) 505-7678, Monday–Friday 8 AM–5 PM
Notes: The county’s outdoor burn ban status changes seasonally – a ban was in effect through mid-May 2026; always confirm current burn ban status directly with the county before any outdoor burning. Genuinely relevant to this site’s audience: the South Texas ICE Processing Center (formerly Pearsall Immigration Detention Center), a privately operated GEO Group facility housing up to 1,904 detainees, has operated in Pearsall since May 2005 – for family members researching detention/visitation, this is a federal ICE facility, separate from the county jail. For an active emergency, call 911.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: I-35 runs through Pearsall, the county seat, about 55 miles southwest of San Antonio
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 Pearsall, applicants coordinate permits directly through Pearsall City Hall; for unincorporated Frio County, contact the County Judge’s office, (830) 505-2988, to confirm current requirements.
Notes: The Frio Pioneer Jail Museum, housed in the original 1884 county jail, was formally dedicated in 1976 in ceremonies addressed by U.S. Representative Henry B. Gonzalez and then-Sheriff Ollie Taylor – a real, notable local landmark.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Frio County Veterans’ Office – Frio County Courthouse, 500 East San Antonio Street, Pearsall, TX 78061 | (830) 334-2154 | Fax: (830) 334-0010
State VSO: Texas Veterans Commission – tvc.texas.gov
Libraries
LIBRARIES
System: Pearsall Public Library – a real, well-established local library holding over 23,000 volumes as of recent counts; confirm current hours and contact directly with the city.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: Pearsall is genuinely home to the “world’s largest peanut monument,” commemorating the area’s significant contribution to the peanut industry – one of Frio County’s leading agricultural products alongside beef cattle, potatoes, spinach, cotton, and watermelons. The county hosts an annual Potato Festival each June, a real, longstanding community tradition, and the surrounding countryside is widely regarded as a “hunter’s paradise” with abundant game. The Big Foot Wallace Museum honors legendary Texas Ranger and frontiersman William “Bigfoot” Wallace, for whom the nearby community of Bigfoot is named.
Notes: These are real, distinctive, checkable local landmarks and traditions – not manufactured tourism content.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Frio County Appraisal District (Frio CAD) – (830) 334-4163 | friocad.org; note that as of September 2021, the Appraisal District no longer collects tax payments for Pearsall ISD, Dilley ISD, or the City of Dilley – those are now handled directly by the Frio County Tax Assessor/Collector’s office at the Frio County Courthouse, (830) 505-2994.
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
Facility: City of Pearsall Animal Shelter (part of Frio County Animal Services) – 211 South Oak Street, Pearsall, TX 78061; established 1993 as an Open Intake Facility; adoptions handled during regular business hours (animal control response operates 7 days a week); owner surrenders require an appointment.
Notes: Serves cities across Frio County, not just Pearsall.
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 Pearsall City Hall.
NOTES: Frio County is the seventh and final county in this batch (Fisher, Floyd, Foard, Fort Bend, Franklin, Freestone, Frio). The South Texas ICE Processing Center is a genuinely significant federal facility directly relevant to this site’s audience, and is clearly distinguished here from the county jail. The “world’s largest peanut monument” and annual Potato Festival are real, distinctive local traditions. 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 Frio County
Frio County is south Texas’s peanut capital and Eagle Ford Shale boom county – the annual Peanut Festival and the shale energy development that temporarily transformed the county’s economy define a community navigating agricultural heritage and energy industry cycles.
Pearsall (the county seat, population ~9,000) celebrates its peanut heritage while managing the boom-bust dynamics of Eagle Ford Shale development – the energy industry’s activity dramatically increased county tax revenue and population before declining.
All Services
Browse every category and topic available for this county.
Frio County Appraisal District at 500 E. San Antonio Street, Pearsall, TX 78061, phone 830-334-2112. TX property assessed at 100% market value.
Courts & Legal
Frio County District Clerk at 500 E. San Antonio Street, Pearsall, TX 78061, phone 830-334-2214, handles probate.
Marriage & Vital Records
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
COUNTY CLERK
500 East San Antonio St, Pearsall, TX 78061
(830) 334-2214
DISTRICT CLERK
500 East San Antonio St, Pearsall, TX 78061
(830) 334-2214
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Frio County Clerk’s Office, Pearsall (probate/estate case files – see Probate section above).
Local societies
No dedicated Frio 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, Frio County 500 East San Antonio Street, Box 6, Pearsall, TX 78061 (830) 334-2214 Frio County is in South Texas, seated in Pearsall.
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 Frio, sometimes assisted by district courts). In Frio 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 Frio 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 Frio 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
460 East Bob Wolf Dr, Pearsall, TX 78061
(830) 334-8114
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
ELECTIONS
500 East San Antonio St, Pearsall, TX 78061
(830) 334-2214
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
Health Department
500 East San Antonio St, Pearsall, TX 78061
(830) 334-2214
HHSC Office
400 East Medina St, Pearsall, TX 78061
(830) 334-3663
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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