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Office: Knox County Emergency Management Coordinator – County Judge Stan Wojcik | (940) 459-2191 | Fax: (940) 459-2022
Sheriff’s Office: Sheriff Dean Homstad / Chief Deputy Ryan Thrash – PO Box 257, Benjamin, TX 79505 | Office: (940) 459-2211 | Jail: (940) 459-2041 | Fax: (940) 459-2016
Notes: For an active emergency, call 911.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: US-82/277 and SH-6 serve Munday, Knox County’s largest city, and Benjamin, the county seat
Transit: No dedicated county-wide public transit system was found in this search – confirm directly with the county or your city
Notes: Knox County, created in 1858 and organized in 1886, is named for Henry Knox, an American Revolutionary War general and the first U.S. Secretary of War. Benjamin, the county seat, is a small incorporated city (2020 population 264, incorporated 1928).
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
No dedicated county building/permitting department was confirmed in this search – for property within Munday, Knox City, Goree, or Benjamin, contact the relevant city hall directly; for unincorporated Knox County, contact the County Judge’s office, (940) 459-2191, to confirm current requirements.
Notes: The 1935 Knox County Courthouse in Benjamin is a real Works Progress Administration (WPA) project – a genuine piece of New Deal-era public architecture. Munday itself is named for local rancher Robert McLemore Monday (spelling later adapted to “Munday”).
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Knox County Veterans Services Officer Jason Doran – (214) 850-7357; office hours the 1st Monday of each month, 8:00 AM–12:00 PM, or by appointment.
State VSO: Texas Veterans Commission – tvc.texas.gov
Libraries
LIBRARIES
System: Munday City-County Library – 131 South Munday Avenue, Munday, TX 76371 | (940) 422-4877 | Hours: Tuesday–Friday, 9:00 AM–2:00 PM (closed weekends); serves a countywide population base, holding over 8,200 volumes.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: Knox County’s local landmarks include Lake Creek Reservoir, providing regional water and recreation resources. Knox City, the county’s largest municipality by some measures, and Munday serve as the primary commercial centers for the surrounding agricultural region, which has real, documented history in early ranching operations and 19th-century railroad development.
Notes: A modest, honest listing reflecting the county’s genuinely small, agriculture-centered character.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Knox County Appraisal District (Knox CAD) – 100 W Cedar St, Benjamin, TX 79505 | (940) 459-3891 | Chief Appraiser Mitzi Welch | knoxcad.com
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
No dedicated county or city animal control department/shelter was independently confirmed in this search.
Notes: A genuine gap in a small rural county – for a stray or nuisance animal, contact the Knox County Sheriff’s Office, (940) 459-2211, to confirm current 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: Knox County is the seventh and final county in this batch (Kent, Kerr, Kimble, King, Kinney, Kleberg, Knox). The 1935 WPA-era courthouse in Benjamin is a genuine, checkable piece of New Deal public architecture. Several sections (animal control, standalone public health, building permits) reflect real, honestly-flagged gaps typical of a small rural North Texas 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 Knox County County
Knox County is north Texas’s Brazos River headwaters and Rolling Plains cotton county – the upper Salt Fork of the Brazos and the cotton and cattle farming landscape define a small community where Benjamin serves the surrounding agricultural families in the remote Rolling Plains near the Oklahoma border.
Benjamin (the county seat, population ~260) is Knox County’s governmental hub, a tiny north Texas Rolling Plains community on TX-6 whose cotton and cattle economy and courthouse anchor its identity.
All Services
Browse every category and topic available for this county.
Knox County Appraisal District at 100 W. Cedar Street, Benjamin, TX 79505, phone 940-454-3764. TX appraised at 100% market value.
Courts & Legal
Knox County District Court at 100 W. Cedar Street, Benjamin, TX 79505, phone 940-454-2441, handles probate.
Marriage & Vital Records
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
COUNTY CLERK
300 South 3rd St, Benjamin, TX 79505
(940) 459-2277
DISTRICT CLERK
300 South 3rd St, Benjamin, TX 79505
(940) 459-2277
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Knox County District and County Clerk’s Office, Benjamin (probate/estate case files – see Probate section above).
Local societies
No dedicated Knox 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, Knox County PO Box 196, Benjamin, TX 79505 (940) 459-2441
Knox County was created in 1858, organized in 1886, named for Henry Knox, in North Texas, seated in Benjamin (largest city Munday) – one of the least-populated county seats in Texas. Knox 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 Knox, sometimes assisted by district courts). In Knox 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 Knox 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 Knox 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 3rd St, Benjamin, TX 79505
(940) 459-2321
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
ELECTIONS
300 South 3rd St, Benjamin, TX 79505
(940) 459-2277
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
Health Department
300 South 3rd St, Benjamin, TX 79505
(940) 459-2277
HHSC Office
300 South 3rd St, Benjamin, TX 79505
(940) 459-2277
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: Benjamin
Population: 3,400
Public Records
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