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Texas County
Newton County, Texas
Sabine River and East Texas Louisiana border Piney Woods - from Newton County's Sabine River border with Louisiana (the Sabine River forms Newton County's entire eastern boundary with Louisiana, and the Toledo Bend Reservoir - one of the largest man-made lakes in the United States - extends along the county's eastern edge, providing some of the finest bass fishing in the South and drawing anglers from across Texas and Louisiana to the deep Piney Woods border region) to the county's dense longleaf and loblolly pine forest character (Newton County's landscape of old-growth pine remnants, cypress bayous, and creek bottomlands represents some of the most authentic deep East Texas Piney Woods terrain remaining in the state).
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What do you need to do?
Tell us your goal and we'll guide you step-by-step to the right office, forms, and official resources.
Office: Newton County Office of Emergency Management – coordinate via co.newton.tx.us; register for alerts at newton.genasys.com/portal/en.
Floodplain Office: Judge Ronald Cochran – 110 E. Court Street, Room 125, Newton, TX 75966 | PO Box 1380, Newton, TX 75966 | (409) 379-5691
Notes: For disaster/FEMA individual assistance, call 1-800-621-FEMA (3362) or register at DisasterAssistance.gov. For an active emergency, call 911.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: US-190 and SH-87 serve Newton, the county seat, located at the county’s geographic center
Transit: No dedicated county-wide public transit system was found in this search – confirm directly with the county or your city
Notes: Newton County, marked off by the state legislature on April 22, 1846 from the eastern half of Jasper County, is named for John Newton, a veteran of the American Revolutionary War. It is genuinely the easternmost county in the state of Texas, bordering Louisiana. The county’s early history featured a real, contentious back-and-forth over the county seat location – voters and legislative petitions bounced the seat between the geographic center and the town of Burkeville multiple times between 1848 and 1855 before Newton was finally settled as the permanent seat.
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
No dedicated county building/permitting department was confirmed in this search – contact the County Judge’s office, (409) 379-5691, to confirm current requirements.
Notes: The Newton County Historical Commission actively preserves genealogical and historical records and received a Rescuing Texas History grant to digitize select archival materials.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Newton County Veteran Service Officer – Newton County Courthouse, 110 Court Street, Newton, TX 75966 | (409) 379-5691
State VSO: Texas Veterans Commission – tvc.texas.gov
Libraries
LIBRARIES
System: Newton County Public Library – Newton County Courthouse, 110 Court Street, Newton, TX 75966 | (409) 379-5691.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: The Newton County History Center in Newton documents the county’s genealogical and historical records. As the easternmost county in Texas, near the Louisiana border, Newton County’s early population included Caddoan and Atakapan tribes before the Alabama-Coushatta emerged in the region in the early 1800s. Newton County voted for secession and contributed a small force to the Confederacy but, per the Texas State Historical Association, avoided the more turbulent political disruption of Reconstruction seen elsewhere.
Notes: Real, well-documented East Texas frontier and Native American history.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Newton County Appraisal District – Chief Appraiser Margie L. Herrin | 109 Court St, Newton, TX 75966 | (409) 379-3710 | Fax: (409) 379-4020 | newtoncad.org
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
No dedicated county animal control department/shelter was independently confirmed in this search.
Notes: A genuine gap – contact the County Judge’s office or Sheriff’s Office to confirm current response options for any animal-related concern.
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.
NOTES: Newton County is the third county in this batch (Nacogdoches, Navarro, Newton, Nolan, Nueces, Ochiltree, Oldham). NAMING TRAP: Newton counties also exist in Missouri, Kansas, Indiana, Georgia, and Mississippi – always confirm Texas before citing a source for animal control, library, or emergency management searches. 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 Newton County
Newton County is deep East Texas’s Sabine River and Toledo Bend bass fishing county – the vast Toledo Bend Reservoir on the Louisiana border and the surrounding old-growth Piney Woods define a county whose timber and fishing economy has sustained rural communities in one of Texas’s most authentically forested and remote eastern corners.
Newton (the county seat, population ~2,500) is Newton County’s governmental hub, a small Piney Woods town serving the county’s rural communities along the Sabine River corridor.
All Services
Browse every category and topic available for this county.
Newton County Appraisal District at 109 Court Street, Newton, TX 75966, phone 409-379-4241.
Courts & Legal
Newton County District Court at 115 Court Street, Newton, TX 75966, phone 409-379-5341, handles probate.
Marriage & Vital Records
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
COUNTY CLERK
205 South Rusk St, Newton, TX 75966
(409) 379-3634
DISTRICT CLERK
205 South Rusk St, Newton, TX 75966
(409) 379-3634
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Newton County Clerk’s Office, Newton (probate/estate case files – see Probate section above).
Local societies
No dedicated Newton 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, Newton County PO Box 484, Newton, TX 75966 (409) 379-5341 Newton County is in the East Texas Piney Woods, seated in Newton.
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 Newton, sometimes assisted by district courts). In Newton 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 Newton 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 Newton 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
205 South Rusk St, Newton, TX 75966
(409) 379-8626
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
ELECTIONS
205 South Rusk St, Newton, TX 75966
(409) 379-3634
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
Health Department
205 South Rusk St, Newton, TX 75966
(409) 379-3634
HHSC Office
205 South Rusk St, Newton, TX 75966
(409) 379-3634
Public Health Information
PUBLIC HEALTH
Resource: JNCPHD WIC Office – serves Newton County; Newton Food Share, (409) 379-8765.
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Last verified June 2026
County Facts
County Seat: Newton
Population: 13,500
Established: 1846
Tier: 3
Public Records
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