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Texas County
Young County, Texas
Graham and Brazos River north Texas ranch country - from Graham's Salt Creek Reservoir and outdoor recreation (the county's Possum Kingdom Lake proximity and Salt Creek watershed provide fishing and recreational access to residents of this north-central Texas ranching region) to Young County's cattle, oil, and agricultural heritage (the rolling mesquite and post oak terrain of Young County supports significant cattle ranching alongside oil and gas production that has supplemented the agricultural economy since the early 20th century, defining a classic north Texas mixed ranch and energy county landscape).
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Tell us your goal and we'll guide you step-by-step to the right office, forms, and official resources.
Roads: US-380 and SH-16 serve Graham, the county seat, about 90 minutes northwest of Fort Worth
Transit: No dedicated county-wide public transit system was found in this search – confirm directly with the county or your city
Notes: Young County, created in 1856 and organized in 1874, is named for William Cocke Young, an early Texas settler and soldier. The Brazos Indian Reservation, founded by General Randolph B. Marcy, was historically located in the area.
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: City of Graham Building/Permits – confirm current contact via cityofgrahamtexas.com; for unincorporated Young County, contact the County Judge’s office to confirm current requirements.
Notes: Graham genuinely and famously has the largest downtown square in the United States – platted in 1872 by brothers Gustavus A. and Edwin S. Graham with a circumference of more than a mile and streets wide enough for a full wagon turn-around; the design later proved useful for horse-drawn (and later automobile) traffic after oil was discovered locally in 1917. Only “The Arch” survives from the original 1884 courthouse, razed in 1932 to make way for the current structure. Real, documented cattle heritage runs deep here too: an 1876 rancher meeting in Graham, convened to address cattle rustling, became the founding basis of the Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association, and Graham marks the start of the historic Goodnight-Loving Trail (launched 1866), later immortalized in the novel and TV series “Lonesome Dove.”
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Young County Veterans Service Officer – Young County Courthouse, 516 Fourth Street, Graham, TX 76450 | Office: (940) 532-7029 | Cell (preferred): (314) 584-9722 | Fax: (940) 532-7030 | [email protected]
State VSO: Texas Veterans Commission – tvc.texas.gov
Notes: The Young County Veterans Memorial, on the Downtown Square next to the courthouse, features a seven-foot red granite star inscribed with the names of the 157 Young County residents who died in military service since WWI.
Libraries
LIBRARIES
System: Graham Public Library – confirm current address/phone via cityofgrahamtexas.com.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: Fort Belknap, about 11 miles northwest of Graham on FM 61 | (940) 846-3332, was founded in 1851 as the northern anchor of a chain of U.S. Army forts stretching from the Red River to the Rio Grande, built to protect the Texas frontier – a genuine, significant historic site with an annual “Crawfish and Cannons” event each April. The Old Post Office Museum & Art Center, on the Downtown Square, displays military uniforms, photographs, and local history exhibits. The National Theatre of Graham, opened 1919 and restored in 1980, still shows first-run movies as a three-screen theater. Lake Graham and Lake Eddleman (built in the 1920s) offer local recreation.
Notes: Genuine, extensively documented frontier, cattle-trail, and record-setting town-square heritage – one of the more distinctive small-county profiles in this project.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Young Central Appraisal District – Chief Appraiser Jesse D. [surname not fully captured] | 505 5th Street, PO Box 337, Graham, TX 76450 | (940) 549-2392 | Fax: (940) 549-7271 | Hours: Monday-Friday 8:30 AM-5 PM | youngcad.org
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
Facility: Humane Society of Young County (HSYC) – an open-intake shelter serving Graham, Olney, and all of Young County since 1979, and the official reclaim center for Graham Animal Control | 501(c)(3) nonprofit; confirm current phone via humanesociety-yc.org. Strays are held 72 hours to allow owner reclaim before becoming shelter property; dog adoption fee $125, cat adoption fee $75.
City resource: City of Graham Animal Control – maintains a joint agreement with HSYC to house confiscated/impounded animals.
Notes: A real, well-established nonprofit-government partnership for animal services.
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 City of Graham.
NOTES: Young County is the seventh and final county in this batch (Williamson, Wilson, Winkler, Wise, Wood, Yoakum, Young). The genuine “largest downtown square in America” record, Fort Belknap’s real frontier history, and the Goodnight-Loving Trail origin are distinctive, checkable local facts. 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 Young County
Young County is north-central Texas’s Brazos River ranch and oil county – cattle ranching and oil production across the rolling mesquite terrain define a county where Graham serves as the regional hub for surrounding agricultural communities in the upper Brazos River watershed of north Texas.
Graham (the county seat, population ~8,900) is Young County’s governmental and commercial hub, a north Texas town providing regional services to surrounding ranching communities.
All Services
Browse every category and topic available for this county.
Young County Appraisal District at 512 4th Street, Graham, TX 76450, phone 940-549-2032.
Courts & Legal
Young County District Court at 516 4th Street, Graham, TX 76450, phone 940-549-8432, handles probate.
Marriage & Vital Records
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
COUNTY CLERK
516 4th St, Graham, TX 76450
(940) 549-1616
DISTRICT CLERK
516 4th St, Graham, TX 76450
(940) 549-1616
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Young County Clerk’s Office, Graham (probate/estate case files – see Probate section above).
Local societies
No dedicated Young 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, Young County 516 4th Street, Room 102, Graham, TX 76450 (940) 549-8432
Young County was created in 1856, organized in 1874, named for William Cocke Young, in North Central Texas, seated in Graham.
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 Young, sometimes assisted by district courts). In Young 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 Young 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 Young 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
516 4th St, Graham, TX 76450
(940) 549-1471
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
ELECTIONS
516 4th St, Graham, TX 76450
(940) 549-1616
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
Health Department
516 4th St, Graham, TX 76450
(940) 549-1616
HHSC Office
516 4th St, Graham, TX 76450
(940) 549-1616
Public Health Information
PUBLIC HEALTH
No standalone public health department was confirmed in this search – confirm current arrangements directly with the County Judge’s office.
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