Cleaning out my grandparents home I found a oil/mineral lease contract from the 1950’s. It’s in Marion County. I have no idea where to start, doesn’t feel right to just get rid of it.
See if you can determine a location on the old lease.
In Texas, this would probably be something about an abstract number, block or survey.
With the location, you may be able to check the Marion County courthouse records for a deed with your grandparents names.
There is a an online search available for Marion County, but there are some fees. You could also have a landman search the records for you. You might be an inheritor of these mineral rights. This depends on a lot of things, like how or if these were
directed by your grandparents estate.
Also with the location, you can check on the Texas RRS GIS map to see if there are still active wells in this area.
We have one well that has been going since 1928, so it is possible there is still production going on.
Ask more questions here as needed, as there are many excellent participants in this forum.
The county clerk for Marion County is in Jefferson. Give them a call and they can help. I had the same situation in Marion County
I was contacted by a Landman a short time prior to 2013 re: inherited mineral rights in Marion County, TX. I thought it was a hoax, but on one hand it wasn’t. The Landman was doing their due diligence to determine ALL the heirs from an ancestor who died in 1945 whose two children died without issue (children) by 1963. The heirship went back up the family tree to the lease holders siblings and back down each of the 10 - 11 siblings children/grandchildren and I think you get the picture as to how many people needed to be contacted to determine all the heirs.
I became rather intrigued by it all, was a genealogy researcher, and had previously researched the Oil/Gas/Mineral Industry in Texas as there was a brief moment of consideration in Florida to approve drilling off the coast. If I only knew then what I know now.
Everyone got shafted in my opinion. But, I followed the whole drilling process through the Texas Railroad Commission. FYI–I am not a Landmen nor an attorney, but willing to help.
Ms. Woodroffe as PeteR stated, begin looking for the Legal Description. Usually given after the first paragraph stating who are the lessor and lessee. Some counties have the option to look up those either on their County Clerk website or through a County Tax or County Appraisal District.
If you can’t get down to the Clerk’s office in person, you may also try Texas Land Records Real Property Official Records Search . Follow the Menu from Counties / Marion Grantor/Grantee / Free Search.
This option is limited but they do have some records available for an online search. You may be able to find out if the Lease was released by the company or in what book/page any deeds were filed for property in that county coming into or out of your family. Then you would know what documents to request from the clerk for a further inspection.
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