Sherman County Death Index
Sherman County death records are maintained by the County Clerk in Stratford and are part of the Texas statewide death index that dates from 1903. If you need to find a death record or request a certified death certificate for someone who died in Sherman County, the county clerk's office is the local source for certified copies and record searches.
Sherman County Overview
Sherman County Clerk and Death Certificates
The Sherman County Clerk in Stratford handles vital records for the county. The office is at the Sherman County Courthouse, 701 N. 3rd Street, Stratford, TX 79084. You can reach the clerk at (806) 366-2371. The office is open Monday through Friday during courthouse hours. The clerk can search the death index by name and date, and issue certified copies when records are on file.
Sherman County is a small county in the Texas Panhandle, bordered by Oklahoma and New Mexico. Stratford is the only city and the county seat. The county is one of the least populated in Texas. That means the annual number of death records is very small, but all of them are part of the Texas statewide death index. Agriculture, particularly wheat and grain sorghum, has been the backbone of the county's economy, and its records reflect that rural history going back over a century.
The fee for a certified copy is $21.00 for the first copy and $4.00 for each additional copy of the same record ordered at the same time. Bring valid photo ID. Mail requests need a copy of your ID and the fee as a check or money order payable to the Sherman County Clerk. No refund is given if a search is done and no record is found.
Note: For Sherman County residents who needed medical care in Dallam or Moore counties, deaths that occurred there would be registered in those counties, not Sherman.
The Texas DSHS Vital Statistics office sets the statewide rules on fees, access, and ID requirements that Sherman County follows when processing death certificate requests.
Sherman County death record requests at the local clerk and through DSHS in Austin both follow the same state standards.
How to Search Sherman County Death Records
In person at the Sherman County Courthouse in Stratford is the fastest method. Bring your photo ID and $21.00. The clerk can search by name and date and issue a certified copy the same day if available.
For mail requests, use the VS-142 Death Certificate Application. Include a copy of your photo ID and a check or money order payable to the Sherman County Clerk. Send to 701 N. 3rd Street, Stratford, TX 79084. Allow several business days after the office receives your packet.
Online ordering through txapps.texas.gov goes through DSHS for $20.00 per copy. State orders take 20 to 25 business days. Free index searches are available at FamilySearch and Ancestry for Texas deaths from 1903 to 2000.
Who Can Access Sherman County Death Records
Under Texas Government Code Section 552.115, death records are restricted for 25 years from the death date. Only an immediate family member can get a certified copy during that window. That means a spouse, parent, child, sibling, or grandparent. Legal representatives with documentation can also request. After 25 years, the record is public.
All requesters must show valid government-issued photo ID. The DSHS acceptable ID list outlines what forms are accepted. Providing false information to get a death certificate is a felony under Texas Health and Safety Code Chapter 195, with penalties including prison time and fines up to $10,000.
Historical Death Records in Sherman County
Sherman County death records go back to 1903 and document over a century of families from the Texas Panhandle. The county was settled largely in the late 19th and early 20th centuries as part of the great plains agricultural expansion. Early records may be sparse due to low population and limited registration compliance. Free indexes on FamilySearch and Ancestry cover Texas deaths through 2000 and are a useful first step.
The Texas State Library and Archives Commission holds the statewide death index through 1973. The Library of Congress Texas vital records guide explains how the death index is structured by time period. For very early Sherman County records, there may be years with no registered deaths simply because the county was so sparsely settled in the early 1900s.
The DSHS Order Records Locally page includes Sherman County in the directory of Texas county offices where you can get a certified death certificate without ordering through the state.
You can get a certified Sherman County death certificate from the Stratford clerk directly without going through the DSHS office in Austin.
Cities in Sherman County
Sherman County's only incorporated city is Stratford. All death records for events in the county go through the Sherman County Clerk. No cities in this county meet the qualifying population threshold for a dedicated city page on this site.
Nearby Counties
These counties border Sherman County in the Texas Panhandle. If you are not sure which county a death was registered in, check where the death occurred.