Finding Lost Heirs

It is not uncommon for mineral and/or royalty rights to be severed  from the surface. This happens when mineral or royalty rights are  conveyed in a mineral or royalty deed, or reserved in a deed conveying  the surface. These conveyances or reservations can include all or any  part of the mineral or royalty rights. Since there is no obligation on  the part of the owners of the severed, non-producing mineral or royalty  interests to pay property taxes, these rights will continue to be owned  by the original owner and his or her heirs down through the generations.  Very often, the parties inheriting these severed mineral and royalty  interests have no idea they have inherited them. Also, when a mineral or  royalty interest passes down through several generations of heirs, it  is not uncommon to begin with one owner and end up with fifty or more.

In cases like this, your task as a petroleum landman/title  researcher is threefold: First: Plug the hole in the chain of title;  Second: Locate the present heirs; and Third: Obtain an oil and gas lease  or get the signature of the present heirs on other necessary documents.  This article will deal with the first and second of these tasks.

Sometimes, a period of fifty years or even longer can take place between the occurrence of the severance and the leasing or development of the oil and gas rights. When that happens, the task of identifying and locating the heirs of the mineral or royalty interest can be very involved. I have gone through the process of finding these lost heirs quite a few times, including one large project I recently completed. This recent project started with about thirty people owning a severed royalty interest in the mid-1960s. The affected lands were included in a producing unit, and the operator asked me to help figure out how to distribute the revenue to the proper parties. In this case, not one of the more than one hundred individual heirs had any idea they had  inherited this royalty interest until I called them

Back in the old days… Before the Internet, that is…. It was common practice when confronted with this seemingly insurmountable task of identifying and locating these heirs, to file a petition with the Court setting out the facts regarding the impossibility of finding these lost heirs, and asking the court to appoint a Receiver. The court-appointed Receiver would then sign the oil and gas lease and hold all funds that accrued to the unknown mineral or royalty interest owners. After a period of time, if nobody showed up to claim them, the Receiver would turn the funds over to the state as required by statute. Also as required by statute, the state would then hold the funds for another period of time in the Unclaimed Property fund. Then, after another period of time as per statute, if nobody came to make a claim, the funds would become the property of the state. At this point, the original heirs would no longer have a legal claim to this money. They would, however, still own the mineral or royalty interest itself.

These days though, with the help of the Internet, we can find almost anybody. Accordingly, these receivership proceedings have become rare occurrences. Operators have come to understand the danger of “tipping  their hand” to potential competitors who might be more skilled at locating lost heirs. They know that if someone else finds the missing heirs after the original petition is filed, but before a receiver is appointed, the receivership proceeding would be voided, and the original, filers of the petition could end up with a competitor-owned  lease in the middle of their lease block.

Until the discovery at Spindletop in 1901, there was very little oil  and gas being produced anywhere outside of Pennsylvania and neighboring  Ohio. Accordingly, mineral severances prior to that time are very rare.  When researching title, we sometimes see a lot of mineral severances in  certain areas at times when exploration and production was occurring  there. During the 1920’s, the driving force for these severances was the  presence of rich individuals looking for smart places to invest their wealth. Then, during the Great Depression era of the 1930’s, many farmers and ranchers sold all or a part of their mineral and/or royalty  rights in an attempt to stave off foreclosure on to their lands. Of course, mineral and royalty severances have occurred at other times, and  for other reasons, as well. 

The beginning point for identifying and locating lost heirs is the last point in time when the owner of the severed mineral or royalty interest appeared of record in the county where the property is located. If this point in time happens to be in the 1920s, or even earlier, then the task can be  pretty daunting. However, since it is likely that the first owner  survived for ten to even fifty or more years after the date of his or  her acquisition, we don’t usually have to research heirship back all the  way to the early 1900’s. This fact, of course, will need to be determined by your after-courthouse research. When doing your courthouse research, be sure to make a note of any other information you can glean there about the owner in question. For instance, was your owner a resident of the county where the property was located? If so, did you search the probate and the death records there? Do the records tell you where he or she resided? Did your owner acquire a lot of other lands or mineral or royalty rights, or other interests in that county? Does the record title tell you whether he or she had any relatives or partners? If you have an easy time researching the heirs to this owner, then these questions and their answers will be superfluous. If not, then the answers to these questions might become very important. 

Usually, the first step in the research process is to identify the date and the place of death of the severed mineral or royalty owner. Again, it is the existence of the World Wide Web that dramatically shortened the time and expense involved in the accomplishment of this  task. I subscribe to an online service for genealogists called Ancestry.com. This site contains thousands of searchable databases, most of which we will never need, but a few of which are indispensable. For instance, if the individual you are chasing died subsequent to 1961, there is a good chance you can find a record of his or her death on the  Death Master File, which is a computer database assembled by the Social  Security Administration. This well-known and widely utilized database is more commonly known as the Social Security Death Index, or simply the  SSDI. The SSDI does have some death records from before 1962, but they are not as comprehensive. Ancestry.com also has databases for death records from most of the states.  For Texas, the database goes back to 1903. There have been several times when I entered a name into the  search engine for the database I was using on Ancestry.com, got a hit,  called the library in the town where the decedent resided, and had an  obituary emailed to me, all within an hour of beginning the search! 

And that is another big, post-Internet development. Genealogical research has become such a popular hobby that many libraries around the country have received so many inquiries they have become super-organized with their obituary records. Many libraries have even assembled their own indexes of obituaries for people who died in their cities or counties. When you call the library, just tell the person who answers the phone that you are would like some help locating an obituary. Believe me, they will know what to do with your call. Most libraries will provide an obituary as a public service for no charge. Granted, I  have called some libraries that tell me they are not set up to look up obits.  And a few look at the amount of work they are providing, and ask  you to send a written request along with a check before they will do  the search. Usually, though, they do not ask for more than $10, which is very reasonable considering the time the librarian will spend looking through the microfilm records of old newspapers in an effort to find the obituary for you. You will need to provide them with a name, a date of death, or at least the month and year of death. If they find the obituary, they will usually scan and email it, although I have had some tell me they can only send the copy by fax or regular mail. 

Many times, I have found a wealth of heirship information including birth and death dates, names of parents, siblings, spouses, and children on popular genealogical sites like Find A Grave and Family Tree Maker. These sites come with names of family members hyper texted so you can click on them and be directed to another page dedicated to that individual. 

On Ancestry.com, when you find a record for the person you are researching, any other records they have linked to that person will also be shown to you. Sometimes, copies of Death Certificates or other very pertinent and valuable info will just pop up there for you. As stated earlier, Ancestry.com has thousands of searchable databases on its website. With so much data available, your task as a researcher is to refine your search so that you can hone in on the information you are seeking. As you move along in your research process, every little piece of information you are able to assemble increases your chances of actually finding the date and place of death of your person in question, and ultimately, of identifying their heirs. 

When you reach the point in your research when you have enough information that allows you to find a still-living relative you can speak with, you will probably want to reach out to them right away. A living relative will be able to answer many of the questions you will have. And, if they cannot provide you with all of the answers, just take whatever information they can provide and keep digging. In cases like this, you will hopefully be able to speak later with more knowledgeable relatives. When you have answers for all of your questions, or when you realize you have done everything possible to answer them, you will be finished with the genealogical portion of your research. 

By the way… when you are researching a lost heir, whether dead or  alive, don’t forget to try a Google search. You will be amazed sometimes  as to how easy this research can sometimes be in the Age of the  Internet. 

One final tip… When you get stuck. Spend some time reviewing what you do know… These types of research projects can often be very complex. Certainly, the path to completion is rarely straightforward. I often find that when I do this, something occurs to me to try that I hadn’t thought of before. Often, it proves to be the key to completing the research. For instance, one thing I have tried with success when nothing else seems to work is to call funeral homes. Of course, this should only be used when you have a name and a  date and place of death, and you are trying to ascertain the next of kin.

As stated in the beginning of this piece,  the first task is to plug the hole in the chain of title. Identifying all of the heirs is the first part of this first task. After identifying all of the heirs, you will need to identify all the heirs in the chain who have died, and then ascertain whether they died testate or intestate. Usually, I ask one of the living heirs whether or not their parent or grandparent left a will. And usually, I also call the county clerk or probate department of the county in which the person died and ask if they can search for a probate. Often, they will do this search of their probate records for you while you are waiting on the phone. Sometimes however, they want a written request along with a check before they will search for the probate. If the party you are researching died  testate, then you will need to obtain certified copies of their probates and file them of record in the county where the property you are researching is located. If they died intestate, you will need to  prepare an Affidavit of Heirship, and have it signed by a knowledgeable party so you can record it. When you have recorded certified copies of probates or filed heirship affidavits for all of the heirs in your chain of title who have died, you will have successfully plugged the hole in  your chain of title. 

When preparing your Affidavit of Heirship, be sure you are familiar with the Descent and  Distribution Statute that governs heirship for intestate deaths in  Texas. The affidavit needs to contain all of the information necessary for an attorney or a title researcher to determine the identity of the heirs. For instance, where and when did the person die? Was he or she married, widowed, divorced, or single at the time of his or her death? Did the decedent have any children? If so, they need to be named in the affidavit. If any are younger than 18, then that fact should be noted. And, if any of the children are deceased, the same questions need to be answered for them, either in the same affidavit, or in another one. Depending upon the answers to these questions, it might also be necessary to list the names of parents and siblings. But generally, this is only done if they will be inheriting. Again, be familiar with the statute so that you get all of the pertinent info into the affidavit.

The second task is to locate all of the living heirs. Ideally, you will only need to locate one of them, and that person will be able to put you in touch with the others. However, in my experience, there are a lot of cousins and even a lot of brothers and sisters who have lost  contact with each other. Whatever the case, remember… Knowledge is power. Just take whatever information you can get, and make the most of it.

Back in the old “dial-up” Internet days, it used to be a lot easier to find people. Back then, everyone still had landlines in their homes, and most were listed. Also, the online directories were free, extremely comprehensive, and easy to use. Now  though, many if not most people don’t even have landlines. Or, if they do, most are answered only by their voice mail or their fax machines. And the online directories are no longer free either… At least the ones that have any useful information are not free. And worse, the only directories available for cell phones are the hit-or-miss sites that you must pay to use, which I have found to be mostly a waste of time and money. 

After floundering around for weeks trying to understand what was available, and how much I was going to have to pay, I finally settled on a directory service called Spokeo. It’s pretty good, and I only have to pay $5 per month for my  subscription. It doesn’t completely solve the problem of everyone having cell phones, and nobody having landlines in their homes, but it does provide email addresses for many of the parties I search. Also, the site does give physical and/or P. O. Box addresses, and it often provides ages and even birthdays, which helps a lot when you are trying to ascertain whether or not you have found the actual person you are attempting to locate. 

Some landmen have told me they use Facebook to locate people. Unfortunately, I am staying out of the social network scene, so using Facebook is not an option for me.  If you are one who enjoys social networking, then maybe you can make work for you. 

If you get stuck, and absolutely cannot locate someone, keep in mind that you can always hire a private investigator. PI’s have access to the law enforcement  databases, which has capabilities of finding people way beyond Spokeo, or any other directory available to the general public. If you do a lot of this type of work, it might be a good idea to establish a relationship with a private investigator. I went this route one-time several years ago and was very pleased and impressed with the results.

​Good luck and happy hunting!