Houston County, Texas
Sell Mineral Rights in Houston County, Texas
Four different operators permitted wells here through 2025. Woodbine production with deeper potential still being tested.
Producing formations: Woodbine
Where Houston County sits
Both oil and gas. Older oil production with gas underneath it. All twenty-three counties we buy in are shaded; click one to open it.
The history of oil and gas in Houston County
1934: enough to pay off the farm
Houston County's oil history is not about fortunes. It is about a modest discovery arriving at exactly the right moment for people who had run out of options, and about a county that is seeing more drilling activity today than its reputation suggests.
The oldest county in Texas
Houston County was created in 1837, the first county established by the Republic of Texas, and named for Sam Houston. Crockett, the county seat, sits on the Camino Real. This is old country, settled long before anyone thought about what was underneath it.
1934
Oil was discovered in Houston County in 1934, in the depths of the Depression, in a county that was almost entirely cotton and timber.
The county histories record the effect in unusually human terms: the discovery let cash-strapped farmers settle long-standing debts. That is what oil meant here. Not mansions in Dallas, the mortgage paid off, the note at the store cleared, the land kept in the family.
A great many of the mineral interests we see in this county trace directly to families who held on through the thirties because of that money.
Steady, not spectacular
In 1990 alone the county produced 809,916 barrels. That is a small number next to Gregg County's three billion, and it is the honest number. Houston County produces from the Woodbine, the same formation that made the East Texas Field, but on a structure that never delivered anything like the same volumes.
More activity than you would expect
The present is busier than the past. Four different operators permitted wells here through 2025: Maximus Operating (RBM 1, December 2025), Expand Operating (Bobby Yancey 2H, October 2025), Magnetar Operating (Slater 1, September 2025) and Big Creek Operating (Dailey R.S. 9B, January 2025).
The Bobby Yancey 2H is a horizontal well. When somebody drills a horizontal in a county with a vertical-well history, they are testing an idea.
What to know if you own here
- Modest production over ninety years still divides the same way. Expect unprobated estates and heirship affidavits.
- Four operators in twelve months is a real signal. It does not guarantee anything, but it is more interest than this county has seen in a long time.
- Non-producing minerals here are not automatically worthless. If a horizontal test works, the answer changes.
Sources: Handbook of Texas (Texas State Historical Association) county and field entries; American Oil & Gas Historical Society; Texas Almanac; Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas energy research; Railroad Commission of Texas permit and completion records as published through texas-drilling.com and the weekly drilling reports of the Longview News-Journal and Tyler Morning Telegraph. Verified August 2026.
Who is operating in Houston County
These operators have filed permits or completions in Houston County with the Railroad Commission. If your check comes from one of them, we already know the wells.
- Maximus Operating
- Expand Operating
- Magnetar Operating
- Big Creek Operating
What we buy in Houston County
Mineral rights, royalty interests, overriding royalty, non-participating royalty, non-operated working interest, and non-producing minerals. There is no size limit in either direction. We buy a single interest in one unit and we buy whole family positions.
If your piece feels too small to bother with, call anyway. Small interests in the same tract usually belong to relatives, and we would rather work with the whole family at once.
How an offer gets made
You call or fill out the form. We pull the county records, the appraisal district roll and the Railroad Commission production history ourselves. Within three business days you get a specific cash number in writing and a plain explanation of how we got there. If we think you should hold, we say that too. We cover title, recording and closing, and you keep every royalty check until the day we close.
Call or text (936) 289-3438 Or email offers@longleafmineralco.com
Houston County questions
What formations produce in Houston County?
The producing formation we track in Houston County is the Woodbine. In short: both oil and gas. Older oil production with gas underneath it. Ask your operator or check your division order to see which formation your own check comes from.
Who operates wells in Houston County?
Operators that have filed permits or completions in Houston County with the Texas Railroad Commission include Maximus Operating, Expand Operating, Magnetar Operating and Big Creek Operating. If your check comes from one of them, we already know the wells. You can also look up any well yourself in the Railroad Commission's public records.
What should I check before selling minerals in Houston County?
Modest production over ninety years still divides the same way. Expect unprobated estates and heirship affidavits. Four operators in twelve months is a real signal. It does not guarantee anything, but it is more interest than this county has seen in a long time. Non-producing minerals here are not automatically worthless. If a horizontal test works, the answer changes. If any of that is unclear, call or text us and we will look it up with you for free. We also buy in the counties that border Houston County: Anderson County, Cherokee County and Angelina County.
Other counties we buy in
Own minerals next door too? We also buy in the counties that border Houston County: Anderson County, Cherokee County, Angelina County.