Trying to avoid traveling to these counties to research this for myself
Welcome to the forum. Have you tried using www.Texasfile.com first? You may be able to do some of the legwork yourself first online.
Yes, I have. That’s where I found the record that I had questions about.
Well done!
You may be able to find a land man through the AAPL public directory of Certified and Registered land men. (Ladies are also called “Landman”)
https://personify.landman.org/PersonifyEbusiness/Home/AAPL-Public-Directory
Both of those counties have excellent record dates with TexasFile, so going to the counties does not serve a purpose. If you need assistance with the title, a landman will most likely use TexasFile or CourtHouse Direct for their work. The more information you can gather on your own will help to reduce your cost if you retain a landman for title work.