Carroll County, Tennessee Genealogy

United States   Tennessee    Carroll County





West Tennessee county established in 1821.

County Courthouse


Carroll County Courthouse 625 High Street Huntingdon, Tennessee 38344 Phone: 731-986-1960

Carroll County Clerk Marriage and Probate records 625 High Street Suite 103 Hungtingdon, TN 38344 Phone: 731-986-1960

Carroll County Register of Deeds Land records 625 High Street Suite 104 Huntingdon, TN 38344 Phone: 731-986-1952

Carroll County Clerk of Circuit Court Court records 625 High Street Huntingdon, TN 38344 Phone: 731-986-3031

Hours: Monday - Thursday 8 am - 4 pm Friday 8 am - 5 pm

History
The county is named after six-term Tennessee Governor William Carroll (1788-1844).

Parent County
1821--Carroll County was created 7 November 1821 from Chickasaw Indian Lands. County seat: Huntingdon

Record Loss
1931 -- Courthouse burned and many records were damaged.

For further information on researching in burned counties, see the following:


 * Burned Counties Research in FamilySearch Wiki
 * Michael John Neill, Burned Counties in Family History Circle

Neighboring Counties

 * Benton
 * Decatur
 * Gibson
 * Henderson
 * Henry
 * Madison
 * Weakley

Research Guides

 * Genealogical "Fact Sheets" About Tennessee Counties: Carroll County, courtesy: Tennessee State Library and Archives. (Identifies published county histories, published local records, census records, newspapers and local records on microfilm, and select manuscripts.)

Cemeteries
For a list of Carroll county cemeteries, click here.

Census
1820, 1830, 1840, 1850, 1860, 1870, 1880, 1900, 1910, 1920, and 1930 federal population censuses of Carroll County are available online. For tips on accessing census records online, see Tennessee Census. If you're having trouble finding your ancestors in online indexes, try checking printed indexes. Created by local experts, these indexes are often more accurate than those available online.

1890 - Lost, but substitutes are available:
 * Reed, Sue S. Enumeration of Male Inhabitants of Twenty-one Years of Age and Upward, Citizens of Tennessee, January 1, 1891, as Provided for by an Act of General Assembly of Tennessee, Passed January 15, 1891, and Approved January 22, 1891. 8 vols. Houston, Texas: S.S. Reed, 1989. FHL US/CAN Book 976.8 X2r v. 1 1891. [Carroll County is included in Vol. 1.]
 * Sistler, Byron H. and Barbara Sistler. 1890 Civil War Veterans Census, Tennessee. Evanston, Ill.: Byron Sister and Associates, 1978. FHL US/CAN Book 976.8 X2s 1890.

Family Histories
It is anticipated that this bibliography will eventually identify all known family histories published about residents of this county. Use this list to:


 * Locate publications about direct ancestors
 * Find the most updated accounts of an ancestor's family
 * Identify publications, to quote Elizabeth Shown Mills, about an ancestor's "FAN Club" [Friends, Associates, and Neighbors]

General

Bibliography


 * [Clark] Gilbert, Thomas Graves. Francis Clark of Louisa County, Virginia: and His Descendants in Carroll County, Tennessee: Family Members of Michael Clark of England and Barbados and His Son Francis Clark of Louisa County, Virginia, the Migration of His Sons to Anson County, North Carolina and Descendants to Henry Weakley and Carroll Counties of Tennessee. Baltimore, Md.: Gateway Press, 2004. FHL FAM HIST Book 929.273 C547gt.
 * [Fox] Fox, Ezelle. The Story of William Fox. Dumas, TX: E. Fox, 1954. Available at FHL US/CAN Fiche 6018326. Digital version available at Heritage Quest Online ($).

Law and Legislation

 * Tennessee State Library and Archives, Acts of Tennessee 1796-1850: Index to Names. January 25, 2005. [In addition to creating new laws, legislative acts were often required to obtain a divorce, grant legitimacy to a child, or for appointments to or grant payments for public service.] The Tennessee State Library and Archives has created an index to names that appear in these acts covering the years 1796 to 1850. To read more about this valuable resource Click here. The searchable index is available at The Tennessee State Library and Archives; another version is available at World Vital Records.

Local Histories

 * Smith, H. K. Some Encounters with General Forrest. McKenzie, Tenn.?: unknown, 1959. Available at Heritage Quest Online ($).

Occupations

 * Miller, Alan N. West Tennessee's Forgotten Children: Apprentices from 1821 to 1889. Baltimore, Md.: Printed for Clearfield Company, Inc., by Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 2006. FHL US/CAN 976.8 U2man. Purchase at Genealogical.com. [Includes Carroll County.]

Periodicals
Tap into the minds of local experts. Editors of genealogical periodicals publish unique sources that researchers who are new to their area would not likely discover. This type of material may be found in local, regional, or statewide genealogical society journals. The following periodicals cover this county:

Ansearchin' News

Several genealogical articles with abstracts of records of Carroll County, Tennessee have been published in Ansearchin' News, the quarterly magazine of the Tennessee Genealogical Society. To view a list of these articles, visit their county index. To read digitized versions of the first 36 years of articles (Vols. 1-36), browse their archive or conduct a surname search. The Family History Library has a complete collection of the Ansearchin' News quarterly FHL US/CAN Book 976.8 B2a.

Family Findings

Several genealogical articles with abstracts of Carroll County, Tennessee records have been published in Family Findings, the quarterly of the Mid-West Tennessee Genealogical Society (42+ vols.). The Family History Library has most issues of this quarterly FHL US/CAN 976.8 B2f.

Tables of contents for some volumes are available online, courtesy: TNGenWeb Project:


 * Volumes 1-10 (1969-1978)
 * Volumes 11-20 (1979-1988)
 * Volumes 21-24 (1989-1992)
 * Volumes 32-35 (2000-2003)

Many articles from this publication have been reproduced on the TNGenWeb Project website, try this specialized Google search.

West Tennessee Historical Society Papers

Family History Library has Volumes 1 - 16 and 30 FHL US/CAN Book 976.81 B5w. The West Tennessee Historical Society Papers are indexed in PERiodical Source Index (PERSI) To view Table of Contents and complete articles from 1947 - 2005 see Shelby County Register of Deeds

Prisons
Learn if your Carroll County ancestors went to prison!


 * Inmates of the Tennessee State Penitentiary 1831-1850, free index available online, courtesy: Tennessee State Library and Archives.
 * Inmates of the Tennessee State Penitentiary 1851-1870, free index available online, courtesy: Tennessee State Library and Archives.

Probate
The organization Strictly By Name provides free online indexes to early Carroll County probate records. They offer a research service to photocopy and transcribe microfilm copies of the original documents for a small fee. Available indexes:
 * 1) Will Book A: 1822-1865
 * 2) Will Book B: 1865-1904


 * Carroll County Will Books Vol. 1-Sept 1822-Nov 1852. (Mayfield, KY?: Simmons Historical Publications, s.d.). Digital version available at World Vital Records ($). Available for purchase at Simmons Historical Publications.
 * Carroll County Will Books Vol. 2-Dec 1852-Dec 1862. (Mayfield, KY?: Simmons Historical Publications, s.d.). Digital version available at World Vital Records ($). Available for purchase at Simmons Historical Publications.

Taxation
The original Carroll County Tax Books 1848-1850, 1871, 1902 are held at the County Courthouse. In 1976, the Tennessee State Library and Archives microfilmed these records. A copy of their film is also available at the Family History Library: FHL US/CAN Film 1008616.

The following Carroll County tax records have been abstracted:


 * [1821-1826] Historical Records Project. Minutes, Tax Records, Etc., 1821-1826, Carroll County, Tennessee. Typescript, Tennessee State Library, Nashville, Tenn. Microfilmed in 1939. FHL US/CAN Film 24609 Item 1.
 * [1836] "Carroll County, Tennessee - 1836 Map of Civil Districts" and "Carroll County, Tennessee 1836 Tax List," Ansearchin' News, Vol. 39, No. 1 (Spring 1992):14-20; Vol. 39, No. 2 (Summer 1992):69-74. For FHL and online access, as well as indexes, see Periodicals.
 * [1848] "1849 Land Sales Held in 3 West Tennessee Counties for Unpaid Taxes," [1848 taxpayers in Decatur, Carroll, and Henderson counties], Ansearchin' News, Vol. 44, No. 4 (Winter 1997):12. For FHL and online access, as well as indexes, see Periodicals.

Vital Records
Death


 * Hays, Tony. West Tennessee Death Records [ca. 1823-1852]. 2 vols. n.p.: Kitchen Table Press, 1987. FHL FAM HIST Book 976.8 V2ht v. 1-2. [Carroll County is included in Vol. 1]

For deaths of Methodists in Carroll County between the 1830s and the 1920s, try:


 * Smith, Jonathan K.T. Genealogical Abstracts from Reported Deaths, the Nashville Christian Advocate. [1847-1914] 10 vols. [Jackson, Tenn.]: J.K.T. Smith, 1997-2003. FHL US/CAN Books 976.855/N1 V48s 1847-1851 ff; digital versions at David Donahue Memorial: Tennessee Records Repository. [Website expands upon the publications and includes deaths from the 1830s, 1840s, 1910s and 1920s.]

Web Sites

 * Carroll County, TN Family History and Genealogy Message Board (Ancestry)
 * Carroll County, TN Genealogy Forum (GenForum)
 * Carroll County, TNGenWeb (USGenWeb)
 * Family History Library Catalog (FamilySearch)
 * RootsWeb Mailing List: TNCARROL-L (Carroll County, Tennessee List)
 * RootsWeb Mailing List: WEST-TNCHAT-L (West Tennessee Chat List)
 * RootsWeb Mailing List: WESTTN-L (West Tennessee List)