Weakley County, Tennessee Genealogy

United States

Tennessee

Weakley County

Weakley County, Tennessee ancestry, family history, and genealogy research page. Guide to Weakley County (established 1870) genealogy, history, and courthouse sources including birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, wills, deeds and land records, Civil War records, Revolutionary War records, family histories, cemeteries, churches, tax records, newspapers, and obituaries.

Tennessee Online Genealogy Records

Weakley County, Tennessee
Map
Location in the state of Tennessee
Location of Tennessee in the U.S.
Facts
Founded:	June 24, 1870
County Seat	Dresden
Courthouse
Website: www.weakleycountytn.gov
Adopt-a-wiki page This page adopted by: TNGenWeb Project who welcome you to contribute. Adopt a page today

Description

The County was named for Colonel Robert Weakley, a member of the House of Representatives, a speaker of the State Senate, and the man commissioned to treat with the Chickasaw. The County is located in the northwest area of the state.

Weakley County, Tennessee Record Dates

Known Beginning Dates for Major County Records
Birth*	Marriage	Death*	Court	Land	Probate	Census
1908	1840	1908	1794	1826	1828	1810
Statewide registration for births and deaths began in 1914. General compliance by 1927.

County Courthouse

[[Image:

Weakley County Courthouse, Dresden, Tenn. Courtesy: Collection: County Court Houses, Flickr by Jimmy Emerson. Used by permission.

]]

Weakley County Courthouse
1 Courthouse Square #107 PO Box 587
Dresden, TN 38225
Phone: 1-731-364-2285

County Clerk has marriage records from 1840 and probate records from 1828.
Clerk Circuit Court has divorce records.
Register of Deeds has land records.

Weakley County Clerk
Marriage and probate records
116 W. Main St., Room 104
P.O. Box 587
Dresden, TN 38225
Phone: 1-731-364-2285

Weakley County Register of Deeds
Land records
116 W. Main St., Room 102
P.O. Box 45
Dresden, TN 38225
Phone: 1-731-364-3646

Weakley County Circuit Court Clerk
Court records
116 West Main St.
Dresden, TN 38225
Phone: 1-731-364-3455

Hours:
Mon.-Fri. 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m.

History

West Tennessee county.

The county is named after Robert Weakley (1764-1845), Tennessee representative in the House of Representatives and later Tennessee Senator.

Parent County

1823--Weakley County was established 21 October 1823 from Chickasaw Indian Lands, temporarily subdivided as Tennessee surveyor districts 12 and 13. Organized in 1825.
County seat: Dresden

County Pronunciation

1. Hear it spoken (female)
2. Hear it spoken (male)

Boundary Changes

For animated maps illustrating Tennessee county boundary changes, "Rotating Formation Tennessee County Boundary Maps" (1777-1985) may be viewed for free at the MapofUS.org website.

Record Loss

1948 Fire damaged courthouse records.

At the 1948 fire, a large number of chancery and circuit court files were discarded. They passed into the keeping of a private citizen, and in 1995 the files were given to the University of Tennessee at Martin, where they constitute MS 4 and MS 2, respectively. Special Collections. Both collections have since been filmed by the FHL.

• Lack of marriage records: 1825 to 1842
• Lost probate records: 1825 to 1827

For suggestions about research in places that suffered historic record losses, see:

• Burned Counties. By Michael John Neill. Online at: Family History Circle.
• When the Records are Gone. By Arlene Eakle. Online at: Tennessee Genealogy Blog.
• Burned Counties Research in the FamilySearch Research Wiki.

Places/Localities

Populated Places

Cities: Greenfield

Towns: Dresden, Gleason, Martin, Sharon

Other places:

Austin Springs	Gardner	Mount Herman	Ruthville
Beech Grove	Glasgow (hist.)	Mount Pelia	Sandhill
Brundige	Hyndsver	Ore Springs	Sidonia
Crowley Store	Jewell	Palmersville	Staffords Store
Dukedom	Kimery	Pillowville	Terrell
Dunlap (hist.)	Latham	Pisgah	Tumbling
Fancy	Liberty	Ralston	West Union

Neighboring Counties

Carroll Gibson

Graves County, Kentucky Henry

Hickman County, Kentucky Obion

Resources

Getting Started

Use the free Search for Surnames at Mountain Press's website to quickly search a variety of published Weakley County biography, cemetery, history, military, and probate records. To determine which books are being searched, or to search each publication's index individually, click here. You are now equipped with a checklist of books to pull off the shelves at a genealogy library, or a wish list for your personal book collection.

Research Guides

• Genealogical "Fact Sheets" About Tennessee Counties: Weakley County, courtesy: TSLA. (Identifies published county histories, published local records, census records, newspapers and local records on microfilm, and select manuscripts.)

African American

United States African Americans Tennessee African Americans

Biographies

• Family Biographies from The History of Weakley County, Tennessee (1887) published by Goodspeed are available free on the My Genealogy Hound website.
  

Cemeteries

Tombstone Transcriptions Online	Tombstone Transcriptions in Print	List of Cemeteries in the county
Findagrave.com	Family History Library	Findagrave.com
TNGenWeb	WorldCat	BillionGraves
TNGenWeb Archives		Linkpendium
Tombstone Project		TNGravestones
TNGenWeb Cemeteries
BillionGraves
See Tennessee Cemeteries for more information.

Additional Cemetery Resources

• Tennessee Cemeteries - Hometown Locator
• Tennessee Genealogy Trails: A comprehensive list of alphabetized names of cemeteries in Weakley County. A few of the cemeteries in the list are named after various individuals, and some of which are provided with biographies on the individual for whom the cemetery was named.

Census

Historical populations
Census	Pop.	%±
1830	4,797	—
1840	9,870	105.8%
1850	14,608	48.0%
1860	18,216	24.7%
1870	20,755	13.9%
1880	24,538	18.2%
1890	28,955	18.0%
1900	32,546	12.4%
1910	31,929	−1.9%
1920	31,053	−2.7%
1930	29,262	−5.8%
1940	29,498	0.8%
1950	27,962	−5.2%
1960	24,227	−13.4%
1970	28,827	19.0%
1980	32,896	14.1%
1990	31,972	−2.8%
2000	34,895	9.1%
2010	35,021	0.4%
Source: "Wikipedia.org".

1830, 1840, 1850, 1860, 1870, 1880, 1900, 1910, 1920, 1930, and 1940 federal population censuses of Weakley 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 familiar with the area's families, these indexes are often transcribed more accurately than nationwide online indexes.

See Tennessee Population Schedule Indexes: Fiche, Film, or Book for more information about statewide printed indexes.

See Weakley County, Tennessee census assignments, including links to transcribed files. The USGenWeb Census Project^®.

1810 - 1891

• Tennessee, Compiled Census and Census Substitutes Index, 1810-1891 at Ancestry.com — index $

1840 Pensioners

• A Census of Pensioners for Revolutionary or Military Services: With their Names, Ages, and Places of Residence, as Returned by the Marshalls of the Several Judicial Districts, Under the Act for Taking the Sixth Census. 1841; reprint, Baltimore, Md.: Genealogical Publishing, 1967. FHL US/CAN Book 973 X2pc 1840; FHL US/CAN Film 2321. 1841 edition digitized by the U.S. Census Bureau and Google books et. al. See Tennessee, Western District, Weakley County on page 159.

1850

• Porch, Deane Weakley County, Tennessee 1850 census Fort Worth, Texas : Miran Publishers, (197-?). FHL Book 976.824 X2

1870

• Schrupp, MaryCarol Drewry Catron 1870 U.S. census and more, Weakley County, Tennessee : transcribed from Microcopy 593, Vol. 31, Roll 1570, National Archives and Records Service Memphis, Tennessee : Kinfolks Press, c2001 FHL US/CAN book 976.824 X2

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. 2 1891. Weakley County is included in Vol. 3.
• 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.

1891 Male Voters

• 1891 Tennessee Enumeration of Male Voters 1891 at Ancestry.com — index $

Church

Church records include baptisms, marriages and burials, as well as information about family members and clues about family migration.  For additional information about church records, religions, and religious archives in Tennessee, see Tennessee Church Records.

• Weakley County Church Records

- FamilySearch Catalog - Weakley County Church Records

• Church histories tell when a church started in the area, who the early members were, give data about church leaders, etc.

- FamilySearch Catalog - Weakley County Church History

• If the records you need are not through the Family History Library, contact the church(es) in the area where your ancestor lived.  Two sites that give information about churches in Weakley County are:

- List of Weakley County churches with addresses and phone numbers (Yellowbook)

- List of Weakley County churches (TN HomeTownLocator)

Baptist

• 1824-1969 - Macedonia Primitive Baptist Church Records. Weakley County, 1824-1969. Manuscript. TSLA Reel #288.
• 1824-1900 - Sistler, Byron and Barbara Sistler. Vital Statistics from 19th Century Tennessee Church Records. Nashville: Sitler and Associates, 1979. vol. 2 FHL 976.8 K29s Index to original Macedonia Primitive Baptist Church Records. Weakley County, 1824-1969.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

Mormon Pioneers from Weakley County include:

• Randolph Alexander (1802-1879) who married Myrza Nix Alexander there in 1830 and later settled in Utah.
• Catherine Ellen (Camp) Greer (1837-1929), who was born there and married in Salt Lake City in 1855.

Bible Records

• Weakley County Bible Records - Grooms Bible (Index)

Court

DNA

DNA has been collected from men claiming descent from the following Weakley County residents. Attempts have not been made to verify the lineages of those tested.

• Brown - Descendant of Charles Brown, b. 1826 Dickson County, Tennessee, d. 1909 Weakley County, Tennessee. Y-DNA 67 Marker Test, FTDNA (Kit 68374). Genetic signature available online (labeled Group No. 20), genealogical description available online, courtesy: Brown/Browne/Braun DNA Study. Matches have been found.

Family Histories

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

As of August 2010, a query for persons born in Weakley, Tennessee at World Connect, results in more than 40,000 entries.

• Vaughan, Virginia C. History and Families, Weakley County, Tennessee, 1823-1998. Paducah, Ky.: Turner Pub. Co., 1999. FHL US/CAN Book 976.824 H2vv.

Bibliography

• Alexander - Bartholomew, Jewel A. Randolph and Myrza Nix Alexander: Early Pioneers of Utah. Orem, Utah: J.A. Bartholomew, 1997, 1999.
• Alexander - Martin, James D. The Story of Milo Andrus: With a Brief History of His Wives and Pioneer Children. Ogden, Utah: J.D. Martin, 2000. FHL Collection 921.73 An29m
• Barger - Smith, Gordon Edward. Barger: Family Records of the Barger's of Weakley County, Tennessee. Florence, Ala.: G.E. Smith, 1984. FHL Collection 1307616 Item 41
• Bradberry - Litchman, William M. "Using Cluster Methodology to Backtrack an Ancestor: The Case of John Bradberry," National Genealogical Society Quarterly, Vol. 95, No. 2 (June 2007):103-116. FHL Collection 973 B2ng v. 95 (2007)
• Brown - Brown, Garry S. The Descendants of Charles Brown of Weakley County, Tennessee. Albuquerque, New Mexico: Garry S. Brown, 2007. FHL Collection 929.273 B812bga
• Buckley - Murphy, Patricia Lee. "Buckley Family Abstracts," Virginia Genealogical Society Quarterly, Vol. 20, No. 4 (Oct.-Dec. 1982):156-160. Digital version at Ancestry ($).
• Buckley - Buckley, Shirley Gray. The Buckley Family Genealogy: A Genealogical History of the Descendants of James Buckley. Martin, Tenn.: S.G. Buckley, 1987. FHL Collection 929.273 B856bs
• Caldwell - Origin and History of the Name of Caldwell: with Biographies of All the Most Noted Persons of that Name: and an Account of the Origin of Surnames and Forenames Together with Men and Women and Their Significance: The Crescent Family Record. Chicago, Ill.: American Publishers' Association, 1906, page 45. Digital version at Heritage Quest Online ($).
• Caldwell - Green, Charles R. The Isaac Haskins Family History and Genealogy. Olathe, Kansas: Printed by the Register Pub. Co., 1911, page 45. Digital version at Heritage Quest Online ($).
• Camp - Rhoton, Jo. The Greer Trail. West Point, Utah: J. Rhoton, 2001. FHL Collection 1573646 Item 5
• Cantrell - Whitley, Edythe Johns Rucker. Cantrell-Potter-Magness: Ancestry of Alvin Edward Potter, Sr. Nashville, Tenn.: n.p., 1938, page 17. Digital version at Heritage Quest Online ($).
• 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 Collection 929.273 C547gt
• Clayton - Clayton, Claud Franklin. Family Notes and Recollections. Knoxville, Tenn.: n.p., 1959. FHL Collection 929.273 C579cfc
• Collier - Boaz, T.D. The Family of R.H. Boaz: A Record of the Descendants of Richard Harris Boaz (1845-1918). McLean, Va.: n.p., 1973, page 24. Digital version at Heritage Quest Online ($).
• Craig - Craig, Marion Stark. John Craig and Some Descendants, 1773-1976. Little Rock, Ark.: n.p., 1967. Digital version at Heritage Quest Online ($).
• Dickson- Dickson, Joseph Lawrence. The Journal of Joseph Lawrence Dickson. Fayetteville, Ark.: Washington County Historical Society, 1956. Digital version at Heritage Quest Online ($).
• Dudley - Stephens, Robert W. Life and Family of Charles Holland. Dallas, Texas: n.p., 1961, page 7. Digital version at Heritage Quest Online ($).
• Edmonston - Johnston, Henry Poellnitz. Pioneers in Their Own Right. Birmingham, Ala.: Featon Press, 1964, pages 23-24. Digital version at Heritage Quest Online ($).
• Francis - Boaz, Thurmond DeWitte and Roberta McDaniel Ellis. Mary Ann (Boaz) Francis (1798-1860) and Her Descendants. McLean, Va.: T.D. Boaz, Jr., 1993. FHL Collection 929.273 F847b
• Gatewood - Mosley, Lillian Gatewood. Sweet Memories. Dresden?, Tenn.: L.G. Mosley, 1989. FHL Collection 929.273 G223m
• Glasgow - Faulkner, Mava Yoachum. The Yoachums "And So the Story Goes." Oklahoma City, Oklahoma: M.Y. Faulkner, 1984?. FHL Collection 929.273 Y71fm
• Julien - Craig, Marion Stark. John Craig and Some Descendants, 1773-1976. Little Rock, Ark.: n.p., 1967. Digital version at Heritage Quest Online ($).
• Pointer - Robinson, R.D. [Genealogies and Bible Records Gathered by the Illinois Society, D.A.R., 1976-1977]. Ill.: The Society, 1977, pages 204, 221. Digital version at Heritage Quest Online ($).
• Roberts - Roberts, Raiford Ashley. Genealogy Notes and Research, ca. 1600-1980. MSS., Midland Genealogical Society. FHL Collection 1697529 Item 3-1697530 Item 1
• Roberts - Roberts: Transcript of Bible Records, 1876-1949. Typescript, microfilmed in 1977. FHL Collection 982434 Item 26
• Slemons - Riedel, Julia Slemons. Brigadier General William F. Slemons, C.S.A.: His Ancestors and Descendants. Kansas City, Missouri: J. Riedel, 1992. FHL Collection 929.273 SL26r
• Tipton - Tipton, Dean. Tipton, Luke. Seal Beach, Calif.: n.p., 1964, page 15. Digital version at Heritage Quest Online ($).
• White - Johnston, Henry Poellnitz. Pioneers in Their Own Right. Birmingham, Ala.: Featon Press, 1964. Digital version at Heritage Quest Online ($).

Land

• Weakley County Register of Deeds has Land Records from 1823 and is located at the Courthouse, P.O. Box 587, Dresden, Tennessee 38225; Telephone: (731) 364-2285. Land and property records include transfer of real estate or personal property, mortgages, leases, surveys, and entries.
• Willis, Laura. Weakley County, Tennessee, Register Survey Books, Volume 2 [1784-1857]. Melber, KY: Simmons Historical, 1996. Available at FHL US/CAN Book 976.824 R29w. Digital version available at World Vital Records ($). Available for purchase at Simmons Historical Publications.
• The Family History Library has microfilm copies of deeds 1822-1900 with indexes 1822-1908; grant books 1794-1844; land entry taker books 1820-1847; and surveyors' books 1789-1857.

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 TSLA 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 TSLA; another version is available at World Vital Records.

Local Histories

Maps

Click a neighboring county
for more resources

• Maps of Tennessee (1777-1985)
• Vowell, Mary K. and Daughters of the American Colonists. Isaac Dawson Chapter. Neighbors in Weakley County, Tennessee, a Land Ownership Map, 1827-1833: Compiled from Weakley County, Tennessee's Occupant Entry Book. Oak Ridge, Tenn.: High Tech Print, 1985. FHL US/CAN Book 976.824 R2v.
• Map of 1888 Weakley County, Tennessee with numerous small settlements. (My Genealogy Hound)
  

Military

Revolutionary War

The following Weakley County Revolutionary War records are available online through TNGenWeb:

• 1835 Pension Roll
• 1852 Rejected or Suspended Pensions
• Revolutionary War Soldiers who lived in Weakley County, Tennessee Includes some pension applications.

Additional resources include:

• A Census of Pensioners for Revolutionary or Military Services: With their Names, Ages, and Places of Residence, as Returned by the Marshalls of the Several Judicial Districts, Under the Act for Taking the Sixth Census. 1841; reprint, Baltimore, Md.: Genealogical Publishing, 1967. FHL US/CAN Book 973 X2pc 1840; FHL US/CAN Film 2321. 1841 edition digitized by the U.S. Census Bureau and Google books et. al. See Tennessee, Western District, Weakley County on page 159.
• Rejected or Suspended Applications for Revolutionary War Pensions. Washington, D.C., 1852. Reprinted by Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 1969, and 1991. Reprints include "an Added Index to States." Digital version at Ancestry ($). Tennessee entries abstracted online at Tennesseans in the Revolutionary War, courtesy: TNGenWeb. Includes veterans from this county; Tennessee section begins on page 381.

War of 1812

• Embry, Hermione D. "War of 1812 - Tennessee Pensioners on List - January 2, 1883," Ansearchin' News, Vol. 8, No. 3 (Jul. 1961):95-98; Vol. 8, No. 4 (Oct. 1961):122-124. FHL US/CAN Book 976.8 B2a v. 8 (1961); digital version at journal website. Includes Weakley County pensioners (pp. 122-123).
• Weakley County Settlers who served in the War of 1812 Courtesy:TNGenWeb

Civil War

Online Records

• 1861-1865 - Tennessee, Civil War Service Records of Confederate Soldiers, 1861-1865 at FamilySearch — index
• 1861-1865 - Tennessee, Civil War Service Records of Union Soldiers, 1861-1865 at FamilySearch — index
• 1861-1865 - U.S., Confederate Soldiers Compiled Service Records, 1861-1865 at Ancestry — index (free)
• 1861-1865 - U.S., Union Soldiers Compiled Service Records, 1861-1865 at Ancestry — index (free)
• 1891-1965 - Tennessee, Confederate Pension Applications, Soldiers and Widows, 1891-1965 at FamilySearch — images
• Civil War Research Database $
• Civil War Soldiers and Sailors System

Regiments. Civil War service men from Weakley County served in various regiments. Men often joined a regiment or a company (within a regiment) that originated in their county. Listed below are the military units that were formed in or had many men from Weakley County:

Confederate Soldiers

• 4th Regiment, Tennessee Infantry (Neely's) - CSA - Company B.
• 7th Regiment, Tennessee Cavalry (Duckworth's) - CSA - Company H.
• 9th Regiment, Tennessee Infantry - CSA - Company G.
• 15th Regiment, Tennessee Infantry - CSA - Company A.
• 20th Regiment, Tennessee Cavalry (Russell's) - CSA - Company I.
• 22nd Regiment, Tennessee Cavalry (Barteau's) - CSA - 2nd Company H.
• 27th Regiment, Tennessee Infantry - CSA - Company H.
• 31st Regiment, Tennessee Infantry (A. H. Bradford's) - CSA - Company A, I, and K.
• 33rd Regiment, Tennessee Infantry - CSA - Company H.
• 51st Consolidated Regiment, Tennessee Infantry - CSA - Company K.
• 52nd Regiment, Tennessee Infantry - CSA - Companies E and G.

Union Soldiers

• 1st Regiment, West Tennessee Cavalry - William Carroll Holt's company, John H. Edwards and John W. Moore's company, Orlando H. Shearer and Stanford L. Warren's company, and Thomas H. Boswell and Albert Cook's company.
• 6th Regiment, Tennessee Cavalry - Companies I, K, L, and M.
• 7th Regiment, Tennessee Infantry - Companies A, B, C, and D.

Additional sources for Civil War soldiers from Weakley County:

• Lynn, H.M. H.M. Lynn Papers, 1858-1882. Southern Historical Collection, Manuscripts Dept., Wilson Library, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Free digital copy. 9th Tennessee Regiment, Company C.
• USGenWeb Archives, Weakley County Tennessee Archives. Military records.
• Tennessee State Library and Archives, Tennessee Confederate Pension Applications: Weakley County. Includes soldier's name, county, pension #, unit or widow.
• United States Pension Bureau, List of Pensioners on the Roll January 1, 1883: Giving the Name of Each Pensioner, the Cause for... (Washington Printing Office; 1883). Online at Internet Archive. Weakley County, page 385.
• The War of Aggression - The War of Rebellion, Weakley County, Tennessee. Confederate and Union records.
• Findagrave, Weakley County Civil War CSA Veterans.
• Confederate Monument in Dresden Tennessee, "In honor of Confederate Soldiers of Weakley County"
• The War in Weakley County by Joe W. Stout.
  

Newspapers

• Campus Chatter: An Alumni Newsletter of The University of Tennessee Junior College, 1943-1946
• The Dresden Enterprise, Weakley County, Tennessee, Volume 13. Covers from 1 Sep 1904 to 16 Dec 1904. Digital version available at World Vital Records ($).  Free lookups available for obituaries in the Dresden Enterprise.
• Willis, Laura Willis and Betty Sellers. Weakley County, Tennessee, Newspaper Abstracts. Melber, KY: Simmons Historical Pub., 1998. 12 volumes. Available at FHL US/CAN Book 976.824 B3w. Digital versions of selected volumes 1-10 are available at World Vital Records ($): Volume 1; Volume 2; Volume 3; Volume 5; Volume 6; Volume 7; Volume 8; Volume 9; and Volume 10. Available for purchase at Simmons Historical Publications.
• Many Tennessee newspapers are filmed and available at TSLA. Most of these newspapers may be accessed by interlibrary loan to libraries within Tennessee, although there are some newspapers which are not available in or outside of Tennessee. For further information regarding interlibrary loan policies and newspapers not available for interlibrary loan click here. For a list of newspapers available at the archives for Weakley County click on the following cities or towns:

• Dresden
• Greenfield
• Martin
• Sharon

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 Weakley 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

Genealogical articles with abstracts of Weakley County, Tennessee Genealogy records 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 Book 976.8 B2a.

Family Findings

Genealogical articles with abstracts of Weakley 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 to retrieve them.

Forget Me Not

Publication of the Weakley County Genealogical Society. The Family History Library has a complete collection (1982-present): FHL US/CAN Books 976.824 B2f.
Indexed in PERiodical Source Index (PERSI)
For further information see Weakley County Historical and Genealogical Society website.

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 Weakley County, Tennessee Genealogy ancestors went to prison!

• Inmates of the Tennessee State Penitentiary 1831-1850.
• Inmates of the Tennessee State Penitentiary 1851-1870.

Probate Records

The County Court, Circuit Court, and Chancery Court have responsibility for the probate records of Weakley County.

Online Records

• 1779 – 2008 Tennessee Wills and Probate Records 1779-2008 at Ancestry.com — index and images $

FamilySearch has placed scans of the following records online in the Tennessee, Probate Court Books, 1795-1927 collection. These are browse-only collections. Handwritten indexes may be found at the front or back of some volumes:

• Court records, 1828-1902 (16 vols.)
• Dockets, 1868-1884
• Minutes, 1827-1902 (20 vols.)

The organization Strictly By Name provides free online indexes to early Weakley County probate records. They offer a record retrieval service to photocopy and transcribe microfilm copies of the original documents for a small fee. Available indexes:

• Will Book A: 1830-1840
• Will Book B: 1841-1861

The following Weakley County probate records have been abstracted, indexed, or both:

• 1828-1861 - Sistler, Byron and Barbara Sistler. Index to Tennessee Wills and Administrations 1779-1861. Nashville, Tenn. Byron Sistler and Associates, Inc., 1990. FHL US/CAN 976.8 P22s. Includes an index to this county's probate records.
• 1828-1900 - Willis, Laura. Weakley County, Tennessee Wills and Administrations. Melber, Kentucky: Simmons Historical Pub., 1998, 2004. 4 volumes. Available at FHL US/CAN Book 976.824 P2w. Digital versions of selected volumes available at World Vital Records ($): Volume 1 1828-1853 and Volume 2 1851-1875.
• USGenWeb's Weakley County page has links to some estate settlements and transcribed wills.

Taxation

The original Weakley County Tax Books 1842-1874 are kept at the County Courthouse. In 1976, TSLA microfilmed these records. FHL copies: FHL US/CAN Films 1003115-1003116.

The organization Strictly By Name provides free online indexes to early Weakley County tax records. They offer a record retrieval service to photocopy and transcribe microfilm copies of the original documents for a small fee. Available index:

• 1828 Tax List

The following Weakley County tax records have been abstracted:

• 1828 Tax List, 1828, Tennessee Researcher, Vol. 2, No. 3 (Sep. 1963); Vol. 2, No. 4 (Dec. 1963).
• 1828-1832 Simmons, Don and Laura Willis. Weakley County Tax List 1828-1832. Melber, Ky.: Simmons Historical Pub., 1996. FHL US/CAN Book 976.824 R4w. Purchase at Simmons Historical Bookstore.
• 1828 Weakley County 1828 Tax List, available online, courtesy: Strictly By Name.
• 1842 Brooks, Walter. "1842 Tax List of Weakley County," available online, courtesy: RootsWeb.
• 1843 Brooks, Walter. "1843 Tax List of Weakley County," available online, courtesy: RootsWeb.
• 1844 Brooks, Walter. "1844 Tax List of Weakley County," available online, courtesy: RootsWeb.
• 1845 Brooks, Walter. "1845 Tax List of Weakley County," available online, courtesy: RootsWeb.
• 1846 Brooks, Walter. "1846 Tax List of Weakley County," available online, courtesy: RootsWeb.
• 1847 Brooks, Walter. "1847 Tax List of Weakley County," available online, courtesy: RootsWeb.
• 1848 Brooks, Walter. "1848 Tax List of Weakley County," available online, courtesy: RootsWeb.
• 1849 Brooks, Walter. "1849 Tax List of Weakley County," available online, courtesy: RootsWeb.
• 1850 Brooks, Walter. "1850 Tax List of Weakley County," available online, courtesy: RootsWeb.
• 1869 Carol, Mary. "1869 Tax List of Weakley County," available online, courtesy: RootsWeb.
• 1889 Weakley County Tax List 1889. Purchase at Simmons Historical Bookstore.
• 1890 Weakley County Tax List 1890. Purchase at Simmons Historical Bookstore.

Vital Records

See also How to order Tennessee Vital Records or order electronically online.

Birth

• 1828-1939 - Tennessee Births and Christenings 1828-1939 at FamilySearch.org — index

• 1869-1909 - Tennessee Delayed Birth Records 1869-1909 at Ancestry.com — index and images $

• 1908-1912 - Tennessee, Birth Records (ER Series), 1908-1912 at FamilySearch — index and images

• 1908-1912 - Willis, Laura. Weakley County, Tennessee, Vital Statistics, 1908 - 1912. Melber, KY: Simmons Historical Pub., 1997. Available at FHL US/CAN Book 976.824 V2wL. Digital version available at World Vital Records. Contains births and deaths. Includes surname index.

Marriage

Marriages were not officially recorded in Weakley County until after 1838, when a law was passed mandating the practice. The following publication, based on early newspapers, helps to alleviate this genealogical obstacle:

• 1625-1966 - Tennessee, United States Marriages at FindMyPast — index $

• 1794-1751 - Lucas, Silas Emmett. Marriages from Early Tennessee Newspapers 1794-1851. Easley, S.C.: Southern Historical Press, 1978. FHL US/CAN Book 976.8 V2L.
• 1863-1886 - For free lookups of Weakley County, Tennessee marriages 1863-1886 click [sites.rootsweb.com/~tnweakle/LOOKUPS.htm here.]

State Marriage Records

• 1780-2002 - Tennessee State Marriages 1780-2002 at Ancestry.com — index $

• 1780-2002 - Tennessee State Marriage Index 1780-2002 at FamilySearch.org— index

• 1790-1950 - Tennessee County Marriages 1790-1950 at FamilySearch.org — index and images

• 1796-1950 - Tennessee Marriages 1796-1950 at FamilySearch.org — index

• 1838-1888 - Tennessee Civil Marriages, 1838-1888 at FamilySearch — index and images

• 1851-1900 - Tennessee Marriages 1851-1900 at Ancestry.com— index and images $

The following Weakley County Courthouse marriage records have been indexed:

• 1838-1867 - Sistler, Byron and Barbara Sistler. Early West Tennessee Marriages. 2 vols. Nashville, Tenn.: B. Sistler and Associates, 1989. FHL US/CAN Book 976.8 V2sb v. 1 ff. Indexes names of brides and grooms, and marriage or marriage bond dates for weddings in this county for the specified years.

• 1843-1895 - Weakley County Marriage Index 1843-1895 in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch.org - free.

• 1843-1974 - Weakley County, Tennessee County Court Clerk Marriage records (Weakley County, Tennessee), 1843-1974 Nashville, Tennessee: Filmed by the Tennessee State Library and Archives, 1976-1988. FHL US/CAN Film 988668-70, 988737-39, 1928865-72, 988740-46.

• 1843-1886 - Willis, Laura. Weakley County, Tennessee, Marriage Records [1843-1886]. Melber, Kentucky: Simmons-Historical, 1996, 2001. 5 volumes. Available at FHL US/CAN Book 976.824 V2wc. Simmons Historical Publications.

• 1843-1863, 1878-1886 - Weakley County Genealogical Society (Martin, Tennessee) and Lucille Adams Smith Weakley County, Tennessee, marriage records Martin, Tennessee: Weakley County Genealogical Society, 1980-1998. FHL US/CAN Book 976.824 V2w volumes 1-3

• 1846-1854 - Historical Records Project (Tennessee) Marriage records, 1846-1854, Weakley County, Tennessee Salt Lake City, Utah: Filmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah, 1940. FHL US/CAN Film 24860 item 1

• 1854-1865 - Willis, Laura. Weakley County Marriage Books Vol. 2 1854-1865. Kentucky: Simmons Historical Publications. Digital version available at World Vital Records. Available for purchase at Simmons Historical Publications.

• 1886-1893 - Weakley County Marriage Books Vol. 6 1886-1893. Kentucky: Simmons Historical Publications. Digital version available at World Vital Records. Available for purchase at Simmons Historical Publications.

• 1893-1898 - Weakley County Marriage Books Vol. 7 1893-1898. Kentucky: Simmons Historical Publications. Digital version available at World Vital Records. Available for purchase at Simmons Historical Publications.

Divorce

In 1940 and 1941, W.P.A. workers pinpointed the location of Weakley County divorce papers in diverse County Courthouse records, see the following resources:

• W.P.A. Guide to Public Vital Statistics in Tennessee. Nashville, Tenn.: The Tennessee Historical Records Survey, 1941. FHL US/CAN Book 976.8 A3gp.

Death

• 1823-1852 - 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. Weakley County is included in Vol. 1

• 1874-1955 - Tennessee Deaths and Burials 1874-1955 at FamilySearch.org — index

• 1908-1912 - Willis, Laura. Weakley County, Tennessee, Vital Statistics, 1908 - 1912. Melber, KY: Simmons Historical Pub., 1997. Available at FHL US/CAN Book 976.824 V2wL. Digital version available at World Vital Records. Contains births and deaths. Includes surname index.

• 1908-1958 - Tennessee Death Records 1908 - 1958 at Ancestry.com — index and images $

• 1914-1966 - Tennessee Deaths, 1914-1966 at FamilySearch — index and images

• For free lookups of some death certificates up to 1948 click here.

For deaths of Methodists in Weakley County between the 1830s and the 1920s, try searching the following records:

• 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 1830's, 1840;s, 1910;s and 1920;s.

Societies and Libraries

See also a List of Tennessee Archives, Libraries, Publications, Historical & Genealogical Societies

C.E. Weldon Public Library 100 Main St Martin, TN 38237 Phone: 1-731-587-3148 E-mail: weldonlib@charter.net Hours: Mon., Wed., Fri. 9:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Thurs. 9:30 a.m.-8 p.m. Sat. 9:30 a.m.-12 p.m.	Genealogical Resources: The Weakley County Genealogical Society helps to maintain a collection of books, magazines, files, and microfilms located in the library's Tennessee Room.
Dr. Nathan Porter Public Library 228 N Front St. Greenfield, TN 38230 E-mail: readmore@charter.net Hours: Tues.-Fri 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Sat. 9 a.m.-12 p.m.
Gleason Memorial Library 105 College St Gleason, TN 38229 Phone: 1-731-648-9020 E-mail: gleasonml@bellsouth.net Hours: Mon.-Fri. 1-5 p.m.
Ned R. McWherter Weakley County Library 341 Linden St. Dresden, TN 38225 Phone: 1-731-364-2678 Hours: Mon.-Fri. 9 a.m.-5 p.m.
West Tennessee Historical Society P.O. Box 111046 Memphis, TN 38111 Phone 1-901-475-6608 E-mail: efrank@memphis.edu
Reelfoot Regional Library Center 542 N Lindell Martin, TN 38237 Phone: 1-731-587-2347 Hours: Mon.-Fri. 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m.
Sharon Public Library 123 E Main St Sharon, TN 38255 Phone: 1-731-456-2707 E-mail: sharonlibrary@frontiernet.net Hours: Tues.-Fri. 9 a.m.-4:45 p.m. Sat. 9 a.m.-12 p.m. Closed daily between 12-1 p.m.
West Tennessee Heritage Study Center Paul Meek Library University of Tennessee at Martin Phone: 1-731-881-7060 Hours vary by semester	The Heritage Study Center holds a variety of genealogical resources including materials relating to the following counties in Tennessee: Benton, Carroll, Chester, Crockett, Decatur, Dyer, Fayette, Gibson, Hardin, Haywood, Henderson, Henry, Houston, Humphreys, Lake, Lauderdale, Madison, McNairy, Obion, Perry, Shelby, Stewart, Tipton, Wayne, Weakley and Carlisle, Fulton, and Hickman counties in Kentucky.

Family History Centers

Family History Centers provide one-on-one assistance and free access to premium genealogical websites. In addition, many centers have free how-to genealogy classes.

• For current information about a center near you, go to the Family History Center Map
• Introduction to Family History Centers

Weakley County Tennessee Genealogy Websites

The usage of "Mormon" and "LDS" on this page is approved according to current policy.

• FamilySearch Catalog (FamilySearch) — The catalog is genealogical materials (including books, online materials, microfilm, microfiche, and publications) This catalog is different than the indexed Historical Records.
• Mailing List: TNWEAKLE-L (Weakley County, Tennessee List) (RootsWeb)
• Mailing List: WEST-TNCHAT-L (West Tennessee Chat List) (RootsWeb)
• Mailing List: WESTTN-L (West Tennessee List) (RootsWeb)
• Weakley County, TN Genealogy and Family History (Linkpendium)
• Weakley County, TN Family History and Genealogy Message Board (Ancestry)
• Weakley County, TNGenWeb (USGenWeb)
• Weakley County TN Genealogy (ldsgenealogy.com)

Weakley County Tennessee Genealogy References

Family History Library