Rutherford County, Tennessee Genealogy

United States   Tennessee    Rutherford County





County Courthouse
Rutherford County Courthouse 319 N. Maple Street Suite 121 Murfreesboro, Tennessee 37130 Phone: (615) 898-7800

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

History
The county is named after "Griffin Rutherford, chairman of the legislature of the Southwest Territory."

Parent County
1803--Rutherford County was established 25 October 1803 from Davidson County. Early records may be found under Davidson County. County seat: Murfreesboro

Record Loss
1832--Tornado damaged records

Neighboring Counties

 * Bedford
 * Cannon
 * Coffee
 * Davidson
 * Marshall
 * Williamson
 * Wilson

Research Guides

 * Genealogical "Fact Sheets" About Tennessee Counties: Rutherford 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.)

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

Land

 * Simmons, Don and Laura Willis. Rutherford County, Tennessee, Deeds, Volume 1, 1804 - 1808. Melber, KY: Simmons Hist., 1996. Available at FHL US/CAN Book 976.857 R2wi. Digital version available at World Vital Records. Available for purchase along with Rutherford County Deed Books Vol. 2-1808-1812 at Simmons Historical Publications.

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.

Newspapers

 * Willis, Laura. Rutherford County, Tennessee Newspaper Abstracts, Volume 1, 1820 - 1867. Kentucky: Simmons Historical Publications, 2005. Digital version available at World Vital Records. Available for purchase at Simmons Historical Publications.
 * Willis, Laura. Rutherford County Newspaper Abstracts Vol. 2-1867-1906. Kentucky: Simmons Historical Publications, 2005. Digital version available at World Vital Records. Available for purchase at Simmons Historical Publications.

Occupations

 * Miller, Alan N. Middle Tennessee's Forgotten Children: Apprentices from 1784 to 1902. Baltimore, Md.: Printed for Clearfield Company, Inc., by Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 2004. FHL US/CAN 976.8 U2ma. Purchase at Genealogical.com. [Includes Rutherford County.]

Periodicals
Ansearchin' News

Several genealogical articles with abstracts of Rutherford County, Tennessee 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 US/CAN Book 976.8 B2a.

Probate
Online index to Rutherford County Record Books 1803-1880. These include mostly probate information including wills, inventories of estates, estate settlements, guardianship reports, and widow allotments. However, the Record Books also contain some other court information including manumission records, apprenticeships, and trustee’s reports. Copies of the record books are available the Rutherford County Archives or.

Family History Centers
Murfreesboro Tennessee 902 E Clark Murfreesboro, Rutherford, Tennessee, United States Telephone: 615-893-3616

Smyrna Tennessee 316 Mayfield Dr Smyrna, Rutherford, Tennessee, United States Telephone: 615-355-9268

These are not mailing addresses. Due to limited staff, Family History Centers are unable to respond to mail inquiries.

Web Sites

 * USGenWeb project. May have maps, name indexes, history or other information for this county. Select the state, then the county.
 * Rutherford County, TN Family History and Genealogy Message Board (Ancestry)
 * Family History Library Catalog