Haywood County, Tennessee Genealogy

Guide to Haywood County, Tennessee ancestry, family history and genealogy birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.

Quick Dates
Haywood County's civil records start the following years:

County Courthouse
Haywood County Courthouse 1 N Washington Street Brownsville, TN 38012 Phone: 731.772.2362 County Clerk has marriage records from 1859, divorce records 1941-1965 and probate records from 1826 to August 1982. Register of Deeds has land records, including land grants to 1831, German-American War discharges, and DD214 for wars WWI through present.


 * County Clerk has marriage and probate records Phone: 1-731-772-2362
 * Register of Deeds has Land records and DDS214s. Phone: 1-731-772-0332

Hours: Mon.-Fri. 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m.

Haywood County Assessor of Property 11 South Lafayette Avenue Brownsville, TN 38012 Phone: 1-731-772-0432

County Assessor has city and county maps with parcel #s, including many old maps that date into the 1800s.

Hours: Mon.-Fri. 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m.

Haywood County Chancery Court 100 South Dupree Street Brownsville, TN 38012 Phone: 1-731-772-0122

Chancery court has jurisdiction of probate records from August 1982 to present, divorce records from 1965 to present, as well as guardianship, adoption, and property dispute records. According to Clerk and Master, Sarah Levy, Tennessee is one of only three states that continue to have separate courts for civil and criminal matters. The others being Mississippi and Delaware.

Index (by name/defendant) for 1808-1885.

There are some old, boxed records still stored in the Court House vault. Contact the Clerk and Master at the above number for an appointment to access these records.

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

Haywood County Circuit Court and General Sessions Court 100 South Dupree Street Brownsville, TN 38012 Phone: 1-731-772-1112

Have court records.

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

Haywood County Archives 4110 US 70 Brownsville, TN 38012

This is a work in progress and is housed at the former Haywood County Jail located on the Haywood County Farm property east of Brownsville. Records housed in this facility are from varying time periods and from the majority of the offices of the Haywood County government. Admission is by appointment only.

To make an appointment to access these records contact the Haywood County Historian at 731 772-0380.

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

History
West Tennessee county. Established 1823.

The county is named after "Judge John Haywood (1762-1826), called 'the father of Tennessee history.'"

Parent County
1823--Haywood County was created 3 November 1823 from Chickasaw Indian Lands. According to "Rotating Formation Tennessee County Boundary Maps", Haywood County was formed in 1823 from Madison County. County seat: Brownsville

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.

In 1835, a portion of Haywood County was taken to help form Lauderdale County.

In 1872, a portion of Haywood County was taken to help form Crockett County.

Record Loss

 * Lost marriage records: 1823 to 1858. Loss was due to a fire.

Neighboring Counties

 * Crockett
 * Fayette
 * Hardeman
 * Lauderdale
 * Madison
 * Tipton

Getting Started
Use the free Search for Surnames at Mountain Press's website to quickly search a variety of published Haywood County biography, court, and tax 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: Haywood County, courtesy: TSLA (Identifies published county histories, published local records, census records, newspapers and local records on microfilm, and select manuscripts.)

African Americans
United States African Americans Tennessee African Americans


 * Free African Americans Enumerated in the 1850 and 1860 Haywood County, Tennessee Census, available online, courtesy: Christine's Genealogy Website: Who are Your People?

Biographies

 * Family Biographies from The History of Haywood County, Tennessee (1886) published by Goodspeed are available free on the My Genealogy Hound website.

Cemeteries
Additional Cemetery Resources


 * Tennessee Cemeteries - Hometown Locator.
 * For free lookups of Haywood county cemeteries, obituaries and Bells/Brownsville Funeral Home records (1940's-1970's) click here.

Census
1830, 1840, 1850, 1860, 1870, 1880, 1900, 1910, 1920, 1930, and 1940 federal population censuses of Haywood 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 Haywood County, TN census assignments, including links to transcribed files. The USGenWeb Census Project®

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. . 1841 edition digitized by the U.S. Census Bureau and Google books et. al. See Tennessee, Western District, Haywood County on page 159.

1810 - 1891


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

1850


 * Carpenter, Mrs. V.K. Seventh Census of the United States, 1850, Haywood County, Tennessee : free population schedules Huntsville, Arkansas : Century Enterprises, c1970

1880


 * Sistler, Barbara 1880 census Haywood County, Tennessee Nashville, Tennessee : Byron Sistler and Associates, 2001

1891 Male Voters 


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

Directories

 * Brownsville City Directory 1872-1873 Free Lookups Available!

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 Haywood, Tennessee at World Connect, results in more than 10,000 entries.

Bibliography


 * Hughes - Hughes, V. Jean. Hughes Trav[e]lers from Bertie to Haywood County, Tennessee. 2 vols. Senatobia, Miss.: V.J. Hughes, 1997. ff.
 * Moore - Fritz, Marcine Moore William Moore and his descendants Salt Lake City, Utah : Filmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah, 1993 Available at the Family History Library. with a digitized version through
 * Taylor - Tabernacle Historical Committee. The Taylors of Tabernacle. Brownsville, TN: Tabernacle Historical Committee, 1957. 2 volumes. Available at FHL FAM HIST Book 929.273 T212ta; digital version at Heritage Quest Online ($).

Land

 * Haywood County Register of Deeds has Land Records from 1820 and is located at the Courthouse, 1 N. Washington St., Brownsville, TN 38012-2561; Telephone: (731) 772-2362. Land and property records include transfer of real estate or personal property, mortgages, leases, surveys, and entries.
 * The Family History Library has microfilmed copies of deeds 1823-1893 with indexes 1823-1905; and land grants and land entries 1793-1834.
 * TSLA has microfilm Roll #48 Deed Index - 1826-1881. This microfilm is also available at the Elma Ross Library in Brownsville.

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.

Maps


Marriage The following microfilm is available from the TSLA and also the Elma Ross Library:
 * Maps of Tennessee (1777-1985)
 * Map of 1888 Haywood County, Tennessee
 * Roll #27 Marriage License and Bonds - 1859-1868.

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


 * 1835 Pension Roll
 * 1852 Rejected or Suspended Pensions

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. . 1841 edition digitized by the U.S. Census Bureau and Google books et. al. See Tennessee, Western District, Haywood 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. 7, No. 3 (Jul. 1960):65-68. ; digital version at journal website. Includes Haywood County pensioners (p. 67)

Civil War
Online Records
 * 1861 - 1865 - at FamilySearch — index
 * 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 - at FamilySearch — images
 * Civil War Research Database $
 * Civil War Soldiers and Sailors System

Regiments. Civil War service men from Haywood 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 Haywood County:

Confederate Soldiers


 * 6th Regiment, Tennessee Infantry - CSA - Company A.
 * 7th Regiment, Tennessee Cavalry (Duckworth's) - CSA - Companies B, D, L, and M.
 * 9th Regiment, Tennessee Infantry - CSA - Companies A, B, D, and L.
 * 12th Regiment, Tennessee Cavalry (Green's) - CSA - Company I.
 * 14th Regiment, Tennessee Cavalry (Neely's) - CSA - Companies D, I, and 3rd K.
 * 15th Regiment, Tennessee Cavalry (Stewart's) - CSA
 * 16th Regiment, Tennessee Cavalry (Logwood's) - CSA - Company F.
 * 20th Regiment, Tennessee Cavalry (Russell's) - CSA - Company F.
 * 27th Regiment, Tennessee Infantry - CSA - Company G.
 * 31st Regiment, Tennessee Infantry (A. H. Bradford's) - CSA - Company D.

Union Soldiers


 * 14th Regiment, Tennessee Cavalry - 5th Company
 * Bradford's Battalion, 13th Regiment, Tennessee Cavalry - 5th Company

Additional sources for Civil War soldiers from Haywood 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.
 * TNGenWeb Project &amp; USGenWeb Project, Civil War Sites &amp; Historical Documents. Includes a link for: Barry Dunagan Civil War Ancestors, CivilWarDocs.com, Russell's 20th Tennessee Cavalry CSA, The Battle of Shiloh, Thomas Jefferson Walker Story, US &amp; CSA Civil War Pension Applications, Colored Pension Applications - CSA Service, Soldier's Application for Pension, Widow's Indigent Pension.
 * USGenWeb Archives, Haywood County Tennessee Archives. Civil War Records.
 * Tennessee State Library and Archives, Tennessee Confederate Pension Applications: Haywood 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. Haywood County, page 346.

Newspapers
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 Haywood County click on the following city:


 * Brownsville TSLA currently has filmed issues from eight different newspapers that were published in Brownsville at various times with the earliest being 1838.
 * There is a new newspaper in Brownsville. The Brownsville Press began publication in October 2015.  The Managing Editor, Tommie Rowell, stated that it is her understanding the the paper is being microfilmed by the TSLA.

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. . Purchase at Genealogical.com. Includes Haywood County.

Periodicals

 * Family Findings
 * Genealogical articles with abstracts of Haywood 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.
 * 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 . 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

Probate Records
The County Court and the Chancery Court have responsibility for the probate records of Haywood County.

The following microfilms are available at the TSLA and also at the Elma Ross Library:
 * Roll #46 Wills - 1826-1841
 * Roll #47 Wills - 1841-44; 1852 - 1918
 * Roll #24 Inventories - Guardian, Administrators' & Executors' Settlements - 1852-1866

Online Records


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


 * Wills, 1826-1918 (5 vols.)
 * Bonds, Letters, 1852-1908 (6 vols.)
 * Guardian records, 1875-1912
 * Insolvent estate records, 1870-1962 (Vols. 1-3)
 * Settlements, 1870-1896
 * Widows and orphans records, 1873-1925

The organization Strictly By Name provides free online indexes to early Haywood 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 1: 1826-1839
 * Will Book 2: 1839-1841

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


 * 1826 - 1861 - Sistler, Byron and Barbara Sistler. Index to Tennessee Wills &amp; Administrations 1779-1861. Nashville, Tenn. Byron Sistler &amp; Associates, Inc., 1990. . Includes an index to this county's probate records.] [http://www.tngenweb.org/haywood/lookup.htm Free lookups available!
 * 1845 - 1852 - Smith, Jonathan Kennon Thompson. A Genealogical Quandary, Will Book D, 1845-1852, Haywood County, Tennessee. [N.p.: n.p.], 2003. Will book D no longer exists. The compiler located the related wills. A surname index is included. (FHL book 976.8223 P2s.)
 * 1826 - 1841 - Strictly By Name (see above).

Taxation
The original Haywood County Tax Books 1834-1888 are kept at the County Courthouse. In 1976, TSLA microfilmed these records. FHL copies:. A 2016 interview with the County Trustee, Sonny Howse, revealed that Tax Books prior to 1959 are no longer kept at the Courthouse but are stored at the County Archives.

The following Haywood County tax records have been abstracted:


 * 1836 - Haywood Co., Tenn., Tax List 1836, District #1, Family Findings, Vol. 3, No. 4 (Oct. 1971). For access, see Periodicals.
 * 1836 - "Haywood County, Tennessee - 1836 Civil Districts," Ansearchin' News, Vol. 37, No. 4 (Winter 1990):164. For access, see Periodicals.
 * 1836 - Douthat, James L. 1836 Haywood County, Tennessee Civil Districts &amp; Tax List. Signal Mountain, Tenn.: Mountain Press, 2003. ; online: free surname index and purchase details.

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

Birth

 * 1881 - 1912 - Haywood County Birth Index 1881-1912 in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - free.


 * 1828 - 1939 - at FamilySearch.org — index


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


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


 * 1908 - 1912 - at FamilySearch — index and images

Marriage
Marriages were not officially recorded in Haywood County during the first few years of its existence. In 1838, 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 - 1851 - Lucas, Silas Emmett. Marriages from Early Tennessee Newspapers 1794-1851. Easley, S.C.: Southern Historical Press, 1978..

The following Haywood County marriage records have been abstracted and/or indexed:


 * 1859 - 1896 - Haywood County Marriage Index 1859-1896 in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - free.


 * 1859 - 1878 - Sistler, Byron and Barbara Sistler. Early West Tennessee Marriages. 2 vols. Nashville, Tenn.: B. Sistler &amp; Associates, 1989. ff. Indexes names of brides and grooms, and marriage dates for weddings in this county for the specified years.


 * 1859 - 1866 - Historical Records Project Marriage records, 1859-1866, Haywood County, Tennessee Salt Lake City, Utah: Filmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah, 1939. FHL US/CAN Film 24690 items 5-6


 * 1859 - 1878 - Fischer, Marjorie Hood Haywood County, Tennessee, marriage records 1859-1878, books 1-8 Vista, California: Fischer, 1987. FHL US/CAN Book 976.8332 V2f


 * 1859 - 1959 - Haywood County (Tennessee) County Court Clerk Marriage records (Haywood County, Tennessee), 1859-1959. FHL US/CAN Film 1006850-59, 1928708-16


 * 1790 - 1950 - at FamilySearch.org- covers all counties in Tennessee.


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


 * 1780 - 2002 - at FamilySearch.org— index


 * 1790 - 1950 - at FamilySearch.org — index and images


 * 1796 - 1950 - at FamilySearch.org — index


 * 1838 - 1888 - at FamilySearch — index and images


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

Divorce
In 1940 and 1941, W.P.A. workers pinpointed the location of Haywood County divorce papers in diverse manuscript collections, 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. . Haywood County is included in Vol. 2


 * 1874 - 1955 - at FamilySearch.org — index


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


 * 1914 - 1966 - at FamilySearch — index and images

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


 * 1847-1914 - 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. 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.

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

Tennessee State Library and Archives 403 7th Avenue North Nashville, TN 37243 615-741-2764 [mailto:reference.tsla@tn.gov reference.tsla@tn.gov]

Genealogical "Fact Sheets" About Tennessee Counties - Haywood County. Selected published county histories, published local records, local records on microfilm, newspapers on microfilm, Selected manuscripts material, census records, and additional resources for Haywood County. Interlibrary Loan available on some items.

Family History Centers

 * Introduction to LDS Family History Centers

Websites

 * (FamilySearch) — The catalog is genealogical materials (including books, online materials, microfilm, microfiche, and publications) This catalog is different than the indexed Historical Records.
 * Haywood County, TN Family History and Genealogy Message Board (Ancestry)
 * Haywood County, TNGenWeb (USGenWeb)
 * RootsWeb Mailing List: TNHAYWOO-L (Haywood County, Tennessee List)
 * RootsWeb Mailing List: WEST-TNCHAT-L (West Tennessee Chat List)
 * RootsWeb Mailing List: WESTTN-L (West Tennessee List)
 * Linkpendium, Haywood County, Tennessee- Family History &amp; Genealogy, Census, Birth, Marriage, Death Vital Records &amp; More, (accessed 29 Jan 2012).
 * Haywood County TN Genealogy (LDS Genealogy)