Henry County, Tennessee Genealogy

United States   Tennessee    Henry County





West Tennessee county on the Tennessee River. Established 1821.

County Courthouse


Henry County Courthouse P.O. Box 7 101 West Washington Street Paris, Tennessee 38242 Phone: 731-642-2412

Henry County Clerk Birth, Marriage, Death and probate records 101 W. Washington Street P.O. Box 24 Paris, TN 38242 Phone: 731-642-2412

Henry County Register of Deeds Land records 213 W. Washington St., 2nd floor P.O. Box 44 Paris, TN 38242 Phone: 731-642-4081

Henry County Circuit Court Clerk P.O. Box 429 Paris, TN 38242 Phone: 731-642-0461

Hours: Monday - Friday 8 am - 4:30 pm

History


The county is named after Virginia Governor Patrick Henry (1736-1799).

Parent County
1821--Henry County was created 7 November 1821 from Chickasaw Indian Lands. County seat: Paris

Record Loss

 * Lost census: 1890

Research Guides

 * Genealogical "Fact Sheets" About Tennessee Counties: Henry 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

 * Reed, Sue. "Compendium of Henry County Cemeteries," available online, courtesy: Danville Crossing.

Census
1830, 1840, 1850, 1860, 1870, 1880, 1900, 1910, 1920, and 1930 federal population censuses of Henry 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. 2 1891. [Henry County is included in Vol. 2.]
 * 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


 * [Beasley] Lockhart, William Thomas. The Beasley Family of Benton, Henry, Hickman, Houston, Humphreys and Stewart Counties of Tennessee. Florissant, Missouri: W. Lockhart, 1985. FHL FAM HIST Book 929.273 B38Lw.
 * [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.
 * [Fowler] Arthur, Glenn Dora Fowler (Mrs. James Joyce Arthur).Annals of the Fowler Family, with Branches in Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Kentucky, Alabama, Mississippi, California, and Texas. Austin, Texas, published by the author, 1901. Free digital copy.
 * [Jones] Jones, Henry Earl. Henry Earl Jones. Fairhope, Ala.: H.C. Jones, 1988. FHL FAM HIST Book 929.273 J71je.
 * [McMurtry] McMurtry, Brian L. The West Tennessee McMurtry Family: A Synopsis of the Lives and Historical Background that Surrounded the McMurtry Family of Humphreys, Benton, and Henry County, TN. Newburgh, Ind.: B.L. McMurtry, 2006. FHL FAM HIST Book 929.273 M229mb.
 * [Wharton] Wharton, Richard. Richard Wharton Papers, 1863 - 1906. Book contributor: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. A diary, letters and other writings including his service in the Confederate Army, letters relating to family matters, a genealogy of the Wharton family, poems and speeches. Free digital copy.
 * [Williams] Williams, E. Ray. The Williams Families of Henry County, Tennessee. Paris, TN: E.R. Williams, 1971. Available at FHL FAM HIST Book 929.273 W67wer; FHL US/CAN Fiche 6046888; digital version at Heritage Quest Online ($).

Land

 * Henry County Deed Books Vol. 1-1822-1825. Simmons Historical Publications. Digital version available at World Vital Records ($). Available for purchase at Simmons Historical Publications.
 * Henry County Deed Books Vol. 2-1825-1827. Simmons Historical Publications. Digital version available at World Vital Records ($). Available for purchase at Simmons Historical Publications.
 * Whitley, Edythe Rucker. Tennessee Genealogical Records: Henry County "Old Time Stuff." 1968; reprint, Baltimore, Md.: Clearfield Company, Inc. by Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 1998. Digital version at Ancestry ($). [Includes some early deed abstracts.]

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.
 * Whitley, Edythe Rucker. Tennessee Genealogical Records: Henry County "Old Time Stuff." 1968; reprint, Baltimore, Md.: Clearfield Company, Inc. by Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 1998. Digital version at Ancestry ($). [Includes a list of legislative petitions from residents of Henry County covering the years 1821 to 1855.]

Military
Revolutionary War


 * Whitley, Edythe Rucker. Tennessee Genealogical Records: Henry County "Old Time Stuff." 1968; reprint, Baltimore, Md.: Clearfield Company, Inc. by Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 1998. Digital version at Ancestry ($). [Includes 1840 Census of Revolutionary War Pensioners.]

War of 1812


 * Whitley, Edythe Rucker. Tennessee Genealogical Records: Henry County "Old Time Stuff." 1968; reprint, Baltimore, Md.: Clearfield Company, Inc. by Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 1998. Digital version at Ancestry ($). [Includes 1883 List of War of 1812 Pensioners.]

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 Henry 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 Henry 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 Henry 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.

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 Henry 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
Simmons Historical Publications has abstracted and indexed various volumes of Henry County wills. Copies may be purchased at their webiste. The following are available online at the subscription website World Vital Records ($):.


 * Whitley, Edythe Rucker. Tennessee Genealogical Records: Henry County "Old Time Stuff." 1968; reprint, Baltimore, Md.: Clearfield Company, Inc. by Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 1998. Digital version at Ancestry ($). [Includes will indexes 1856-1863, 1879-1902, some earlier will abstracts, as well as estates, guardians, orders, etc.]

Taxation
The original Henry County Tax Books 1827-1873 were microfilmed by the Tennessee State Library and Archives in 1969. Copies of their films are also available at the Family History Library: FHL US/CAN Films 1011525-1011526.

The following Henry County tax records have been abstracted:


 * [1823] Inman, W.O. "Pen Sketches" Index: Henry County, 1824 Land Sale for Taxes (Unpaid for 1823). n.p.: W.O. Inman, n.d. FHL US/CAN Book 976.834 R42i.
 * [1823] Sheriff's Sale for Taxes, March Term 1824, Henry Co., Tenn., Family Findings, Vol. 4, No. 2 (Apr. 1972). For possible FHL and online access, as well as indexes, see Periodicals.
 * [1827-1835] Historical Records Project. Tax Books, 1827-1835, Henry County, Tennessee. Typescript, Tennessee State Library, Nashville, Tenn. Microfilmed in 1943. FHL US/CAN Film 24700.
 * [1827] McNutt, Gwyn Bellamy. Henry County, Tennessee, 1827 Tax List. Paris, Tenn.: G.B. McNutt, 1988. FHL US/CAN Book 976.834 R4m 1827.
 * [1836] Hughes, Thomas Proctor. "Henry County, Tennessee 1836 Tax Record," Ansearchin' News, Vol. 28, No. 2 (Summer 1981):59-64; Vol. 28, No. 3 (Fall 1981):135-140. For FHL and online access, as well as indexes, see Periodicals.
 * [1836] Douthat, James L. 1836 Henry County, Tennessee Civil District and Tax Lists. Signal Mountain, Tenn.: Mountain Press, 1993. FHL US/CAN Book 976.834 R4d.
 * [1836] Tax Lists, 1836, Tennessee Genealogy and History, Vol. 1, No. 1 (Apr. 1997).
 * [1890] McNutt, Gwyn Bellamy. Henry County, Tennessee, 1890 Tax List. Paris, Tenn.: G.B. McNutt, 1988. FHL US/CAN Book 976.834 R4m 1890.

Vital Records
Marriage


 * Whitley, Edythe Rucker. Tennessee Genealogical Records: Henry County "Old Time Stuff." 1968; reprint, Baltimore, Md.: Clearfield Company, Inc. by Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 1998. Digital version at Ancestry ($). [Includes abstracts of some marriages recorded between 1838 and 1858.]

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. [Henry County is included in Vol. 1]

For deaths of Methodists in Henry 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.]

Societies and Libraries
Henry County Genealogical Society P.O. BOX 1411 Paris, TN 38242 Telephone 731-644-9040

Family History Centers
Paris Tennessee 1921 Lone Oak Rd Paris, Henry, Tennessee, United States Telephone: 731-642-2285 Hours: W 9am-2pm &amp; 6pm-8pm; Th 9:30am-2:30pm; All other times by appt.

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

Web Sites

 * Family History Library Catalog (FamilySearch)
 * Henry County, Tennessee by Dan Martin. Genealogy Resources, Local History, Queries
 * Henry County, TN Family History and Genealogy Message Board (Ancestry)
 * Henry County, TN Genealogy Forum (GenForum)
 * Henry County, TNGenWeb (USGenWeb)
 * RootsWeb Mailing List: TNHENRY-L (Henry County, Tennessee List)
 * RootsWeb Mailing List: DanvilleCrossing-L (Tennessee River County Genealogy and History List)
 * RootsWeb Mailing List: DanvilleQueries-L (Tennessee River County Genealogy and History List)
 * RootsWeb Mailing List: WEST-TNCHAT-L (West Tennessee Chat List)
 * RootsWeb Mailing List: WESTTN-L (West Tennessee List)