Henderson County, Tennessee Genealogy

United States   Tennessee    Henderson County

West Tennessee county established in 1821.





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

County Courthouse


Henderson County Courthouse 17 Monroe Ave. Lexington, TN 38351 Phone: 1-731-968-2801


 * County Clerk has marriage and probate records Phone: 1-731-968-2856
 * Register of Deeds has land records Phone: 1-731-968-2941
 * Circuit Court Clerk has court records Phone: 1-731-968-2031

Hours: Mon., Tues., Thurs., Fri. 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Fri. 8 a.m.-noon Closed on Wednesdays

History
The county is named after War of 1812 officer James Henderson.

Parent County
1821--Henderson County was created 7 November 1821 from Chickasaw Indian Lands. County seat: Lexington

County Pronunciation


Did we get the accent right? If not, contact Nathan W. Murphy, [mailto:murphynw@familysearch.org murphynw@familysearch.org].

Record Loss
1896--Fire damaged records


 * Lost census: 1890
 * Lost marriages records: 1821 and 1892
 * Lost probate records: 1821 to 1894

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


 * Arlene Eakle, When the Records are Gone in Tennessee Genealogy Blog
 * Burned Counties Research in FamilySearch Wiki
 * Michael John Neill, Burned Counties in Family History Circle

Neighboring Counties

 * Carroll
 * Chester
 * Decatur
 * Hardin
 * Madison

Research Guides

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

African American
The following have information concerning African American research. Both should be used:


 * African American Research (US) has more information about the kinds of records


 * African American Research for Tennessee is specific for Tennessee

Cemeteries
Tennessee cemetery records often identify birth, death, relationship, and military information, as well as religious affiliation.

The following websites may contain Henderson County cemetery records:


 * Find A Grave can be searched by the name of a person or family to find where a person is buried. Usually gives birth and death dates often with a picture of the tombstone. May give obituaries, names of family members and links to their information in Find A Grave.


 * Find A Grave also gives a list of cemeteries in Henderson County linking to the information about the people buried there,


 * Henderson County, TN Cemetery Records, part of the TNGenWeb Cemetery Database, lists many cemeteries in the county, often with indexes and transcripts of the burials.


 * Henderson County, Tennessee, part of USGenWeb Tombstone Transcription Project lists many cemeteries in the county and has transcripts of the tombstones arranged by cemetery.


 * Henderson County cemetery information with transcriptions on TNGenweb Project


 * The Family History Library Catalog lists some records of cemeteries for Henderson County. Some of the books or other books may be on Google Books or available at public libraries.


 * Some cemetery transcriptions for Henderson County are on Interment.net


 * ePodunk list of Henderson County cemeteries

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

1820 and 1860


 * Smith, Jonathan Kennon Thompson A genealogical miscellany, Henderson County, Tennessee Jackson, Tennessee : J.K.T. Smith, c1997, 2001-2002 FHL US/CAN book 976.8263 N2s v. 1 - 7 (One page correction of the 1860 census and 1/2 page 1820 U.S. census, Perry County of those who lived in what became Henderson County.)

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, Henderson County on page 159.]

1870


 * Green, Exie Johnson 1870 census, Henderson County, Tennessee Hope, Arkansas : E.J. Green, 1987? FHL US/CAN book 976.8263 X2

1880


 * Scanned census images [in the USGenWeb Archives]
 * Sistler, Byron H. and Barbara 1880 census Henderson County, Tennessee Nashville, Tennessee : B. Sistler and Associates, 2001 FHL US/CAN book 976.8263 X2

1900


 * Scanned census images [in the USGenWeb Archives]

1910


 * Scanned census images [in the USGenWeb Archives]

1920


 * Scanned census images [in the USGenWeb Archives]

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

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


 * Waddle, Laura. Some Early Families of Henderson County, TN : Arnold, Barrow, Bradford, Cooper, Christopher, Darden, Davis, Grice, Joyner, Lewis, McCarver, McGlaughlin, Meredith, Mills, Ray, Rhodes, Waddle/Waddill, Wadley. FHL US/CAN Fiche 6046873.

Bibliography


 * [Adams] Hampton, Estelline Adams. John Adams, Esquire (III): Ancestors and Descendants. Unknown: unknown, 1976. Available at FHL US/CAN Film 982157 Item 7; digital versions available at Ancestry ($); BYU Family History Archives; and Heritage Quest Online ($).
 * [Bell] Lewis, Leroy Carlisle. Leander Bell of Henderson County, Tennessee: A Genealogical Survey and Historical Record of His Life and the Lives of His Descendants and His Ancestors. Searcy, Ark.: L.C. Lewis, 1987. FHL FAM HIST Book 929.273 B413L.
 * [Bell] Lewis, Leroy Carlisle. William Samuel Bell of Tennessee, Texas and Arkansas: A Genealogical Survey and Historical Record of His Life and the Lives of His Descendants and His Ancestors. Searcy, Arkansas: L.C. Lewis, 1987. FHL FAM HIST Book 929.273 B413LLc.
 * [Brown] Brown, George Washington Reminiscences of the Republic of Texas 1910 Available at the Family History Library FHL book 921.73 B813bg with a digital version through BYU Family History Archives (found in the Library of the Alamo, San Antonio, Texas April 1965 by his Grandson Earl Travis Brown)
 * [Conner] See Cravens.
 * [Cravens] Cravens, John Park. Records of the Ancestry of John Park Cravens: The Lines of Direct Lineal Descent and a Summary. Booneville, AR: Unknown, 1957. Available at FHL US/CAN Film 288184; digital vestion at Heritage Quest Online ($).
 * [Harwell] See Cravens.
 * [Herndon] See Cravens.
 * [Lane] See Cravens.
 * [Rice] See Cravens.
 * [Stewart] Wadley, Richard Cratis and Eunice Stewart Goddard. Tennessee Roots: Catherine Stewart of Henderson County. Norman, Oklahoma: Eunice and Jim Goddard, 1990. FHL FAM HIST Book 929.273 St49wr.

Historic Residences

 * Crook, W. Clay. The Jeremiah Crook Plantation of Henderson County, Tennessee: ca. 1820-1865. Crook Family Archives, Crookland, Middlefork Village, Luray, Tenn. Microfilmed in 2001. FHL VAULT US/CAN Film 2243216 Item 12.

Land

 * Henderson County Register of Deeds has Land Records from 1856 and is located at the Courthouse, P.O. Box 40, 17 Monroe Street, Lexington, TN 38351; (731) 968-2856. 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 1856-1900 with indexes 1856-1935.

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 TSLAhas 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.

Military
Revolutionary War

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


 * 1) 1835 Pension Roll
 * 2) 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. 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, Henderson 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. FHL US/CAN Book 976.8 B2a v. 7 (1960); digital version at journal website. [Includes Henderson County pensioners (pp. 67-68)]

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 Henderson County click on the following cities or towns:


 * Lexington
 * Sardis
 * Scotts Hill

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 records of Henderson 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
 * Genealogical articles with abstracts of Henderson 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 Henderson County ancestors went to prison!


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

Probate
Probate records are court records created after an individual’s death that relate to a court’s decisions regarding the distribution of the estate to the heirs or creditors and the care of any dependents. You may find the names of married daughters or other relatives and their residences; or information about the adoption or guardianship of minor children and dependents. Probate records do not always give an exact date of death, but the death usually occurred within four months of probate. These documents are important to family history researchers, because they usually exist for time periods before civil birth and death records were kept.

The County Court has responsibility for the probate records of Henderson County.

Taxation
The following Henderson County tax records have been abstracted:


 * [1824] Unpaid Taxes List, 1824, Ansearchin' News, Vol. 47, No. 4 (Winter 2000). FHL US/CAN Book 976.8 B2a v. 47 (2000). For access, see Periodicals.
 * [1836-1837] West, Betsy F. "Henderson County, Tennessee 1836-1837 Tax Lists," Ansearchin' News, Vol. 24, No. 1 (Spring 1977):11-14; Vol. 24, No. 2 (Summer 1977):83-87; Vol. 24, No. 3 (Fall 1977):111-114; Vol. 24, No. 4 (Winter 1977):159-163. FHL US/CAN Book 976.8 B2a v. 24 (1977); free digital version at society's website. For further access, 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. FHL US/CAN Book 976.8 B2a v. 44 (1997). For access, see Periodicals.

Marriage
Marriages were not officially recorded in Henderson 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:


 * Lucas, Silas Emmett. Marriages from Early Tennessee Newspapers 1794-1851. Easley, S.C.: Southern Historical Press, 1978..

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


 * [1893-1951] Henderson County, Tennessee County Court Clerk Marriage records (Henderson County, Tennessee), 1893-1951 Nashville, Tennessee : Tennessee State Library and Archives, [197-?]-1988. FHL US/CAN Film 978744-46, 1928717-21
 * [1894-1950] Tennessee, County Court (Henderson County) Henderson County, Tennessee, marriage records, 1894-1950 Salt Lake City, Utah : Filmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah, 1999. FHL US/CAN Film 2137204, 2223403-04, 2138636, 2138771, 2138988, 2137020
 * RecordSearch at FamilySearch now includes indexed Tennessee marriages. This is a free pilot site and still under construction.  At this time, it is best to search from the home page titled Discover Your Ancestors; indicate a surname, marriage "event" and a county name (i.e. Henderson, Tennessee).  Browse through the results for that surname. You may need to supply any variant spellings of the surname in separate searches.
 * Many county marriage records are indexed with images at Ancestry's Tennessee State Marriages, 1780-2002 ($). Be aware that this index is not complete for all counties.

Divorce
In 1940 and 1941, W.P.A. workers pinpointed the location of Henderson County divorce papers in diverse manuscript collections, see:


 * 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
For deaths of Methodists in Henderson 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

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