Weakley County, Tennessee Genealogy

United States   Tennessee    Weakley County





West Tennessee county established in 1823.

County Courthouse
Weakley County Courthouse P.O. Box 587 Dresden, Tennessee 38225 Phone: (731) 364-2285

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

History
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. County seat: Dresden

Record Loss
1948--Fire damaged records

Populated Places
Cities: Greenfield

Towns: Dresden, Gleason, Martin, Sharon

Other places:

Neighboring Counties

 * Carroll
 * Gibson
 * Graves County, Kentucky
 * Henry
 * Hickman County, Kentucky
 * Obion

Research Guides

 * Genealogical "Fact Sheets" About Tennessee Counties: Weakley 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


 * 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


 * [Barger] Smith, Gordon Edward. Barger: Family Records of the Barger's of Weakley County, Tennessee. Florence, Ala.: G.E. Smith, 1984. FHL US/CAN Film 1307616 Item 41.
 * [Brown] Brown, Garry S. The Descendants of Charles Brown of Weakley County, Tennessee. Albuquerque, New Mexico: Garry S. Brown, 2007. FHL FAM HIST Book 929.273 B812bga.
 * [Gatewood] Mosley, Lillian Gatewood. Sweet Memories. Dresden?, Tenn.: L.G. Mosley, 1989. FHL FAM HIST Book 929.273 G223m.

Land

 * 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.

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.

Maps

 * 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.

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 ($).
 * Willis, Laura Willis and Betty Sellers. Weakley County, Tennessee, Newspaper Abstracts. Melber, KY: Simmons Historical Pub., 1998. 12 volumes. Available at FHL US/CAN Book 976.824 B3w. Digital versions of selected volumes 1-10 are available at World Vital Records ($): 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.

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
Ansearchin' News

Several genealogical articles with abstracts of Weakley 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.

Family Findings

Several 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.

Prisons

 * 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

 * Willis, Laura. Weakley County, Tennessee Wills &amp; 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.

Taxation
The original Weakley County Tax Books 1842-1874 are kept at the County Courthouse. In 1976, the Tennessee State Library and Archives microfilmed these records. Copies of their films are also available at the Family History Library: FHL US/CAN Films 1003115-1003116.

The following Weakley County tax records have been abstracted:


 * [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.
 * [1889] Weakley County Tax List 1889. Purchase at Simmons Historical Bookstore.
 * [1890] Weakley County Tax List 1890. Purchase at Simmons Historical Bookstore.
 * [1890] Weakley County 1890 Tax List. Purchase at Simmons Historical Bookstore.

Vital Records
Birth


 * 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


 * 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.
 * 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.
 * 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.
 * 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.

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. [Weakley County is included in Vol. 1]
 * 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.]

Web Sites

 * Family History Library Catalog (FamilySearch)
 * RootsWeb 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)
 * Weakley County, TN Family History and Genealogy Message Board (Ancestry)
 * Weakley County, TN Genealogy Forum (GenForum)
 * Weakley County, TN USGenWeb