Smith County, Tennessee Genealogy

United States   Tennessee    Smith County



County Courthouse
Smith County Courthouse 122 Turner High Circle, Suite 101 Carthage, Tennessee 37030-1541 Phone: (615) 735-2092

Hours: Monday - Friday 8 am - 4 pm

History
The county is named after "American Revolutionary War officer and U.S. Senator Daniel Smith (1748–1818)."

Parent County
1799--Smith County was established 26 October 1799 from Sumner County. Early records may be found under Sumner County. County seat: Carthage

Neighboring Counties

 * DeKalb
 * Jackson
 * Macon
 * Putnam
 * Trousdale
 * Wilson

Research Guides

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

Census

 * Willis, Laura. Smith County, Tennessee Census of 1830. Kentucky: Simmons Historical Publications, 1999. Digital version available at World Vital Records ($). Available for purchase at Simmons Historical Publications.
 * Willis, Laura. Smith County, Tennessee Census of 1840. Kentucky: Simmons Historical Publications, 1999. Digital version available at World Vital Records ($). Available for purchase at Simmons Historical Publications.

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]

Bibliography


 * [Doss] Murphy, Nathan W. Descendants of Azariah Doss and His Wife Lydia (Ayres) Doss. Hanson, Ky.: David W. Murphy and Associates, 1998. FHL FAM HIST Book 929.273 D741m.
 * [Gist] Dorsey, Jean Muir. Christopher Gist of Maryland and Some of His Descendants, 1679-1957, Chicago, IL: J.S. Swift Co., 1958. Available at Heritage Quest Online ($).
 * [Knight] Garrett, Jill Knight. Knight Cousins. [Columbia, TN: Unknown, 1967. Available at Heritage Quest Online ($).

Land

 * Willis, Laura. Smith County Deed Books Vol. 1-1800-1804. Kentucky: Simmons Historical Publications, 1997. Digital version available at World Vital Records ($).

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.

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 Smith County.]

Periodicals
Ansearchin' News

Several genealogical articles with abstracts of Smith 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

 * Willis, Laura and Betty Sellers. Smith County, Tennessee, Wills and Administrations. [1805-1818] Melber, KY: Simmons Historical Pub., 1997-1998. 4 volumes. Available at FHL US/CAN Book 976.852 P2w. Digital versions of selected volumes available at World Vital Records ($) Volume 2 Dec 1808-Feb 1815 and Volume 4 Aug 1816-May 1818 ($). Available for purchase at Simmons Historical Publications.

Web Sites

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