Tennessee Death Records - FamilySearch Historical Records

What Is in This Collection?
The collection consists of death records, 1914-1950; and death certificates, 1951-1955. The collection includes a general index (with some volumes individually indexed) and images. The state of Tennessee began recording deaths in 1914.

What Can This Collection Tell Me?
The following information is usually found in the index:


 * Name
 * County
 * Age (1914 only)
 * Date of Death (starting in 1915)
 * Record Number (1914 only)
 * Volume and Page Numbers (starting in 1915)

The following information is usually found In the death record:


 * Name and age of deceased and date of death
 * Gender, race and marital status of deceased
 * Date and place of birth
 * Town, county and state where death occurred
 * Name of hospital or institution where death occurred
 * Cause of death
 * Occupation and residence of deceased
 * Length of stay in current locality
 * Names of parents, including maiden name of mother
 * Burial information
 * Name of informant, usually a spouse or relative
 * Funeral Home

How Do I Search This Collection?
When searching the index it is helpful to know:
 * The name of your ancestor.
 * The approximate date of death.
 * The place where the death occurred.
 * The names of family members and their relationships.

Search by Name by visiting the Tennessee Death Records Page: Fill in the requested information in the initial search page. This search will return a list of possible matches. Compare the information about the ancestors in the list to what you already know about your ancestors to determine if this is the correct family or person. You may need to compare the information about more than one person to find your ancestor. Keep in mind:


 * There may be more than one person in the records with the same name.
 * You may not be sure of your own ancestor’s name.
 * Your ancestor may have used different names, or variations of their name, throughout their life.
 * If your ancestor used an alias or a nickname, be sure to check for those alternate names.
 * Even though these indexes are very accurate they may still contain inaccuracies, such as altered spellings, misinterpretations, and optical character recognition errors if the information was scanned.

For tips about searching on-line collections see the on-line article FamilySearch Search Tips and Tricks.

What Do I Do Next?
When you have located your ancestor’s death record, carefully evaluate each piece of information given. These pieces of information may give you new biographical details that can lead you to other records about your ancestors. Add this new information to your records of each family.

I Found the Person I Was Looking For, What Now?

 * Use the birth date or age along with the place of birth to find or verify their birth records and parents' names.
 * Use the birth date or age along with the place of birth to find the family in census records.
 * Use the residence and names of the parents (if the deceased is a child) to locate church and land records.
 * Use the parents' birth places to find former residences and to establish a migration pattern for the family.
 * Occupations listed can lead you to other types of records such as employment or military records.
 * The name of the officiator may be a clue to their religion or area of residence in the county.
 * The name of the undertaker or mortuary could lead you to funeral and cemetery records which often include the names and residences of other family members.
 * Compile the entries for every person who has the same surname; this is especially helpful in rural areas or if the surname is unusual.
 * Continue to search the records to identify children, siblings, parents, and other relatives of the deceased who may have died or been buried in the same county or nearby. This can help you identify other generations of your family or even the second marriage of a parent. Repeat this process for each new generation you identify.
 * When looking for a person who had a common name, look at all the entries for the name before deciding which is correct.
 * The information in these records is usually reliable, but depends upon the reliability of the informant.
 * Earlier records may not contain as much information as the records created after the late 1800s.
 * There is also some variation in the information given from one record to another record.

I Can't Find the Person I'm Looking For, What Now?

 * Check for variant spellings of the surnames.
 * Check for a different index. There are often indexes at the beginning of each volume.
 * Search the indexes and records of nearby counties.

For a summary of this information see the wiki article United States, How to Use the Records Summary (FamilySearch Historical Records).

Known Issues With This Collection
For a full list of all known issues associated with this collection see the attached article. If you encounter additional problems, please email them to [mailto:support@familysearch.org support@familysearch.org]. Please include the full path to the link and a description of the problem in your e-mail. Your assistance will help ensure that future reworks will be considered.

Citing This Collection
Citing your sources makes it easy for others to find and evaluate the records you used. When you copy information from a record, list where you found that information. Here you can find citations already created for the entire collection and for each individual record or image.

"Tennessee, Death Records, 1914-1955." Database with Images. FamilySearch. http://FamilySearch.org : accessed 2017. Citing Division of Vital Records. State Library and Archives, Nashville.
 * Collection Citation:

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