Overton County, Tennessee Genealogy

United States   Tennessee    Overton County





County Courthouse
Overton County Courthouse 317 East University Street Livingston, Tennessee 38570 Phone: (931) 823-2536

Hours: Mon.-Tues. and Thurs.-Fri. 8 am - 4:30 pm Wed. and Sat. 8 am - noon

History
The county is named after "John Overton (1766–1833), one of the cofounders of Memphis, Tennessee."

Parent County
1806--Overton County was established 11 September 1806 from Jackson County. Early records may be found under Jackson County. County seat: Livingston

Record Loss
1865--Fire damaged records

Neighboring Counties

 * Clay
 * Cumberland
 * Fentress
 * Jackson
 * Pickett
 * Putnam

Research Guides

 * Genealogical "Fact Sheets" About Tennessee Counties: Overton 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

 * Young, Denise, ed. Overton County, Tennessee Census, 1920 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: The Generations Network, Inc., 1999. Available at Ancestry ($).

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


 * Whitley, Edythe Johns Rucker. Tennessee Genealogy Records: Overton County. Available at FHL US/CAN Book 976.868 D2w; digital versions available at Ancestry ($) and World Vital Records ($).

Bibliography

Land

 * Whitley, Edythe Johns Rucker. Tennessee Genealogy Records: Overton County. Available at FHL US/CAN Book 976.868 D2w; digital versions available at Ancestry ($) and World Vital Records ($).

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 Overton County.]

Periodicals
Ansearchin' News

Several genealogical articles with abstracts of Overton 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

 * Whitley, Edythe Johns Rucker. Tennessee Genealogy Records: Overton County. Available at FHL US/CAN Book 976.868 D2w; digital versions available at Ancestry ($) and World Vital Records ($).

Taxation

 * [1836] Douthat, James L. 1836 Overton County, Tennessee Civil Districts &amp; Tax List. Signal Mountain, Tenn.: Mountain Press, 2001. FHL US/CAN Book 976.8684 R4d.

Web Sites

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