Hamilton County, Tennessee Genealogy

Guide to Hamilton County, Tennessee ancestry, genealogy and family history, birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, and military records.

Description
Hamilton County was named for Alexander Hamilton, the first Secretary of the Treasury. The county is located in the southeastern area of the state.

County Courthouse
Hamilton County Courthouse 625 Georgia Ave., Room 201 Chattanooga, TN 37402 County Courthouse Phone: 423-209-6500 County Clerk Phone: 423-209-6500 Clerk and Master Phone: 423-209-6601 Circuit Court Clerk Phone: 423-209-6701

County Clerk has marriage records from 1857 County Health Department has birth records from 1949 and death records from 1972 Circuit Court and Clerk and Masters have divorce records Clerk and Masters has probate records from 1865 Clerk and Masters and Register of Deeds has land records Register of Deeds has military discharge records Clerk Circuit Court has court records.

Populated Places
For a complete list of populated places, including small neighborhoods and suburbs, visit HomeTown Locator. The following are the most historically and genealogically relevant populated places in this county:

History Timeline
Additional Information East Tennessee county. Established 1819.

The county is named after Founding Father Alexander Hamilton (c1755-1804).

Business, Commerce, and Occupations

 * Acme Furniture Corporation 1911 Catalogue from Archive.org website

Cemeteries
Additional Cemetery Resources
 * Tennessee Cemeteries Hometown Locator

Census Records
1830, 1840, 1850, 1860, 1870, 1880, 1900, 1910, 1920, 1930, and 1940 federal population censuses of Hamilton 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 Hamilton County, TN census assignments, including links to transcribed files. The USGenWeb Census Project®

1810-1891


 * Tennessee, Compiled Census and Census Substitutes Index, 1810-1891 at Ancestry($)

1820 Lost

1820 Manufactures

The original manufactures schedules for the Eastern and Western Districts of Tennessee are kept at NARA, Washington, D.C. FS Library copies:.


 * National Archives. Indexes to Manufactures Census of 1820. 1920; reprint, Knightstown, Ind.: Bookmark, 1977. . Covers this county.
 * 1820 Census of Manufactures: Hamilton County, East Tennessee Roots, Vol. 8, No. 4:247.

1830


 * Sistler, Byron H. 1830 Census, East Tennessee. Evanston, Ill.: n.p., 1969..
 * Douthat, James L. Early Settlers, Hamilton County, Tennessee: 1830-1850 Census. Signal Mountain, Tenn.: Mountain Press, 1986. . Free Lookups Available!

1840


 * Douthat, James L. Early Settlers, Hamilton County, Tennessee: 1830-1850 Census. Signal Mountain, Tenn.: Mountain Press, 1986. . Free Lookups Available!

1840 Revolutionary War Pensioners


 * A Census of Pensioners for Revolutionary or Military Services: With their Names, Ages, and Places of Residence, as Returned by the Marshals of the Several Judicial Districts, Under the Act for Taking the Sixth Census. 1841; reprint, Baltimore, Md.: Genealogical Publishing, 1967. . Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library, Internet Archive, Ancestry ($). See Tennessee, Eastern District, Hamilton County on page 153.

1850


 * Douthat, James L. Early Settlers, Hamilton County, Tennessee: 1830-1850 Census. Signal Mountain, Tenn.: Mountain Press, 1986..

1860


 * Scanned census images. USGenWeb Archives
 * Douthat, James L. 1860 Hamilton County, Tennessee, Census. Signal Mountain, Tenn.: Mountain Press, 1989..

1880


 * Sistler, Byron and Barbara Sistler. 1880 Census, Hamilton County, Tennessee. Nashville, Tenn.: Byron Sistler ; Associates, 1996..

1891 Male Voters


 * 1891 Tennessee Enumeration of Male Voters 1891 at Ancestry($)

1900


 * 1900 Census, Hamilton County, Tennessee. Free Lookups Available!

1930


 * 1930 Census, Hamilton County, Tennessee. Lookups Available!

Church Records
List of Churches and Church Parishes
 * FamilySearch Places

Church records include baptisms, marriages and burials, as well as information about family members and clues about family migration.For additional information about church records, religions, and religious archives in Tennessee, see Tennessee Church Records.


 * Hamilton County Church Records


 * - FamilySearch Catalog -


 * Church histories tell when a church started in the area, who the early members were, give data about church leaders, etc.


 * - FamilySearch Catalog -


 * If the records you need are not found in the FamilySearch Library collection, contact the church(es) in the area where your ancestor lived.Two sites that give information about churches in Hamilton County are


 * - List of Hamilton County churches with addresses and phone numbers (Yellowbook)
 * - List of Hamilton County churches (TN HomeTownLocator)


 * In 1936, a helpful guide to early Hamilton County church records was published by the Works Project Administration. Use this guide to locate which church records exist and where they were housed in 1936. The Tennessee State Library and Archives has filmed some of these records. To locate which records are available at the TSLA, go to the appropriate "county fact sheet" on the TSLA Web site and scroll down to "selected manuscript material". All filmed church records at the TSLA for Hamilton County are listed. Many of these filmed records are also available at the FamilySearch Library.

Baptist


 * 1848-1872 - Historical Records Survey. Concord Baptist Church minutes, 1848-1872, Hamilton County, Tennessee. Salt Lake City, Utah Filmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah, 1943. Typescript. Item 2
 * 1838-1876 - Historical Records Survey. Good Spring Baptist Church minutes, 1838-1876, Hamilton County, Tennessee. Salt Lake City, Utah Filmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah, 1943. Typescript. Item 2
 * 1859-1896 - Historical Records Survey. Ocoee Baptist Association minutes, 1859-1896, Hamilton County, Tennessee. Salt Lake City, Utah Filmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah, 1943. Typescript. Item 1

Episcopal


 * 1850-1900 - St. Paul's Episcopal Church Records. Chattanooga, 1850-1900. TSLA Reel #503
 * 1850-1900 - Sistler, Byron and Barbara Sistler. Vital Statistics from 19th Century Tennessee Church Records. Nashville: Sitler and Associates, 1979. vol.2 Index to St. Paul's Episcopal Church Records. Chattanooga, 1850-1900.
 * 1900-1950 - St. Paul's Episcopal Church Records. Chattanooga, 1900-1950. TSLA Reel #350
 * 1900-1900 - Sistler, Byron and Barbara Sistler. Vital Statistics from 19th Century Tennessee Church Records. Nashville: Sitler and Associates, 1979. vol.2 Index to St. Paul's Episcopal Church Records. Chattanooga, 1900-1950.

Methodist Episcopal


 * 1872-1954 - First Methodist Episcopal Church Records. Chattanooga, 1872-1954. TSLA Reel #455
 * 1872-1900 - Sistler, Byron and Barbara Sistler. Vital Statistics from 19th Century Tennessee Church Records. Nashville: Sitler and Associates, 1979. vol.2 Index to First Methodist Episcopal Church Records. Chattanooga, 1872-1954.
 * 1875-1885 - First Methodist Episcopal Church, Chattanooga, Baptism Index 1875-1885. Batches and  in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch
 * 1885-1895 - First Methodist Episcopal Church, Chattanooga, Marriage Index 1885-1895. Batches and  in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch
 * 1899-1966 - Centenary Methodist Episcopal Church, South Records. Chattanooga, 1899-1966. TSLA Reel #454
 * 1899-1900 - Sistler, Byron and Barbara Sistler. Vital Statistics from 19th Century Tennessee Church Records. Nashville: Sitler and Associates, 1979. vol.2 Index to Centenary Methodist Episcopal Church, South Records. Chattanooga, 1899-1966.

Presbyterian


 * 1881-1952 - Second Presbyterian Church Records. Chattanooga, 1881-1952.TSLA Reel #393
 * 1881-1900 - Sistler, Byron and Barbara Sistler. Vital Statistics from 19th Century Tennessee Church Records. Nashville: Sitler and Associates, 1979. vol.2 Index to Second Presbyterian Church Records. Chattanooga, 1881-1952.

The W.P.A. published a helpful survey in 1940:


 * Directory of Churches, Missions, and Religious Institutions of Tennessee, no. 33, Hamilton County, Chattanooga. Nashville, Tenn.: Tennessee Historical Records Survey Project, 1940. FS Library US/CAN Book 976.882 E4h.

Court Records

 * 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 TSLA has created an index to names that appear in these acts covering the years 1796 to 1850. Online searchable index at TSLA.

Directories

 * Chattanooga, TN, 1890. Chattanooga, TN: Connelly &amp; Fais, 1890. Digital version at Ancestry ($).
 * Chattanooga, TN, 1891. Chattanooga, TN: Connelly &amp; Fais, 1891. Digital version at Ancestry ($)

Ethnic, Political, and Religious Groups
African American Bessie Smith Cultural Center 200 E. Martin Luther King Boulevard Chattanooga, TN 37403 (423) 266-8658 website

Genealogies

 * Wilson, John. Hamilton County Pioneers. Chelsea, Mich.: BookCrafters, 1998. . Free Lookups Available!
 * Wilson, John. Early Hamilton Settlers. Chattanooga, Tenn.: J. Wilson, 2001. . Free Lookups Available!
 * Boyd - Boyd, R. Vernon. The Boyds of Sequatchie Valley, Tn. Typescript, microfilmed in 1993. FS Library US/CAN Film 1750733 Item 37; digital version at FamilySearch Digital Library.
 * Hughes - Wilson, Duane Earl. Phetoma D. Epps (1837-1907) of Davidson County, North Carolina and Pope County, Arkansas and John Edward Hughes (1836-1885) Hamiliton County, Tennessee and Pope County, Arkansas: and Some of Their Ancestors, Descendants, and Related Families. Naperville, Ill.: D.E. Wilson, 1993..
 * Lauderdale - Lauderdale, Charles J. The Lauderdales of Scotland and America, 1056-1936. Joplin, MO: Gahagan Print. Co., 1937. Available at, digital version available at Heritage Quest Online ($).
 * Young - Stein, Carl F. Some Descendents of James Pickens Young 1815: of Polk, Rhea, Hamilton, Blount, Knox Counties, Tenn., Cherokee, Gaston Counties, North Carolina. Family Group Sheets..

Land and Property Records
The original Hamilton County Deed Books are held at the County Courthouse. In the early 1990s, the Hamilton County Microfilm Department microfilmed Deed Books A to Y6 (1796-1901) and Indexes (1799-1929). Copies of their large collection of films are also available at the FamilySearch Library: ff.

Local Histories

 * Armstrong, Zella. The History of Hamilton County and Chattanooga, Tennessee. Chattanooga, Tenn.: Lookout Pub. Co., c1931-c1940. Digital version at Ancestry ($).
 * Torrey, Bradford. Spring Notes from Tennessee.Boston: Houghton, Mifflin and company, c1896. Digital version,Description of local cabins, Confederate Veterans, Chattanooga in the 1890's.
 * Ochs, Milton Barlow. Views: Chattanooga, Chickamauga national park, Look-out Mountain, Missionary Ridge, Orchard Knob national cemetery, Tennessee River, Walden's Ridge. Chattanooga, Tennessee: Macgowan-Cooke Printing Co., 1905.Free digital copy.Photos and history of historical places and battlefields in Chattanooga.
 * Parham, Louis L. Chattanooga, Tennessee: Hamilton County and Lookout Mountain. sp: 1876.Digital version.
 * The history of Hamilton County and Chattanooga, Tennessee at Ancestry $

Maps and Gazetteers

 * Maps of Tennessee (1777-1985)
 * 1871 Ruger, A. Bird's Eye View of the City of Chattanooga, Hamilton County, Tennessee. Originally published 1871. ReevesMaps.com; website includes a scaled-down version of the map.
 * 1886 Wellege, Henry. Chattanooga, County Seat of Hamilton County, Tennessee. Originally published 1886. ReevesMaps.com; website includes a scaled-down version of the map.
 * 1890 Hopkins, G.M. A Map of the City of Chattanooga, Tennessee. Originally published 1890. Shows streets, businesses, etc. ReevesMaps.com; website includes a scaled-down version of the map.
 * 1939 Viking Press for WPA. A Map of Chattanooga. Originally published 1939. ReevesMaps.com; website includes a scaled-down version of the map.
 * FamilySearch Places: Cities and Towns in this county - How to Use FS Places

Military Records
Revolutionary War The following Hamilton 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 Marshals of the Several Judicial Districts, Under the Act for Taking the Sixth Census. 1841; reprint, Baltimore, Md.: Genealogical Publishing, 1967. . Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library, Internet Archive, Ancestry ($). See Tennessee, Eastern District, Hamilton County on page 153.
 * Rejected or Suspended Applications for Revolutionary War Pensions. Washington, D.C., 1852. Reprinted by Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 1969, and 1991. Reprints include "an Added Index to States." Digital version at Ancestry ($). Tennessee entries abstracted online at Tennesseans in the Revolutionary War, courtesy: TNGenWeb. Includes veterans from this county; Tennessee section begins on page 381.
 * Veterans, Revolutionary through Indian Wars, Appalachian Families, Vol. 1, No. 2 (1988).

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; Vol. 7, No. 4 (Oct. 1960):90-93. . Includes Hamilton County pensioners 7(3):66 and James County pensioners 7(4):90)

Civil War

Online Records
 * 1861-1865 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
 * 1861-1865 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
 * 1861-1865 - U.S., Confederate Soldiers Compiled Service Records, 1861-1865 at Ancestry
 * 1861-1865 - U.S., Union Soldiers Compiled Service Records, 1861-1865 at Ancestry
 * 1891-1965 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
 * Civil War Research Database
 * Civil War Soldiers and Sailors System

Confederate Soldiers
 * 1st Regiment, Tennessee Cavalry (Carter's) - CSA - Company B.
 * 2nd Regiment, Tennessee Cavalry (Ashby's) - CSA - Company H.
 * 4th Battalion, Tennessee Cavalry (Branner's) - CSA - Company A.
 * 4th Regiment, Tennessee Cavalry - CSA - Company H
 * 5th Battalion, Tennessee Cavalry (McClellan's) - CSA - Company B.
 * 5th Regiment, Tennessee Cavalry (McKenzie's) - CSA
 * 8th Regiment, Tennessee Cavalry (Smith's) - CSA - Company H.
 * 19th Regiment, Tennessee Infantry - CSA - Companies A and I.
 * 26th Regiment, Tennessee Infantry (3rd East Tennessee Volunteers) - CSA - Companies G and H.
 * 35th Regiment, Tennessee Infantry (5th Infantry) (1st Mountain Rifle Regiment) - CSA - Company I.
 * 36th Regiment, Tennessee Infantry - CSA - Companies H and K.
 * 37th Regiment, Tennessee Infantry (7th Infantry) (1st East Tennessee Rifles) - CSA - Company D and H.
 * 43rd Regiment, Tennessee Infantry (Gillespie's) (5th East Tennessee Volunteers) - CSA - Company K.

Union Soldiers
 * 5th Regiment, Tennessee Mounted Infantry - Company E.
 * 8th Regiment, Tennessee Cavalry - Company F.
 * 9th Regiment, Tennessee Cavalry - Company M.
 * 10th Regiment, Tennessee Cavalry - Company D.

Additional sources for Civil War soldiers from Hamilton County:

A good place to start is:


 * Hughes, Nathaniel Cheairs and John C. Wilson. The Confederates, Soldiers of Hamilton County, Tennessee: An Alphabetical Listing of the Confederate Soldiers Who Lived at One Time in Hamilton County, Tennessee. Signal Mountain, Tenn.: Mountain Press, 2001. FS Library US/CAN Book 976.882 M2h.
 * Boynton, Henry V. (Henry Van), 1835-1905; Kirkley, Joseph W. (Joseph William), 1841-1912.The National Military Park, Chickamauga -- Chattanooga. An Historical Guide(A roster of the Union and Confederate armies, at Chickamauga. Cincinnati). The Robert Clarke Co., 1895. Free digital copy.
 * Curry, W.L. (William Leontes) b.1839: Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States. Ohio Commandery. Raid of the Confederate Cavalry through Central Tennessee, in October, 1863, commanded by General Joseph Wheeler. A paper read before the Ohio Commandery of the Loyal Legion, April 1, 1908. (n.p.), 1908. Free digital copy.
 * Turchin, John Basil. ...Chickamauga. Chicago: Fergus Printing Co., 1888. Free digital copy.
 * Wehner, William. Battles of Chattanooga, Fought Nov. 23-25, 1863, by the armies of the Cumberland and Tennessee, under Generals Grant, Thomas, Sherman, and Hooker. General Bragg commanding the Confederate forces. Chattanooga, Lookout Mountain, Missionary Ridge and localities made famous by the battles of Chickamauga, Wauhatchie, Graysville, Ringgold, etc.. Chicago, Illinois, W.J. Jefferson, 1886. Free digital copy.
 * Worsham, William J. Old Nineteenth Tennessee Regiment, C.S.A. June, 1861-April, l865. Knoxville, Tennessee: Press of Paragon Printing Co., 1902. Free digital copy.
 * Genealogy Trails, Hamilton County Tennessee Military.
 * Tennessee State Library and Archives, Tennessee Confederate Pension Applications: Hamilton County. Includes soldier's name, county, pension #, unit or widow.
 * United States Pension Bureau, List of Pensioners on the Roll January 1, 1883: Giving the Name of Each Pensioner, the Cause for ... (Washington Printing Office; 1883). Online at Internet Archive. Hamilton County, page 341.
 * CWSAC, Battle Summaries, Chattanooga. Located in Hamilton County and City of Chattanooga. Wauhatchie, located in Hamilton, Marion and Dade County.
 * American Memory, Selected Civil War Photographs, 1861-1865. Chattanooga.
 * United States Pension Bureau, List of Pensioners on the Roll January 1, 1883: Giving the Name of Each Pensioner, the Cause for ... (Washington Printing Office; 1883). Online at Internet Archive. Hamilton County, page 340-342.
 * Hamilton County Tennessee Civil War Soldiers. Confederate and Union

Civil War Battle The following Civil War battles were fought in Hamilton County.
 * June 7-8, 1862 - Chattanooga I.
 * August 21, 1863 - Chattanooga II.
 * October 28-29, 1863 - Wauhatchie, also known as Brown's Ferry.
 * November 23-25, 1863 - Chattanooga III.
 * Battles of the American Civil War maps - filter by state or by battle name.

Newspapers
Many Tennessee newspapers are filmed and available at the 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 Hamilton county click on the following cities or towns:


 * Chattanooga
 * Ooltewah
 * Signal Mountain
 * Soddy


 * 1847 - 1851 - 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. 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. (Largely Methodist?)

Obituaries
For deaths of Methodists in Hamilton County between the 1830s and the 1920s, try searching the following Obituaries: Hamilton County Obituaries from TNGenWeb.

Prisons

 * 1831-1850 Inmates of the Tennessee State Penitentiary 1831-1850 at Tennessee State Library and Archives
 * 1851-1870 Inmates of the Tennessee State Penitentiary 1851-1870 at Tennessee State Library and Archives

Periodicals

 * Ansearchin' News: Quarterly magazine of the Tennessee Genealogical Society. For a keyword search, go to the county index. Read previous issues on their website;
 * East Tennessee Roots: Published by East Tennessee Roots The table of contents for some issues are available on their website;.

Probate Records
Hamilton County's early will books were destroyed in the Civil War. Surviving will books are held at the County Courthouse. In the early 1990s, the Hamilton County Microfilm Department microfilmed Will Books 1 to 6 (1862-1936) and an Index. FS Library copies:.

Online Records and Indexes


 * 1779-2008  Tennessee Wills and Probate Records 1779-2008 at Ancestry ($)
 * 1862-1936  Hamilton County Tennessee list of will book testators SAMPUBCO - Browsable index of testators of wills.
 * 1862-1936  Hamilton County portion of  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; handwritten indexes may be found at the front or back of some volumes.

Book Abstracts and Indexes


 * 1862-1892 - Douthat, James L. Hamilton County, Tennessee, Will Book 1. Signal Mountain, Tenn.: Mountain Press, 1996..

Social Security Records

 * 1935-2014 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index. Also at Ancestry, findmypast, Fold3, GenealogyBank, MyHeritage, and Steve Morse. Click here for more information.


 * 1936-2007 U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007 at Ancestry ($) — index, click here for more information.

Tax Records
Book Abstracts and Indexes


 * 1836 "Hamilton County, Tennessee 1836 Tax List," Ansearchin' News, Vol. 29, No. 1 (Spring 1982):25-31. FS Library US/CAN Book 976.8 B2a; digital version at society's website.
 * 1836 Douthat, James L. 1836 Hamilton County, Tennessee, Civil Districts and Tax Lists. Signal Mountain, Tenn.: Mountain Press, 1993. Mountain Press provides online surname list.
 * 1836-1837 - Tax Lists, 1836-37, by District, Southern Roots &amp; Shoots. Rossville GA: Aug 1993. Vol. 9 Iss. 3.

Vital Records

 * W.P.A. Guide to Public Vital Statistics in Tennessee. Nashville, Tenn.: The Tennessee Historical Records Survey, 1941. FamilySearch Digital Library;

Birth

 * 1828-1939 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
 * 1869-1909 Tennessee Delayed Birth Records 1869-1909 at Ancestry ($)
 * 1908-1912 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection

Marriage
Online Indexes and Records Book Abstracts and Indexes
 * 1625-1966 Tennessee, United States Marriages at Findmypast ($)
 * 1780-2002 Tennessee State Marriages 1780-2002 at Ancestry ($)
 * 1780-2002  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
 * 1790-1962  [1790-1962] at FamilySearch- How to Use this Collection. Covers all counties in Tennessee.
 * 1796-1950  (Indexes only) at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
 * 1838-1888  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
 * 1851-1900 Tennessee Marriages 1851-1900 at Ancestry ($)
 * 1857-1900 Hamilton County Marriage Index 1857-1900 in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch
 * 1857- Current year Hamilton County - online records from the Hamilton County Clerk
 * 1980-2014 Marriage Records Index 1980-2014 at Shelby County Register of Deeds - index
 * 1857-1863 Early East Tennessee Marriages. FS Library US/CAN 976.8 V2  2 vols. Free Lookups Available!

Death

 * 1874-1955 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
 * 1908-1933 Tennessee Deaths, 1908 - 1933 at MyHeritage ($) — index
 * 1908-1958 Tennessee Death Records 1908 - 1958 at Ancestry ($)
 * 1908-1912 Tennessee Death Records 1908-1912 at Tennessee State Library & Archives - index
 * 1914-1933 Tennessee Death Records 1914-1933 at Tennessee State Library & Archives - index
 * 1914-1966 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
 * 1949-2014 Death Records Index 1949-2014 at Shelby County Register of Deeds - index

Divorce
Online Titles
 * 1796-1850 Acts of Tennessee 1796-1850 at Tennessee State Library & Archives - index
 * 1980-2014 Divorce Records Index 1980-2014 at Shelby County Register of Deeds - index
 * 1800-1965 Tennessee. Tennessee Divorce and Other Records, 1800-1965. Nashville, Tennessee: Tennessee State Library and Archives. Available at Ancestry ($)
 * W.P.A. Guide to Public Vital Statistics in Tennessee. Nashville, Tenn.: The Tennessee Historical Records Survey, 1941. FamilySearch Digital Library. Note: This guide contains some divorces for James County, which is now defunct and has been reincorporated into Hamilton County.

FamilySearch Centers

 * Chattanooga Tennessee FamilySearch Center
 * Loudon Tennessee FamilySearch Center
 * Tullahoma Tennessee FamilySearch Center
 * Chattanooga Public Library - an affiliate library.
 * Cleveland Bradley County Public Library History Branch - an affiliate library.

Libraries
Chattanooga Public Library 1001 Broad Street Chattanooga, TN 37402 Phone: 423-643-7700 Website Avondale Library 1305 Dodson Avenue Chattanooga, TN 37406 Phone: 423-643-6998 Website Eastgate Library 5705 Marlin Road Chattanooga, TN 37411 Phone: 423-643-7770 Website Northgate Library 278 Northgate Mall Dr. Chattanooga, TN 37415 Phone: 423-643-7785 Website South Chattanooga Library 925 West 39th Street Chattanooga, TN 37410 Phone: 423-643-7780 Website

Museums
Bessie Smith Cultural Center 200 E. Martin Luther King Blvd. Chattanooga, TN 37403 Phone: 423-266-8658 Website

Societies
Hamilton County Tennessee Genealogy Society 430 Runyan Dr. Chattanooga, TN 37405 Email: [mailto:dwilson@hctgs.org dwilson@hctgs.org] Website

Websites

 * Hamilton County, TNGenWeb (USGenWeb)
 * – The FamilySearch catalog contains descriptions and access information for all genealogical materials (including books, online materials, microfilm, microfiche, and publications) in their collection.  Use Historical Records to search for specific individuals in genealogical records.

Research Guides

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