Lawrence County, Tennessee Genealogy

United States   Tennessee    Lawrence County

Middle Tennessee county. Established 1817.





County Courthouse


Lawrence County Courthouse 240 West Gaines Street Lawrenceburg, Tennessee 38464 Phone: 931-762-7700

Lawrence County Archives 2588 Highway 43 S Leoma, TN 38468 Phone: 931-852-4091 Email: lcarchives@lorettotel.net The Lawrence County Archives was formed in 1988 under the supervision of the Lawrence County Public Records Commission. The records are now permanently located in the First Farmer's and Merchant's building in Leoma, TN

Hours: Monday - Friday 8 am - 4:30 pm The archives could be closed for lunch at varying times. It also may be closed at various time for a few hours or a day. These changes will be posted on the website, but be sure to call if traveling a long distance to visit the archives.

History


The county is named after U.S. naval officer James Lawrence (1781-1813).

Parent County
1817--Lawrence County was created 21 October 1817 from Hickman and Maury Counties. County seat: Lawrenceburg

Record Loss

 * Lost census: 1890
 * Lost probate: 1817 to 1829

Although these are not burned records, applying strategies used for burned counties may aid in compensating for their loss. For further information on researching in burned counties, see the following:


 * Arlene Eakle, When the Records are Gone in Tennessee Genealogy Blog
 * Burned Counties Research in FamilySearch Wiki
 * Michael John Neill, Burned Counties in Family History Circle

Research Guides

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

African Americans
Census takers found no free African Americans living in Lawrence County, Tennessee in 1820.

Cemeteries

 * Find A Grave can be searched by the name of a person or family to find where a person is buried. Usually gives birth and death dates often with a picture of the tombstone. May give obituaries, names of family members and links to their information in Find A Grave.


 * Find A Grave also gives a list of cemeteries in Lawrence County linking to the information about the people buried there,


 * Lawrence County, TN Cemetery Records, part of the TNGenWeb Cemetery Database, lists many cemeteries in the county, often with indexes and transcripts of the burials.


 * Lawrence County, Tennessee, part of USGenWeb Tombstone Transcription Project lists many cemeteries in the county and has transcripts of the tombstones arranged by cemetery.


 * Lawrence County cemetery information with transcriptions on TNGenweb Project


 * The Family History Library Catalog lists some records of cemeteries for Lawrence County. Some of the books or other books may be on Google Books or available at public libraries.


 * ePodunk list of Lawrence County cemeteries


 * Irene McBane Alexander, Carrie Hardwick Gresham and the DAR Buffalo River Chapter (Tennessee) At rest : cemetery records of Lawrence County, Tennessee Lawrenceburg, Tennessee : Buffalo River Chapter DAR, 1977, c1968. FHL US/CAN book 976.842 V3a 1977 Free lookups available!


 * Myhan, Hazel and Ramsey, Donna At rest supplement...cemetery records of lawrence County, Tennessee [Lawrenceburg, Tennessee] : B. Alford, [1998?] FHL US/CAN book 976.842 V3m v. 1 - 4 Free lookups available!

Census
1820, 1830, 1840, 1850, 1860, 1870, 1880, 1900, 1910, 1920, and 1930 federal population censuses of Lawrence 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 Lawrence County, TN census assignments, including links to transcribed files. [The USGenWeb Census Project®]

1820


 * Bentley, Elizabeth P. Index to the 1820 Census of Tennessee. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1981.
 * Carter, Marymaud K. and Joan C. Hudgins. 1850 Census, Lawrence County, Tennessee (Including some Other Early Records).S.l.: s.n., 197-?
 * Lauderdale County Library. Vertical files, census records.Salt Lake City, Utah : Filmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah, 1978. Item 2.
 * Presley, Mrs. Leister E. Census, Lawrence, Perry, Shelby Counties, Tennessee, 1820.Searcy, Arkansas : Presley, 198-?.
 * Rice, Shirley H., ed. Lawrence County, Tennessee, Census Records : 1820, 1840 and 1840 and Miscellaneous Early County Records, of Private Acts, Field Calls for the First Civil Districts, Marriages, Taxable Property and Polls, Old Newspapers, Business Directory, and Officials.

1820 Manufactures

The original manufactures schedules for the Eastern and Western Districts of Tennessee are kept at the NARA, Washington, D.C. FHL copies: FHL US/CAN Films 1024517-1024518.

The following book is a useful aid for finding the original records. A free online index, provided by Lineages, will help researchers determine if this resource can be of assistance:


 * National Archives. Indexes to Manufactures Census of 1820. 1920; reprint, Knightstown, Ind.: Bookmark, 1977. FHL US/CAN Book 973 X2m 1820; digital version at Lineages. [Covers this county.]

1830


 * Rice, Shirley H., ed. Lawrence County, Tennessee, Census Records : 1820, 1840 and 1840 and Miscellaneous Early County Records, of Private Acts, Field Calls for the First Civil Districts, Marriages, Taxable Property and Polls, Old Newspapers, Business Directory, and Officials.

1840


 * Carpenter, Viola H. and Marymaud K. Carter. Lawrence County, Tennessee, 1860, 1840 Census: Private Acts, Miscellaneous.Columbia, Tennessee : P-Vine Press, 1977.
 * Rice, Shirley H., ed. Lawrence County, Tennessee, Census Records : 1820, 1840 and 1840 and Miscellaneous Early County Records, of Private Acts, Field Calls for the First Civil Districts, Marriages, Taxable Property and Polls, Old Newspapers, Business Directory, and Officials.

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 Marshalls of the Several Judicial Districts, Under the Act for Taking the Sixth Census. 1841; reprint, Baltimore, Md.: Genealogical Publishing, 1967. FHL US/CAN Book 973 X2pc 1840; FHL US/CAN Film 2321. 1841 edition digitized by the U.S. Census Bureau and Google Books et. al. [See Tennessee, Middle District, Lawrence County on page 156.]

1850


 * Carter, Marymaud K. and Joan C. Hudgins. 1850 Census, Lawrence County, Tennessee (Including some Other Early Records).S.l.: s.n., 197-?

1860


 * Carpenter, Viola H. and Marymaud K. Carter. Lawrence County, Tennessee, 1860, 1840 Census: Private Acts, Miscellaneous.Columbia, Tennessee : P-Vine Press, 1977.

1870


 * Rice, Shirley H., ed.Lawrence County, Tennessee, Census Records, 1870.Lawrenceburg, Tennessee : Family Tree Press, 1992.

1880


 * Carpenter, Viola H. and Marymaud K. Carter. Lawrence County, Tennessee, 1880 Census.Columbia, Tennessee: P-Vine Press, 1983.
 * Sistler, Byron H. 1880 census Lawrence County, Tennessee.Nashville, Tennessee: Byron Sistler &amp; Assoc., 1999.

1890 - Lost, but substitutes are available:


 * Reed, Sue S. Enumeration of Male Inhabitants of Twenty-one Years of Age and Upward, Citizens of Tennessee, January 1, 1891, as Provided for by an Act of General Assembly of Tennessee, Passed January 15, 1891, and Approved January 22, 1891. 8 vols. Houston, Texas: S.S. Reed, 1989. FHL US/CAN Book 976.8 X2r v. 8 1891. [Lawrence County is included in Vol. 8.]
 * Sistler, Byron H. and Barbara Sistler. 1890 Civil War Veterans Census, Tennessee. Evanston, Ill.: Byron Sister and Associates, 1978. FHL US/CAN Book 976.8 X2s 1890.

1900


 * Franks, Mary Nell H. and Shirley H. Rice Lawrence County, Tennessee, Census Records, 1900. Lawrenceburg, Tennessee: Family Tree Press, 1994.

1910


 * Franks, Mary Nell H. and Shirley H. Rice Lawrence County, Tennessee, census Records, 1910. Lawrenceburg, Tennessee: Family Tree Press, 1995. Districts 1-11. Supplement with district 12.

1920


 * Franks, Mary Nell H. and Shirley H. Rice Lawrence County, Tennessee, Census Records, 1920. Lawrenceburg, Tennessee: Family Tree Press, 1994.

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


 * Lawrence County Heritage Book Committee. The Heritage of Lawrence County, Tennessee. Waynesville, N.C.: County Heritage, 2008. FHL US/CAN Book 976.842 H2L.

Bibliography


 * [Allen] Rowles, W.P. and Alfred Osborn Pope Nicholson. The Life and Character of Capt. Wm. B. Allen: of Lawrence County, Tenn., Who Fell at the Storming of Monterey, on the 21st of September, 1846. With an Appendix, Containing a Number of His Essays and Speeches. Columbia, Tenn.: J. J. M'Daniel, "Democratic Herald" Book Office, 1853. Digital version at Google Books.
 * [Choates] Williams, Irene Choate and Betty Lee Swann. The Choates of Lawrence County, Tennessee. n.p.: I.C. Williams, 1971. FHL FAM HIST Book 929.273 C451wi.
 * [Clayton] Franks, Mary Nell Hollis and Shirley Ann Hollis. William "Flat River" Clayton and Benjamin Crews: Families of Person County, NC to Lawrence County, TN. Multi-volume. Leoma, Tenn.: Family Tree Press, 2003. FHL US/CAN Book 929.273 C579fm v. 1 pt. 1 ff.
 * [Crews] Franks, Mary Nell Hollis and Shirley Ann Hollis. William "Flat River" Clayton and Benjamin Crews: Families of Person County, NC to Lawrence County, TN. Multi-volume. Leoma, Tenn.: Family Tree Press, 2003. FHL US/CAN Book 929.273 C579fm v. 1 pt. 1 ff.
 * [Leeper] Gambill, Nell McNish The kith and kin of Captain James Leeper and Susan Drake, his wife [S.I. : s.n., c1946] FHL US/CAN book 929.273 L518 Free lookups available!
 * [McDonald] McDonald, William L. The McDonalds, Early Settlers and Descendents, 1834-1994. [Florence, Ala.: W.L. McDonald], 1994 Printing. FHL FAM HIST Book 929.273 M145mw; digital version at BYU Family History Archives. Alternative title: History of Clan McDonald in Lauderdale County, Alabama and Lawrence County, Tennessee.
 * [Pennington] Pennington, Michael Thomas Descendants of David Newton Pennington and Matilda Clingan Littleton, Colorado : M.T. Pennington, c1997 FHL book 929.273 P384pm. Digital version available at BYU Family History Archives.
 * [Reading] Redding, Mrs. Jackie and William L. McDonald. William H. Reading of Lawrence County, Tennessee; Soldier of the American Revolution: Progenitor of the Redding Families of Lauderdale County, Alabama and Lawrence County, Tennessee. Typescript, University of North Alabama, Florence, Ala. Microfilmed in 1979. FHL US/CAN Film 1035162 Item 6.
 * [Springer] Coffey, Laura Lou White and Mobley, Lidalee Springer Springers in the south Lawrenceburg, Tennessee : L.W. Coffey, c1977. FHL US/CAN book 929.273 C654cL Free lookups available!

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.

Local Histories

 * The Goodspeed histories of Lawrence, Giles and Wayne Counties Goodspeed Publishing Co., 1887. Free lookups available
 * Pruitt, Wade Bugger Saga : A Civil War story of guerrilla and bushwhacker warfare in Lauderdale County, Alabama Includes information on Lawrence and Wayne counties, Tennessee. s.n. 1977. Free lookups available!

Military
Revolutionary War

The following Lawrence 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 Marshalls of the Several Judicial Districts, Under the Act for Taking the Sixth Census. 1841; reprint, Baltimore, Md.: Genealogical Publishing, 1967. FHL US/CAN Book 973 X2pc 1840; FHL US/CAN Film 2321. 1841 edition digitized by the U.S. Census Bureau and Google Books et. al. [See Tennessee, Middle District, Lawrence County on page 156.]
 * 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.]

Mexican War


 * Rowles, W.P. and Alfred Osborn Pope Nicholson. The Life and Character of Capt. Wm. B. Allen: of Lawrence County, Tenn., Who Fell at the Storming of Monterey, on the 21st of September, 1846. With an Appendix, Containing a Number of His Essays and Speeches. Columbia, Tenn.: J. J. M'Daniel, "Democratic Herald" Book Office, 1853. Digital version at Google Books.

Spanish American War


 * Hale, Will T.The First Tennessee Regiment, United States Volunteers. Nashville, 1899. Free digital copy.

Newspapers
Many Tennessee newspapers are filmed and available at the Tennessee State Library and Archives. 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 Lawrence County click on the following cities and towns:


 * Crestview
 * Lawrenceburg
 * Loretto
 * Summertown

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 Lawrence County.]

Periodicals
Tap into the minds of local experts. Editors of genealogical periodicals publish unique sources that researchers who are new to their area would not likely discover. This type of material may be found in local, regional, or statewide genealogical society journals. The following periodicals cover this county:

Ansearchin' News

Several genealogical articles with abstracts of records of Lawrence County, Tennessee 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.

Yesterday and Today in Lawrence County

The Family History Library has Volume 11, no. 2 (1988). FHL US/CAN Book 976.842 B2y

Lawrence County Heritage

Index is found on the PERiodical Source Index (PERSI) See the Lawrence County Genealogical Societywebsite for further information and the Lawrence County Heritage table of contents for Volume 1 (1997) to the present.

Prisons
Learn if your Lawrence County ancestors went to prison!


 * 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
The organization Strictly By Name provides free online indexes to early Lawrence County probate records. They offer a record retrieval service to photocopy and transcribe microfilm copies of the original documents for a small fee. Available indexes:


 * 1) Will Book B: 1829-1847

The following Lawrence County probate records have been abstracted and/or indexed:


 * [1829-1861] Sistler, Byron and Barbara Sistler. Index to Tennessee Wills &amp; Administrations 1779-1861. Nashville, Tenn. Byron Sistler &amp; Associates, Inc., 1990. FHL US/CAN 976.8 P22s. [Includes an index to this county's probate records.]
 * [1829-1847] Strictly By Name (see above).

Taxation
The following Lawrence County tax records have been abstracted:


 * Carter, Marymaud Killen, Joan Coffey Hudgins and Shirley Hollis Rice. Lawrence County, Tennessee, Census Records: 1820, 1840 and 1840 and Miscellaneous Early County Records, of Private Acts, Field Calls for the First Civil Districts, Marriages, Taxable Property and Polls, Old Newspapers, Business Directory, and Officials. FHL US/CAN Book 976.842 X2r 1820-1840.
 * [1826] Tax List, 1826, Lawrence County Heritage, Vol. 3, No. 4 (Summer 2000).
 * [1836] Map of Tax Districts, 1836, Lawrence County Heritage, Vol. 1 (Fall 1997).
 * [1842] Tax Delinquencies, 1842, Searcy County Ancestor Information Exchange, Vol. 8, No. 3 (Oct. 1998).
 * [1868] Tax List, 1868, Lawrence County Heritage, Vol. 4, No. 2 (Winter 2000); Vol. 4, No. 3 (Spring 2001); Vol. 4, No. 4 (Summer 2001).
 * [1890] First Civil District Tax List, 1890, Lawrence County Heritage, Vol. 10, No. 4 (Summer 2007).

Vital Records
Marriage

The original Lawrence County marriage records are kept at the County Courthouse. Marriages were not officially recorded in Lawrence County until 1838, when state laws began requiring counties to keep marriage records. However, the county did keep marriage bond records from 1818-1909. These are unbound loose papers and are incomplete until about 1860. The following publication, based on early newspapers, helps to alleviate this genealogical obstacle:


 * Lucas, Silas Emmett. Marriages from Early Tennessee Newspapers 1794-1851. Easley, S.C.: Southern Historical Press, 1978..

The following Lawrence County marriage records are microfilmed:


 * [1818-1909] Available at the Tennessee State Library and Archives. Marriage bonds, loose records: 1818-1859 are incomplete.
 * [1838-1996] Available at the Tennessee State Library and Archives.
 * [1818-1909] Available at the Family History Library. Bonds and licenses.
 * [1838-1957] Available at the Family History Library. Some volumes are indexed. Others are arranges alphabetically by surname.
 * [1838] Record of marriage licenses, Lawrence County, Tennessee: 1838. Item 6

For free Lawrence county marriage record lookups for the years 1818- 1999 click here.

The following Lawrence County marriage records have been abstracted and/or indexed:


 * [1818-1923] Carter, Mrs. Claude A. Lawrence County, Tennessee, Marriage Records, 1818-1923. Lawrenceburg, Tennessee: Family Tree Press, 1992. Includes index of bride's surname.
 * [1818-1870] Lucas, Silas Emmett and Ella Lee Sheffield. 35,000 Tennessee Marriage Records and Bonds 1783-1870. 3 vols. Easley, S.C.: Southern Historical Press, 1981. FHL US/CAN Book 976.8 V2t v. 1 ff. [Abstracts include names of brides, grooms, bondsmen, marriage bond dates, and officiators for weddings in this county for the roughly specified years. Marriage data taken from an index card file at the Tennessee State Library and Archives. Authors do not specify whether or not the card index completely indexes this county's marriages.]
 * [1818-1870] Lucas, Silas E. Lawrence County, Tennessee. Marriages, 1818-1870. Greenville, South Carolina : Southern Historical Press, 1999. {[FHL|976.842 V2L|book}}
 * [1818-1870] Sistler, Byron and Barbara Sistler. Early Middle Tennessee Marriages. 2 vols. Nashville, Tenn.: B. Sistler &amp; Associates, 1988. FHL US/CAN Book 976.8 V2sb v. 2 ff. [Indexes names of brides and grooms, and marriage dates for weddings in this county for the specified years.]
 * [1818-1854] Whitley, Edythe Rucker. Marriages of Lawrence County, Tennessee, 1818-1854. Baltimore, Maryland: Genealogical Pub. Co., 1982.
 * [1838-1866] Marriage Records, 1850-1866, Lawrence County, Tennessee. Nashville: TSLA, Historical Records Project, 1939.  Typescript.  Item 3 and Item 6
 * [1838-1923] Morrison, John F. Lawrence County, Tennessee Marriages, 1838-1923. Nashville, Tennessee: Tennessee State Library and Archives, 196-. First 22 pages are marriages prior to 1838.
 * [1926-1999] Crowder, Nancy Lanning. Marriage index Lawrence County, Tennessee. Tennessee: N. L. Crowder, 2000. 2 vols.
 * RecordSearch at FamilySearch now includes indexed Tennessee marriages. This is a free pilot site and still under construction.  At this time, it is best to search from the home page, Discover Your Ancestors: indicate a surname, marriage "event", no date, and a county name (i.e. Lawrence, Tennessee).  Browse through the results for that surname. You may need to supply any variant spellings of the surname in separate searches.
 * Many county marriage records are indexed with images at Ancestry's Tennessee State Marriages, 1780-2002. ($) Be aware that this index is not complete for many counties.
 * [1861-1866] Marriage Records.
 * [1818-1850] Marriage Records: Early–1850.

Death

For deaths of Methodists in Lawrence County between the 1830s and the 1920s, try:


 * 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. FHL US/CAN Books 976.855/N1 V48s 1847-1851 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.]

Societies and Libraries
Lawrence County, Tennessee Genealogical Society 2258 Highway 43 South Leoma, Tennessee 38468 Telephone 931-852-4091

Middle Tennessee Genealogical Society PO Box 330948 Nashville, TN, USA 37203-7507 The society serves the 40 counties of middle Tennessee of which Lawrence County is one. It publishes The Middle Tennessee Journal of Genealogy and History, a quarterly containing articles of genealogical and historical interest. Little-known Tennessee records are published and indexed, along with family genealogies, Bible records and material submitted by members. There is an alphabetical Index to articles in the Journal 1988-summer 2005

Lawrence County Library 519 East Gaines Street Lawrenceburg, TN 38464 Phone: 931-762-4627 Fax: 931-766-1597 Email: librarian@co.lawrence.tn.us Hours: Monday, Thursday, Friday 9 am - 5:30 pm Tuesday and Wednesday 9 am - 8 pm Saturday 9 am - 2:30 pm

Web Sites

 * Lawrence County, TN Family History and Genealogy Message Board (Ancestry)
 * Lawrence County, TN Genealogy Forum (GenForum)
 * Lawrence County, TNGenWeb (USGenWeb)
 * Family History Library Catalog (FamilySearch)
 * RootsWeb Mailing List: TN-SOUTHCENTRAL-L (South Central Tennessee List)