Hancock County, Tennessee Genealogy

United States   Tennessee    Hancock County

East Tennessee county. Established 1844.





Quick Dates
Hancock County's civil records start the following years:

County Courthouse
Hancock County Courthouse 1237 Main Street Sneedville, Tennessee 37869 Phone: 423-733-4341

Hancock County Clerk Marriage and Probate records 418 Harrison Street P.O. Box 201 Sneedville, TN 37869 Phone: 423-733-2519

Hancock County Register of Deeds Land records 1237 Main Street P.O. Box 347 Sneedville, TN 37869 Phone: 423-733-4545

Hancock County Circuit Court Clerk Court records 1237 Main Street P.O. Box 347 Sneedville, TN 37869 Phone: 423-733-2954

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

History


The county is named after Founding Father John Hancock (1737-1793).

Parent County
1844--Hancock County was created 7 January 1844 from Hawkins and Claiborne Counties. County seat: Sneedville

Record Loss
1885, 1930--Fires damaged records


 * Lost census: 1890
 * Lost marriages: 1844 to 1930
 * Lost probate: 1844 to 1924

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

Neighboring Counties

 * Claiborne
 * Grainger
 * Hawkins
 * Lee County, Virginia
 * Scott County, Virginia

Research Guides

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

African American
The following have information concerning African American research. Both should be used:


 * African American Research (US) has more information about the kinds of records


 * African American Research for Tennessee is specific for Tennessee

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 Hancock County linking to the information about the people buried there,


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


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


 * Hancock County cemetery information with transcriptions on TNGenweb Project


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


 * ePodunk list of Hancock County cemeteries


 * Hawkins County Genealogical and Historical Society (Rogersville, Tennessee)Cemeteries of Hawkins county, Tennessee FHL US/CAN book 976.895 V3c v.1-4 Free lookups available!

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

1880


 * Sistler, Byron and Barbara Sistler. 1880 Census, Hancock County, Tennessee. Nashville, Tenn.: Byron Sistler &amp; Associates, 1996. FHL US/CAN Book 976.8946 X2s 1880.

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. 6 1891. [Hancock County is included in Vol. 6.]
 * 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.

1930


 * Collins, Betty VanOver. Hancock Co., Tennessee Federal Census, 1930. Knoxville, Tenn.: B.J.V. Collins, 2004?. FHL US/CAN Book 976.8946 X2c 1930.

Church
Baptist


 * DeBoard, George Mitchell et al. Personal Records of a Minister: Rev. George Mitchell DeBoard, Grainger County, Tennessee; Includes Many People from Hancock, Hawkins and Hamblen Counties, Tennessee). Dallas, Texas: H.P. Garner, 2001?. FHL US/CAN Book 976.8932 K2d.

DNA
DNA has been collected from men claiming descent from the following Hancock County residents. Attempts have not been made to verify the lineages of those tested.

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


 * Hancock County Historical and Genealogical Society (Tennessee). Hancock County, Tennessee and Its People. 3 vols. n.p.: Walsworth Pub. Co., 1990-2004. FHL US/CAN Book 976.8946 H2h ff.

Bibliography


 * [Church] Murray, James Lawrence. Church - Edens Families of Hawkins and Hancock Counties, Tennessee. El Paso, Texas: J.L. Murray, 1960. FHL FAM HIST Book 929.273 A1 no. 1487.
 * [Eppes] Johnson, Mary Lou Shoemaker. Family of Edward Eppes of Knox County, Tennessee. Fountain City, TN?: Unknown, 1951. Available at Heritage Quest Online ($).
 * [Flagg] Descendants of Josiah Flagg of Berkeley County, W. Va.; with Sketches of the Flagg, Keyes, Foss, Shively, Hughes, Slemons and Campbell Ancestries. Boston: Press of T.R. Marvin, 1920. Free digital copy, courtesy: Internet Archive.
 * [Goins] Rhea, Johnnie Clyde. Alexander Goins Family of Newman's Ridge, Hancock, Tennessee. Sneedville, Tenn.: J.C. Rhea, 1999. FHL FAM HIST Book 929.273 G561r.
 * [Greene] McNeil, Jack (John Edward, Jr.) The nine Greene sisters of Benton County, Arkansas Parkin, Arkansas : J. McNeil, c1992 FHL book 929.273 G83. Digital version available at BYU Family History Archives.

Land
The original Hancock County Deed Books are held at the Hancock County Courthouse. The TSLA microfilmed Deed Books J through Q (1879-1902) and the Index (1879-1968) in the 1970s. Copies of their microfilms are also available at the Family History Library: FHL US/CAN Films 968664-968668.

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 TSLA hascreated 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 TSLA; another version is available at World Vital Records.

Local Histories
Hancock County Historical and Genealogical Society (Tennessee) Hancock County, Tennessee and its people [United States] : Walsworth Pub. Co., c1990-2004 FHL US/CAN book 976.8946 H2h v.1-3 Free lookups available

Military
Civil War


 * Carter, William Randolph. History of the First regiment of Tennessee Volunteer Cavalry in the Great war of the Rebellion, with the Armies of the Ohio and Cumberland, under Generals Morgan, Rosecrans, Thomas, Stanley and Wilson. Knoxville, Tennessee: Gaut-Ogden Co. Printers, 1902. Free digital copy. Union.

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 Hancock County click on the following town:


 * Sneedville

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
 * Genealogical articles with abstracts of records of Hancock 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.
 * East Tennessee Roots
 * Genealogical articles with abstracts of Hancock County, Tennessee records have been published in East Tennessee Roots (10 vols.). A subject index to these articles is available online. Surname indexes to Volumes 9 and 10 are also available online. The Family History Library has collected most issues of East Tennessee Roots FHL US/CAN Book 976.8 D25e.
 * Our Mountain Heritage
 * Primary emphasis of the quarterly news-letter is on the "publication of local records that are not available elsewhere."(website: www.overhomesneedville.com) Indexed in the PERiodical Source Index (PERSI)
 * Watauga Association of Genealogists Bulletin
 * Genealogical articles with abstracts of Hancock County, Tennessee records have been published in the Watauga Association of Genealogists Bulletin (39+ vols., 1972-present), the journal of the Watauga Association of Genealogists. The organization has posted tables of contents for most volumes on their website. Back issues are available for purchase. The Family History Library has a complete collection FHL US/CAN Books 976.897 B2w, including Margaret W. Hougland and Betty Jane Hylton's Bulletin Subject Index: The First Thirty Years, 1972-2001 (Johnson City, Tenn.: Watauga Association of Genealogists, 2002) FHL US/CAN Book 976.897 B2w index 1972-2001.

Prisons
Learn if your Hancock County ancestors went to prison!


 * Inmates of the Tennessee State Penitentiary 1831-1850, free index available online, courtesy: TSLA.
 * Inmates of the Tennessee State Penitentiary 1851-1870, free index available online, courtesy: TSLA.

Taxation
The following Hancock County tax lists have been abstracted:


 * [1880] 1880 Hancock County Tax List, East Tennessee Roots, Vol. 6, No. 1; Vol. 6, No. 2; Vol. 6, No. 3; Vol. 6, No. 4. For access, see Periodicals.
 * [1880] Tax Records, 1880. Our Mountain Heritage, Vol. 14, No. 2 (Spring 2002); Vol. 14, No. 3 (Summer 2002); Vol. 14, No. 4 (Fall 2002); Vol. 15, No. 1 (Winter 2003); Vol. 15, No. 2 (Spring 2003); Vol. 15, No. 3 (Summer 2003); Vol. 15, No. 4 (Fall 2003); Vol. 16, No. 1 (Winter 2004); Vol. 16, No. 2 (Spring 2004); Vol. 16, No. 3 (Summer 2004); Vol. 16, No. 4 (Fall 2004); Vol. 17, No. 1 (Winter 2005); Vol. 17, No. 2 (Apr. 2005); Vol. 18, No. 2 (Apr. 2006).

Death

 * Wiefering, Edna and Cleveland Public Library. Hancock County, Tennessee, Vital Statistics, 1914 through 1925. Cleveland, Tenn.: Cleveland Public Library, 199-?. FHL US/CAN Book 976.8946 V2w.

For deaths of Methodists in Hancock 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
Hancock County Tennessee Historical &amp; Genealogical Society P O Box 307 Sneedville, Tennessee 37869 Telephone: 423-733-0140 or 423-733-4541

East Tennessee Historical Society 601 S. Gay Street P.O. Box 1629 Knoxville, Tennessee 37901-1629 Phone: 865-215-8824 Email: eths@east-tennessee-history.org

Hancock County Public Library 138 Willow Street Sneedville, TN 37869 Phone: 423-733-2020 Hours: 9 am - 5:30 pm The Hancock Public Library does have a genealogy and local history section.

Web Sites

 * Family History Library Catalog (FamilySearch)
 * Hancock County, TN Family History and Genealogy Message Board (Ancestry)
 * Hancock County, TN Genealogy Forum (GenForum)
 * Hancock County, TNGenWeb (USGenWeb)
 * RootsWeb Mailing List: TNHANCOC-L (Hancock County, Tennessee List)
 * RootsWeb Mailing List: ETN-L (East Tennessee List)
 * RootsWeb Mailing List: ETN-OZ-L (East Tennessee Migrants to Ozarks Region List)
 * RootsWeb Mailing List: UPPEREASTTN-L (Upper East Tennessee List)