Monroe County, Tennessee Genealogy

United States   Tennessee    Monroe County East Tennessee county. Established 1819.





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

County Courthouse
Monroe County Courthouse 103 College St. Madisonville, TN 37354 Phone: 1-423-442-5940

Monroe County Clerk Marriage, probate and court records 103 College St., Suite 1 Madisonville, TN 37354 Phone: 1-423-442-2220

Monroe County Register of Deeds Land records 103 College St., Suite 3 Madisonville, TN 37354 Phone: 1-423-442-2440

Hours: Mon., Tues., Thurs., Fri. 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Wed. and Sat. 8:30 a.m.-Noon

History


The county is named after President James Monroe (1758-1831).

Parent County
1819--Monroe County was established 13 November 1819 from Cherokee Indian Lands. County seat: Madisonville

County Pronunciation

 * 1) Hear it spoken (female)
 * 2) Hear it spoken (female)

Boundary Changes
"Rotating Formation Tennessee County Boundary Maps" (1777-1985) may be viewed for free at the My Tennessee Genealogy website. They rely on AniMap 3.0 software.

Record Loss
1860--Civil War damaged records


 * Lost censuses: 1820, 1890
 * Lack of marriage records: 1819 to 1837
 * Lost probate: 1819 to 1835

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

Getting Started
Use the free Search for Surnames at Mountain Press's website to quickly search a variety of published Monroe County biography, cemetery, church, court, land, probate, and tax records. To determine which books are being searched, or to search each publication's index individually, click here. You are now equipped with a checklist of books to pull off the shelves at a genealogy library, or a wish list for your personal book collection.

Research Guides

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

African American
United States African Americans Tennessee African Americans

Cemeteries
Tennessee cemetery records often identify birth, death, relationship, and military information, as well as religious affiliation.


 * 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 Monroe County linking to the information about the people buried there,


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


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


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


 * ePodunk list of Monroe County cemeteries

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

1820 - Lost

1820 Manufactures

The original manufactures schedules for the Eastern and Western Districts of Tennessee are kept at 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, which cites the original document numbers, 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.]

These records have also been abstracted:


 * 1820 Census of Manufactures: Monroe County, East Tennessee Roots, Vol. 5, No. 4 :180. For availability, see Periodicals.

1830


 * Sistler, Byron H. 1830 Census, East Tennessee. Evanston, Ill.: n.p., 1969. FHL US/CAN Book 976.8 X2p 1830.

1840


 * McConkey, Lynn. 1840 Monroe County, Tennessee, Census. Vonore, Tenn.: Datis, Inc., 1986. FHL US/CAN Book 976.8883 X2m 1840.

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, Eastern District, Monroe County on page 153.]

1850


 * Snow, Joy L. 1850 Monroe County, Tennessee Federal Census: With Index. Marshfield, Missouri: J.L. Snow, 200-?. FHL US/CAN Book 976.8883 X2s 1850 v. 1-2.

1880 


 * Sistler, Byron and Barbara Sistler. 1880 Census, Monroe County, Tennessee. Nashville, Tenn.: Byron Sistler &amp; Associates, 1991. FHL US/CAN Book 976.8883 X2s 1880.

1920


 * Wolfe, Violet Kirkpatrick, Kathleen Miller, Jim Steed, Carolyn Snider, and Vonore Historical Society. 1920 Monroe County, TN Census. 2 vols. Vonore, Tenn.: Vonore Historical Society, 2000. FHL US/CAN Book 976.8883 X29w 1920 v. 1 ff.

Church
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.


 * Monroe County Church Records


 * - Family History Library Catalog - Monroe County Church Records


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


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


 * In 1936, a helpful guide to early Monroe 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 Monroe County are listed. Many of these filmed records are also available at the Family History Library.

Baptist


 * [1824-1860] Pond Creek Baptist Church. Church minutes, 1824-1860. Nashville, Tennessee: Historical Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention, 196-? Manuscript. Item 2
 * [1853-1972]  Notchey Creek Baptist Church Records. Madisonville, 1853-1972. TSLA Reel #428
 * [1853-1900] Sistler, Byron and Barbara Sistler. Vital Statistics from 19th Century Tennessee Church Records. Nashville: Sitler and Associates, 1979. vol.2   Index to Notchey Creek Baptist Church Records. Madisonville, 1853-1972.

DNA
DNA has been collected from men claiming descent from the following Monroe 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

As of August 2010, a query for persons born in Monroe, Tennessee at World Connect, results in more than 50,000 entries.


 * Monroe County Heritage Book Committee. Monroe County, Tennessee Heritage, 1819-1997: Established 1819, Monroe County, Tennessee. [Salem, W. Va.]: Walsworth Pub. Co., 1997.
 * Vonore Historical Society. Vonore Families: Yesterday and Today. 2 vols. Vonore, Tenn.: Vonore Historical Society, 1996-1997.

Bibliography


 * [Bell] Buland, Geraldine Joy Brown. Silas Bell of Wayne County, Kentucky (1787-186-): Blount and Monroe Counties, Tennessee; Murray County, Georgia; Titus County, Texas [and] Sons and Daughters to Dade and Lawrence Counties, Missouri; Pawnee County, Oklahoma; and Fayette County, Texas: Allied Lines [of] Aley, Byerly, Carter, Hall, Harrell, Loy, Mashburn, Wilson. Sepulpa, Oklahoma: Buland, Geraldine Joy Brown, 1978. FHL FAM HIST Book 929.273 B413f.
 * [Bent] See Carson.
 * [Blankenship] Blankinship, Leslie C. The Blankenship Family History. New Orleans, La.?: J. Q. Blankinship, 1967. Available at FHL FAM HIST Book 929.273 B611bL; digital version at Heritage Quest Online ($).
 * [Blankensop] See Blankenship.
 * [Blankingship] See Blankenship.
 * [Boggs] See Boggs.
 * [Carson] McClung, Quantrille D. Carson-Bent-Boggs Genealogy. [Denver]: Denver Public Library, 1962. Available at FHL FAM HIST Book 929.273 C239; digital version at Heritage Quest Online ($).
 * [Davis] Shepard, Kelly Rae Wilson. The Descendants of Clem Davis and Rachel Emaline Peak: with an Emphasis on the Descendants of James Ervin Davis and the Connecting Lines of John C. Payne, Thomas C. E. Davis, William Robert Daniell and Henry Lenderman. The Colony, Texas: K. Shepard, 1997.
 * [Day] Day, James Edward. Descendants of Christopher Day of Bucks County, Pennsylvania. Los Angeles?: J.E. Day, 1958. Available at FHL FAM HIST Book 929.273 D33d; FHL US/CAN Film 978076; digital versions at Ancestry ($); and Heritage Quest Online ($).
 * [Dodd] Austin, Kim The Descendants of George Berry Dodd and Martha Lavinna Teffteller [S.I. : s.n.], 1995 FHL book 929.273 D661. Digital version available at BYU Family History Archives.
 * [Harmon] Banes, Verna Baker. Harmon Family Research: Taken from the Verna Baker Banes Genealogical Collection. MSS., microfilmed 1996. Item 4
 * [Hart] Hart, Charles Coffin. Joseph Hart and His Descendants. St. Louis, Mo.: R.P. Studley &amp; Co., 1901. Item 4. Free digital version online.
 * [Henderson] Mitchell, Reba Henderson. The Family of Samuel Henderson (1786-1867) of Monroe County, Tennessee: A Genealogical and Historical Record of Samuel Henderson and His Wife, Nancy Blair, Their Twelve Children and Their Descendants to the Present Generation. Manisonville, Tenn.: R.H. Mitchell, 1980. FHL FAM HIST Book 929.273 A1 no. 3154.
 * [Hensley] Schreibman, Laura and Laura Hensley. The Hensleys of Ballplay, Monroe County, Tennessee. Hazel Park, Michigan: L. Schreibman, 199-?. FHL FAM HIST Book 929.273 A1 no. 6391.
 * [Jones] Hall, Evelyn Cook and William C. Hall. The Jefferson Thomas Jones Genealogy: Being a History of Jefferson Thomas Jones, Born 14 Aug. 1828 near Madisonville, Monroe Co., Tenn. and Later Living in Park, Greene Co., Ind. and His Descendants of Tennessee, Indiana, Iowa, etc.: Also Allied Families. [Nevada, Iowa]: E.C. Hall, 1985. FHL FAM HIST Book 929.273 J718h.
 * [Moser] Corder, Lula Lee and Pauline Moser Shook. Moser Family History, Monroe County, Tenn.: Descendants of Leonard Moser, c1716-1782. 2 vols. [Sandpoint, Idaho]: P.M. Shook, 1983. FHL FAM HIST Book 929.273 M853cs ff.
 * [Moses] Ward, Edith Croft. The Moses Families of Big Creek: The Family Pages of Joshua and Sarah Samples Moses and Related Families, Monroe County, Tennessee. Clinton, Tenn.: E.C. Ward, 1995. FHL FAM HIST Book 929.273 M853w.
 * [Peak] Shepard, Kelly Rae Wilson. The Descendants of Clem Davis and Rachel Emaline Peak: with an Emphasis on the Descendants of James Ervin Davis and the Connecting Lines of John C. Payne, Thomas C. E. Davis, William Robert Daniell and Henry Lenderman. The Colony, Texas: K. Shepard, 1997.
 * [Wolfe] Feezell, Mina Belle Wolfe and Violet Kirkpatrick Wolfe. John Peeler Wolfe: Ancestors and Descendants, 1765-1992. [Englewood, Tenn.]: M. Feezell, [1993]. ; digital version at BYU Family History Archives.

Land
TSLA microfilmed the original Monroe County Deed Books A to Z (1820-1892), Trust Deed Books A to D (1868-1894) and Indexes to both (1820-1910). FHL copies: FHL US/CAN Microfilms 956238-956248.

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

Local Histories

 * Craddock, Charles Egbert, 1850 - 1922. The Story of Old Fort Loudon. New York, London : The Macmillan company,1899. Free digital copy.

Military
Indian Wars


 * Narrative of Capt. Handly, Capture, 1793, American Historical Magazine, Vol. 2, No. 1 (Jan. 1897).

Revolutionary War

The following Monroe County Revolutionary War records are available online through TNGenWeb:


 * 1835 Pension Roll
 * 1852 Rejected or Suspended Pensions
 * Monroe County, Tennessee Revolutionary War Pensioners List

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, Eastern District, Monroe 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.]

War of 1812


 * Embry, Hermione D. "War of 1812 - Tennessee Pensioners on List - January 2, 1883," Ansearchin' News, Vol. 8, No. 1 (Jan. 1961):20-23. FHL US/CAN Book 976.8 B2a v. 8 (1961); digital version at journal website. [Includes Monroe County pensioners (p. 23).]
 * Monroe County, Tennessee War of 1812 Pensioners Courtesy : TNGenWeb

Newspapers
Many Tennessee newspapers are filmed and available at 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 Monroe County click on the following cities:


 * Madisonville
 * Sweetwater

Occupations

 * Miller, Alan N. East Tennessee's Forgotten Children: Apprentices from 1778 to 1911. Baltimore, Md.: Printed for Clearfield Company, Inc., by Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 2000. FHL US/CAN 976.8 U2m. Digital version at World Vital Records ($). Purchase at Genealogical.com. [Includes Monroe 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
 * Genealogical articles with abstracts of records of Monroe 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 Monroe 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.
 * The Pellissippian
 * Genealogical articles with abstracts of Monroe County, Tennessee records were published in the The Pellissippian (25 vols., 1980-2004), the quarterly of the Pellissippi Genealogical and Historical Society. The society has posted tables of contents for all 25 volumes on their website. They also have back issues available for purchase. The Family History Library has acquired the first 20 volumes FHL US/CAN Book 976.8 D25p.

Prisons
Learn if your Monroe 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.

Probate
TSLA microfilmed the original Monroe County Will Books 1 to 4 (1833 to 1922). FHL copy: FHL US/CAN Film 956237.

The organization Strictly By Name provides free online indexes to early Monroe 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 1: 1833-1860
 * 2) Will Books 2, 3, 4: 1860-1922

The following Monroe County probate records have been indexed:


 * [1833-1861] 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.] Free Lookups Available!

Taxation
TSLA microfilmed the original Monroe County Tax Books 1868, 1874, 1899-1900. FHL copies: FHL US/CAN Films 956249-956250.

The following Monroe County tax records have been abstracted:


 * [1825] Sistler, Byron and Barbara Sistler. Index to Early Tennessee Tax Lists. Evanston, Ill.: B. &amp; B. Sistler, 1977. FHL US/CAN Book 976.8 R4s. [Includes 1825 tax list.]
 * [1836] Douthat, James L. Monroe County: 1836 Tennessee Civil District and Tax Lists. Signal Mountain, Tenn.: Mountain Press, 200-?. FHL US/CAN Book 976.8883 R4d; online: free surname index and purchase details.
 * [1861] McConkey, Lynn. Monroe Co. Tax List 1861. Purchase information at Monroe County, Tennessee, Local Resources.
 * [1874] McConkey, Lynn. 1874 Tax List. Purchase information at Monroe County, Tennessee, Local Resources.
 * [1899, 1912] McConkey, Lynn. Tax Lists - 1899 and 1912, Monroe County, Tennessee. n.p.: L. McConkey, 1991. FHL US/CAN Book 976.8883 R4m. Purchase information at Monroe County, Tennessee, Local Resources.

Marriage
Marriages were not officially recorded in Monroe County until 1838, when a law was passed mandating the practice. 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. FHL US/CAN Book 976.8 V2L.

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


 * [1838-1870] Sistler, Byron and Barbara Sistler. Early East Tennessee Marriages. 2 vols. Nashville, Tenn.: Byron Sistler &amp; Associates, Inc., 1987. FHL US/CAN 976.8 V2s v. 1. [Indexes names of brides and grooms, and marriage dates for weddings in this county for the specified years.] Free Lookups Available!

Divorce
In 1940 and 1941, W.P.A. workers pinpointed the location of Monroe County divorce papers in diverse County Courthouse records, see:


 * W.P.A. Guide to Public Vital Statistics in Tennessee. Nashville, Tenn.: The Tennessee Historical Records Survey, 1941. FHL US/CAN Book 976.8 A3gp.

Death
For deaths of Methodists in Monroe 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
The Vonore Historical Society C/O The Vonore Library 611 Church St. Vonore, TN 37885

Madisonville Public Library 4023 Hwy 411 North Unit C Madisonville, TN 37354 Phone: 1-423-442-4085

Monroe County Historical Society, Inc. Affiliate Chapter of the East Tennessee Historical Society P. O. Box 359 Sweetwater, TN 37874

East Tennessee Historical Society 601 S. Gay Street P.O. Box 1629 Knoxville, TN 37901-1629 Phone: 1-865-215-8824 E-mail: eths@east-tennessee-history.org

Web Sites

 * Family History Library Catalog (FamilySearch)
 * Monroe County, TN Family History and Genealogy Message Board (Ancestry)
 * Monroe County, TN Genealogy Forum (GenForum)
 * Monroe County, TNGenWeb (USGenWeb)
 * Monroe County's Tennessee Local History Network (American Local History Network) Resources to help you place your ancestors within the context of their local history.
 * RootsWeb Mailing List: TNMONROE-L (Monroe 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: SE-TN-L (Southeast Tennessee List)