Genealogical "Fact Sheets" About Hamilton County

Hamilton County

Hamilton County was formed in 1819 from
parts of Rhea County and Indian lands

(Private Acts of Tennessee 1819, Chapter 41)

The county seat is Chattanooga.

Selected Published County Histories

African Americans of Chattanooga: A History of Unsung Heroes (Hubbard, 2007)*
Chattanooga Country, 1540-1976: From Tomahawks to TVA (Govan & Livingood, 1977) [name index]*
Chattanooga's Forest Hills Cemetery (Moore, 2012)
Chattanooga's St. Elmo (Moore, 2012)
Goodspeed's History of Hamilton, Knox, and Shelby Counties of Tennessee (Goodspeed, 1974) [name index]
Hamilton County (Livingood, 1981) [name index]*
Hamilton County Pioneers (Wilson, 1998) [name index]*
History of Hamilton County and Chattanooga, Tennessee [2 vols.] (Armstrong, 1993) [name index]*
History of Hamilton County, Tennessee (Livingood, 1981) [name index]*
Jewish Community of Chattanooga (Adams, 1999)*
Legendary Locals of Chattanooga Tennessee (Hull, 2012) [name index]
Old Timer's Guide to Chattanooga Tennessee, 1838: The Legends, History, & Fun of Chattanooga (Sands, 1982)
Sketches of Eastdale History, 1540-1986 (Blevins, 1987)
Signal Mountain and Walden's Ridge (Patten, 1976)*

Published Local Records

1860 Hamilton County, TN, Census (Douthat, 1989) [surname index]
1880 Census, Hamilton County, Tennessee (Sistler, 1996) [alphabetical by head of household]z*
Abstracts of Ocoee District Early Land Records-entries (McClure, 1990) [alphabetical listings]
Chattanooga Baptist Church Minutes of Hamilton County 1852-1882 (WPA, 1941)
Chickamauga Reservoir Cemeteries (Douthat, 1986) [surname index]*
Chickamauga Reservoir Grave Removals (Tennessee Valley Authority, 1939)
Concord Baptist Church Minutes of Hamilton County, 1842-1872 (WPA, 1980)
Confederate Soldiers of Hamilton County, Tennessee: An Alphabetical Listing of the Confederate Soldiers who Lived at one Time in Hamilton County, Tennessee (Hughes & Wilson, 2001) [alphabetical listings]
Early Settlers, Hamilton Co., TN.: 1830-1850 census (Douthat, 1986) [surname index]
Hamilton County Confederate Soldiers (Armstrong, 193?) [alphabetical listings]
Hamilton County, TN Marriage Book 2, 1864-1874 (Douthat, 1987) [name index]*
Hamilton County, TN Marriage Books 1-1 1/2, 1853 [i.e. 1857] -1870 (Douthat, 1986) [name index]
Hamilton County, Tennessee 1836 Tennessee Civil Districts and Tax Lists (Douthat, 1993) [name index]*
Hamilton County, Tennessee Chancery Court Minutes 1864-66 (WPA, 1940)
Hamilton County Tennessee Civil Record A Law Court of Chattanooga 1860-1867, part 1-3 (WPA, 1942)
Hamilton County Tennessee Deed Book F vol. 1 1844-1848 (WPA, 1937) [name index]
Hamilton County Tennessee Deeds Book ABC vol. 1 1796-1838 (WPA, 1936) [name index]
Hamilton County Tennessee Deeds Book D vol. 1 1837-1841 (WPA, 1936) [name index]
Hamilton County Tennessee Deeds Book D vol. 1 1838-1841 (WPA, 1937) [name index]
Hamilton County Tennessee Deeds Book E vol. 1 1841-1843 (WPA, 1936) [name index]
Hamilton County Tennessee Diary of Rev. Robert H. Guthrie 1874-1875 (WPA, 1938) [name index]
Hamilton County Tennessee Diary of Miss Josephine H. Hooke 1863-1864 (WPA, 1938) [name index]
Hamilton County, Tennessee, Entry Takers Book, 1824-1897 (19??) [name index]*
Hamilton County, Tennessee, Marriage Book 3, September 1874-May 1880 (Douthat, 1995) [name index]*
Hamilton County Tennessee Marriage Records Book 1 1857-1863, Book 2 1864-1874 (WPA, 1937) [name index]
Hamilton County Tennessee Marriage Records Book 1 1/2 1865-1870 (WPA, 1937) [name index]*
Hamilton County, Tennessee Will Book Number 1, 1862-1892 (Douthat, 1996) [name index]*
Index to the Ocoee District Early Land Records - Entries (McClure, 1990) [name index]
Ocoee Land District Maps (Douthat, 2013) [name index]
Polk's Chattanooga City Directory (2015 - 2019)
Private Acts of Hamilton County, Tennessee (McIntyre, 1980)
Probate Record of Hamilton County no. 1 1864-70 part 1-2 (WPA, 1941)
Roll of Honor: Names of Soldiers who Died in Defence of the American Union, Interred in the National Cemeteries at Chattanooga, Stone's River, and Knoxville (United States. Quartermaster's Dept., 1866)
Roster of our Dead Buried in the Confederate Cemetery at Chattanooga, Tenn. (United Confederate Veterans, 1985) [alphabetical listings]
Rothberger Directory Company's Chattanooga, Tennessee City Directory [1880, 1891,1895/1896, 1899/1900, 1900/1901, 1903-1905, 1907-1910, 1912, 1913, 1915, 1917, 1920, 1922-1964,1967-2008] [years available only on microfilm: 1871/72, 1876-1879, 1881, 1888-1890, 1894, 1897]
Tennessee, Hamilton County Tombstone Inscriptions (Negro) (WPA, 1939) [name index]
Tennessee, Records of Hamilton County: Entry Taker's Book 1824-1897 (WPA, 1937) [name index]
Tennessee, Records of Hamilton County: Interments of the National Cemetery, Chattanooga, Tennessee 1863-1939 (WPA, 1939) [name index]
Tennessee, Records of Hamilton County: Tombstone Inscriptions vol. 1-4 (WPA, 1939) [name index]
United States Census, Hamilton County, Tennessee, 1850 (Hobbs & Goins, 198?) [surname index]*
United States Census, Hamilton County, Tennessee, 1870 (Hobbs & Goins, 198?) [surname index]*

Local Records on Microfilm

An inventory of microfilmed Hamilton County records is available on our website. Individual reels of microfilm are also available for purchase.

Earliest records include:

marriages from 1857
wills from 1862
deed index from 1799
circuit court minutes from 1860
tax books from 1836

The following reels are available on interlibrary loan from the Library and Archives:

Marriage Records -- 1857-1874 [WPA typed copy] (#29, 1 reel)*
WPA Records, Hamilton County (Record Group #107, Roll 28, 1 reel). Roll includes Deed Books A-C (1796-1838), Deed Book D (1839-1841), Deed Book E (1841-1843), Deed Book F (1844-1848), Entry Taker's Book (1824-1897) and Chancery Court Minutes (1864-1866).*
WPA Records, Hamilton County (Record Group #107, Roll 29, 1 reel). Roll includes Probate Records, Book 1, pts. 1 & 2 (1865-1870), Marriage Records, Books 1, 1A & 2 (1857-1874), Interments in the National Cemetery, Chattanooga, TN (1863-1939), Miss Josephine H. Hooke's Diary (1863-1864), Diary of Rev. Robert H. Guthrie, Cleveland Circuit Holston Conference (1874-1875) and Tombstone Inscriptions, Vols. 1-4 (undated).*
WPA Records, Hamilton County (Record Group #107, Roll 30, 1 reel). Roll includes Civil Record A, Law Court of Chattanooga, Pts. 1-3 (1860-1867), Tombstone Inscriptions [Negro] (undated), Chattanooga Baptist Church Minutes (1852-1882), Concord Baptist Church Minutes (1848-1872) and Good Spring Baptist Church Minutes (1838).*

Newspapers on Microfilm

Newspapers were published in Chattanooga, Signal Mountain and Soddy. Scattered early issues are available from 1844, and a complete run begins in 1879. Microfilms are loaned to Tennessee libraries. Individual reels may also be purchased. An Inventory of Newspapers on Microfilm at the Library and Archives is available on our website.

Selected Manuscripts Material

Centenary Methodist Episcopal Church, South Records. Chattanooga, 1899-1966 (Microfilm Manuscript #454, 1 reel)*
Chamber of Commerce Records. Chattanooga, 1903-1965 (Microfilm Manuscript #445 & 446, 5 reels)*
Chamber of Commerce Records. Chattanooga, 1966-1970 (Microfilm Manuscript #528, 1 reel)*
Chattanooga Primitive Baptist Church Records. Chattanooga, 1910-1972 (Microfilm Manuscript #488, 1 reel)*
Church of the Good Shepherd Records. Lookout Mountain, 1946-1969 (Microfilm Manuscript #306, 1 reel)*
Clift Family Papers, ~ 1820-1968
Enrollment Book of the Superior Court, Knoxville, Tenn., from Hamilton District Territory South of the River, 1793-1800 (Microfilm Manuscript #1488, 1 reel)*
First Methodist Episcopal Church Records. Chattanooga, 1872-1954 (Microfilm Manuscript #455, 1 reel)*
Lookout Mountain Baptist Church Records. Lookout Mountain, 1945-1969 (Microfilm Manuscript #328, 9 reels)*
Lookout Mountain Presbyterian Church Records. Lookout Mountain, 1894-1975 (Microfilm Manuscript #493, 3 reels)*
McGill-Thatcher Family Papers, 1818-1979 (Microfilm Manuscript #1844, 1 reel)*
McKenzie and Son, Surveyors Maps. Chattanooga, 1880-1916 (Microfilm Manuscript #1477, 1 reel)*
Roark-Conner Association Papers, 1795-1996 (Microfilm Manuscript #1518, 5 reels)*
St. Paul's Episcopal Church Records. Chattanooga, 1850-1900 (Microfilm Manuscript #503, 1 reel)*
Signal Mountain Community Guild Minutes. Hamilton County, 1973-1982 (Microfilm Manuscript #765, 1 reel)*
Signal Mountain Community Guild Minutes. Hamilton County, 1983-1989 (Microfilm Manuscript #1100, 1 reel)*
Signal Mountain Community Guild Records, 1994-2000 (Microfilm Manuscript #1629, 1 reel)*
Swick Family Papers, 1842-1879
Union Chapel of Walden's Ridge Records. Summertown, 1909-1967 (Microfilm Manuscript #474, 1 reel)*
William Polk Papers, 1785-1890 (Microfilm Manuscript #17, 1 reel)*

Search for Manuscripts Material in our Catalog

Census Records

Census on microfilm for Hamilton County: 1830-1880, 1900-1930
State-wide census index: 1830-1880
State-wide census index on microfilm (Soundex): 1880, 1900-1930
Hamilton County census records in book form: 1830, 1840, 1850*, 1860, 1870*, 1880*

Additional Research Aids for Hamilton County

* Indicates this title may be borrowed on interlibrary loan from the Library and Archives.

Hamilton County Formation Act

PRIVATE ACTS OF TENNESSEE 1819, CHAPTER 41:

"An Act to establish a new county south west of Rhea and south and east of Bledsoe and Marion counties."

SECTION 1. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF TENNESSEE, That the territory lying south west of Rhea and south and east of Bledsoe and Marion counties, shall constitute a county by the name of Hamilton in honour and to perpetuate the memory of the late Alexander Hamilton, secretary of the Treasury of the United States.

SECTION 2. BE IT ENACTED, That the said county of Hamilton shall be bounded as follows (to wit,) beginning at a point at the foot of Waldens ridge of Cumberland Mountain on the east side thereof; thence running to a point on the Tennessee River two and one half miles below the lower end of Jolly's Island, so as to include Patrick Martin in the county of Hamilton, thence south 35° east to the southern limits of this state, thence west to the point where Marion county line intersects said western boundary, thence north eastwardly with Marion county line to Bledsoe county line, thence with Bledsoe county line to a point opposite the beginning and thence to the beginning.

SECTION 3. BE IT ENACTED, That for the due administration of Justice, the Court of Pleas and Quarter sessions and the Circuit Court of the county of Hamilton shall be holden at such place as shall be designated by Charles Gamble, Robert Patterson and William Lauderdale until otherwise provided for by law; under the same rules, regulations and restrictions, and shall possess and exercise the same power and jurisdiction of said courts in other counties in this state.

SECTION 4. BE IT ENACTED, That the sheriff of Hamilton County shall hold an election at the place for holding courts in said county on the first Thursday and Friday in March next, for the purpose of electing field officers for the said county of Hamilton, under the same rules, and regulations and restrictions as are prescribed by law in similar cases; and the militia of said county shall compose the 64th Regiment and shall be attached to and become a part of the 7th Brigade.

SECTION 5. BE IT ENACTED, That it shall be the duty of the commandant of said regiment, having been first commissioned and sworn, to lay off said regiment into companies of convenient size, and to issue writs of election for company officers in said companies, giving the notice prescribed by law in each company; which election shall be holden and conducted under the same rules and in the same manner as in other cases for company officers.

SECTION 6. BE IT ENACTED, That the county of Hamilton shall be part of the district for electing Governor, Members of the General Assembly, Representatives to Congress, and Electors to elect a President, and Vice President of the United States which the county of Rhea belongs; and that the elections shall be held at the place of holding courts in said county at the time and in the manner by law directed; and the sheriff or returning officer of said county shall make return of the polls of said election to the sheriff of Rhea County in the town of Washington on the day next succeeding each election, and comparing the votes, the sheriff of Rhea County shall declare the candidate for the Representative of the counties of Rhea and Hamilton, who may have the greatest number of votes duly elected representative for said counties, and give him a certificate accordingly; and it shall be the duty of the sheriff of Rhea County to make return of the votes for senators of Rhea and Hamilton Members to Congress, Governor, &c. as heretofore for Rhea County.

SECTION 7. BE IT ENACTED, That it shall be lawful for any Justice of the Peace for Rhea County to attend at the place appointed by said Commissioners for holding courts in Hamilton County at the first Court of Pleas and Quarter sessions for said county, for the purpose of administering to the justices of said county the necessary oaths.

Passed on October 25, 1819

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