Because of courthouse fires and other disasters, some Tennessee records filed at the county level are lost forever. Records filed at the county level include marriages; wills and other probate records; records of county, circuit and chancery courts; deeds; and tax records. You can consult the Genealogical County Fact Sheets or Inventories of County Records on Microfilm to see the effect of a courthouse fire or fires on the records of the county in which you are interested.
The following list shows when courthouse fires and other disasters occurred in Tennessee.
| COUNTY | YEAR | DISASTER |
|---|---|---|
| Bedford | 1830 1863 & 1934 |
tornado fires |
| Bledsoe | 1908 | fire |
| Blount | 1879 & 1906 | fires |
| Campbell | 1883 & 1926 | fires |
| Cannon | 1934 | fire |
| Carroll | 1931 | fire |
| Carter | 1933 | fire |
| Chester | 1910 | fire |
| Claiborne | 1863 & 1931 | fires |
| Cocke | 1876 | fire |
| Coffee | 1870 | fire |
| Cumberland | 1905 | fire |
| Davidson | 1856 | fire |
| Decatur | 1869 & 1927 | fires |
| Dickson | 1830 | tornado |
| Dyer | 1864 | fire |
| Fayette | 1925 | fire |
| Fentress | 1905 | fire |
| Gibson | 1941 | fire |
| Giles | 1813, 1857 & 1907 | fires |
| Grainger | 1946 | fire |
| Grundy | 1853 & 1990 | fires |
| COUNTY | YEAR | DISASTER |
|---|---|---|
| Hamilton | 1910 | fire |
| Hancock | 1885 & 1930 | fires |
| Hardeman | 1864 | fire |
| Hardin | 1859, 1864 & 1949 | fire |
| Hawkins | 1863 | fire |
| Henderson | 1896 | fire |
| Hickman | 1864 | fire |
| Humphreys | 1876 & 1898 | fires |
| Jackson | 1872 & 1926 | fires |
| Lauderdale | 1869 | fire |
| McMinn | 1964 | fire |
| McNairy | 1881 | fire |
| Macon | 1860 & 1901 & 1932 | fires |
| Marion | 1922 | fire |
| Marshall | 1872 & 1927 | fires |
| Meigs | 1904 & 1964 | fire |
| Monroe | 1820s 1860 |
fire razed / Civil War |
| Montgomery | 1878 & 1900 1999 |
fires tornado |
| Morgan | 1826 & 1870 & 1904 | fires |
| Obion | 1842 | earthquake |
| Overton | 1865 | fire |
| Perry | 1863 & 1928 | fires |
| Pickett | 1934 | fire |
| Polk | 1895 & 1935??? | fires |
| Putnam | 1860s 1898 |
burned / Civil War fires |
| Rhea | 1869 & 1927 | fires |
| Rutherford | 1832 | tornado |
| Scott | 1946 | fire |
| Sevier | 1856 | fire |
| Stewart | 1862 | fire (Federal troops) |
| Sullivan | 1863 | fire (Civil War - Battle of Blountville) |
| Trousdale | 1900 & 1904 | fires |
| Union | 1870s & 1969 | fires |
| Warren | 1852? | fire? |
| Washington | 1839 | fire |
| Wayne | 1973 | fire |
| Weakley | 1948 | fire |
| Wilson | 1881 | fire |
Updated March 20, 2008
