Carter County, Tennessee Genealogy Records

Which records survive from Carter County, the years each set covers, and where to find them.

Formed
1796
County seat
Elizabethton

Records that survive

These are the record series the Tennessee State Library and Archives (TSLA) has microfilmed for Carter County, with the office that kept each and the earliest and latest years filmed. A span can include gaps.

Land and deeds

  • Deed Index (Direct/Reverse) · Register of Deeds1795–1960
  • Deeds · Register of Deeds1796–1976
  • Land Entries · Register of Deeds1824–1887
  • Land Surveys · Register of Deeds1824–1923
  • Surveyor's Book Index · Register of Deeds1825–1854
  • Surveyor's Books · Register of Deeds1825–1901
  • Trust Deeds · Register of Deeds1874–1976
  • Land Sales, Misc. Records · Circuit Court1897–1920
  • Plat Index · Register of Deeds1925–1955
  • Plats · Register of Deeds1925–1966
  • Trust Deed Index (Dir./Rev,) · Register of Deeds1927–1949
  • Deed Index (Direct A-K) · Register of Deeds1960–1970
  • Deed Index (Direct L-Z) · Register of Deeds1960–1970
  • Deed Index (Direct) · Register of Deeds1960–1976
  • and 2 more series in the full listing

Wills

  • Wills · Probate Records1794–1995
  • Wills (Al-Wr) · Probate Court, loose papers1796–1915
  • Wills Index · Probate Court, loose papers1796–1915

Estates and guardianships

  • Guardian Records (An-Ch) · Probate Court, loose papers1796–1915
  • Guardian Records (Ch-Hy) · Probate Court, loose papers1796–1915
  • Guardian Records (Hy-Si) · Probate Court, loose papers1796–1915
  • Guardian Records (Si-Wi) · Probate Court, loose papers1796–1915
  • Guardian Records Index · Probate Court, loose papers1796–1915
  • Probate Records (Ak-Dr) · Probate Court, loose papers1796–1915
  • Probate Records (Dr-He) · Probate Court, loose papers1796–1915
  • Probate Records (Ho-Mo) · Probate Court, loose papers1796–1915
  • Probate Records (Mo-Sn) · Probate Court, loose papers1796–1915
  • Probate Records (Sn-Wi) · Probate Court, loose papers1796–1915
  • Probate Records (Wi-Wo) · Probate Court, loose papers1796–1915
  • Probate Records Index · Probate Court, loose papers1796–1915
  • Estates, Inventories · Probate Records1839–1918
  • Probate Records (Go-Wi) · Probate Court, loose papers1840–1900
  • and 6 more series in the full listing

Marriages, births and deaths

  • Marriage, Bonds and Licenses · County Clerk1790–1850
  • Marriage Index (A-Z) · County Clerk, loose papers1796–1950
  • Marriage Index (Je-Jo) · County Clerk, loose papers1796–1950
  • Marriage Lic./Bonds (AB-Be) · County Clerk, loose papers1796–1950
  • Marriage Lic./Bonds (Be-Bu) · County Clerk, loose papers1796–1950
  • Marriage Lic./Bonds (Bu-Co) · County Clerk, loose papers1796–1950
  • Marriage Lic./Bonds (Co-Du) · County Clerk, loose papers1796–1950
  • Marriage Lic./Bonds (Du-Ge) · County Clerk, loose papers1796–1950
  • Marriage Lic./Bonds (Ge-Ha) · County Clerk, loose papers1796–1950
  • Marriage Lic./Bonds (Ha-Hu) · County Clerk, loose papers1796–1950
  • Marriage Lic./Bonds (Hu-Le) · County Clerk, loose papers1796–1950
  • Marriage Lic./Bonds (Le-Mc) · County Clerk, loose papers1796–1950
  • Marriage Lic./Bonds (Na-Pi) · County Clerk, loose papers1796–1950
  • Marriage Lic./Bonds (Pe-Sc) · County Clerk, loose papers1796–1950
  • and 7 more series in the full listing

Tax lists

  • Tax Books (District 1-13) · Trustee1860–1886
  • Tax Books (District 1-18) · Trustee1919–1938
  • Tax Bks. (D. 6-15) Elizabethton · Trustee1947–1952
  • Tax Books (District 1-2) · Trustee1947–1970
  • Tax Books (District 10-11) · Trustee1947–1970
  • Tax Books (District 12) · Trustee1947–1952
  • Tax Books (District 13) · Trustee1947–1952
  • Tax Books (District 14) · Trustee1947–1970
  • Tax Books (District 15) · Trustee1947–1970
  • Tax Books (District 16) · Trustee1947–1952
  • Tax Books (District 17-18) · Trustee1947–1952
  • Tax Books (District 3-4) · Trustee1947–1970
  • Tax Books (District 5) · Trustee1947–1970
  • Tax Books (District 6) · Trustee1947–1970
  • and 18 more series in the full listing

Military and pensions

  • Military Discharge Index · Register of Deeds1920–1970
  • Military Discharges · Register of Deeds1920–1976

Court orders and minutes

  • Minutes · County Clerk1804–1876
  • Minutes, Criminal · Circuit Court1848–1988
  • Minutes · Chancery Court1854–2000
  • Minutes, Quarterly · County Clerk1856–1997
  • Minutes, Quorum · County Clerk1876–2000
  • Minutes, Civil · Circuit Court1881–1976
  • Minute Index, Civil/Crim. (Dir.) · Circuit Court1891–1967
  • Minutes · Elizabethton, City of1905–1960
  • Minutes · School Board1937–1970
  • Minutes · Circuit Court1976–2000

County government and the poor

  • Bonds and Letters, Admin · Probate Records1865–1985

Roads

  • Road Book · Trustee1905–1917

Other records

  • Bastardly Records (Ar-Go) · Probate Court, loose papers1840–1900
  • Bastardly Records Index · Probate Court, loose papers1840–1900
  • Property Records (Tay-Tay) · Probate Court, loose papers1840–1900
  • Property Records Index · Probate Court, loose papers1840–1900
  • Misc. Pro. License Registers · County Clerk1889–1906
  • Cash Journal · Trustee1927–1934
  • Miscellaneous Records · Register of Deeds1927–1976
  • Min. Index, Civil/Crim. (Rev.) · Circuit Court1967–1970

Open TSLA's full microfilm listing (PDF)

Source: Tennessee State Library and Archives, county records microfilm listing. Some record titles reflect the segregated record-keeping of their time. Statewide birth and death registration began in 1914, after a brief statewide attempt in 1908–1912.

Where to find the records

  • Carter County official website

    Hours, addresses and phone numbers for the register of deeds, the county clerk and the chancery and circuit court clerks, and any online record search the county offers.

  • The register of deeds

    Deeds, mortgages and other land records, usually from the county's beginning.

  • The county clerk

    Marriage licenses and bonds and the county court's minutes. For most of the 1800s the county court also handled wills, estates and guardians.

  • The chancery and circuit court clerks

    Lawsuits, including the chancery suits families used to divide land and settle estates.

  • TSLA: Carter County records on microfilm (PDF)free

    Every filmed volume with its years and roll number, by office.

  • Tennessee State Library and Archivesfree

    The state archives in Nashville, with microfilm of county records from every county.

  • FamilySearch Catalogfree

    Search by place for "Tennessee, Carter" to find filmed and digitized records, many viewable free online with a FamilySearch account.

Offices change their hours and access rules; call before you visit.

Boundaries and parent counties

Formed from: Washington County

Check the parent county for earlier records: Washington County

Later formed partly from Carter County: Johnson County, Unicoi County

Records stay with the county that created them. If your ancestor lived here before 1796, search the parent county. The Atlas of Historical County Boundaries shows each boundary change.

Research tip

Tennessee's county court minutes record estate settlements, guardians, road orders and much more. When a will is missing, look there and in the chancery court, where families often went to divide land.