Records that survive
These are the record series the Tennessee State Library and Archives (TSLA) has microfilmed for Macon County, with the office that kept each and the earliest and latest years filmed. A span can include gaps.
Land and deeds
- Probate of Deeds · Probate Records1884–1897
- Deed Index · Register of Deeds1901–1976
- Deeds · Register of Deeds1901–1996
- Probate Deeds · Probate Records1901–1947
- Trust Deeds · Register of Deeds1901–1996
- Trust Deed Index · Register of Deeds1925–1976
- Deed and Trust Deed Index · Register of Deeds1977–1996
Wills
- Wills · Probate Records1946–1996
Estates and guardianships
- Inventories · Probate Records1901–1968
- Settlements, Guardian · Probate Records1901–1961
- Estates, Insolvent · Probate Records1902–1914
- Settlements, Administrators · Probate Records1902–1985
- Bonds, Administrators · Probate Records1908–1961
- Estates, Claims Against · Probate Records1921–1933
- Bonds, Guardian · Probate Records1925–1985
- Bonds, Executors · Probate Records1927–1992
- Settlements, Conservators · Probate Records1963–1991
- Settlements, Executors · Probate Records1978–1985
Marriages, births and deaths
- Bonds, Marriage · County Clerk1901–1929
- Vital Records Births · County Clerk1908–1939
- Marriages · County Clerk1927–1994
Tax lists
- Tax Books · Trustee1845–1992
- Tax Assessments (Dist. 5) · Property Assessors1929
- Tax Assessments (Dist. 6, 7 ,10 · Property Assessors1930
Military and pensions
- Military Discharges · Register of Deeds1919–1972
Court orders and minutes
- Minutes · Chancery Court1844–1995
- Trial Docket · Chancery Court1854–1902
- Enrollments · Chancery Court1872–1912
- Execution Docket · Chancery Court1875–1914
- Rule Docket · Chancery Court1888–1902
- Enrollments · Circuit Court1901–1910
- Minutes, Civil · Circuit Court1901–1995
- Minutes · County Clerk1905–1996
- Minutes, Criminal · Circuit Court1907–1996
- Minutes · Lafayette, City of1945–1995
- Minutes · School Board1945–1994
- Minutes, Chamber · Chancery Court1947–1990
- Minutes · Red Boilling Springs, City of1953–1995
- Minutes, Quarterly · County Clerk1968–1995
County government and the poor
- Misc. Rec. of Bonds · Chancery Court1891–1906
- Bonds, Conservators · Probate Records1957–1987
Schools
- Register of School Warrents · School Board1925–1935
Other records
- Misc. Rec. of R. B. Springs · Chancery Court1857–1858
- Misc. Rec. of Lafayette · Chancery Court1858–1861
- Misc. Rec. Answers and Pleas · Chancery Court1872–1887
- Misc. Rec. Bill Street Petitions · Chancery Court1872–1899
- Misc. Records (Ledger) · Chancery Court1887
- Misc. Rec. of Reciepts · Chancery Court1889–1922
- Misc. Rec. of Account Books · Chancery Court1892–1937
- Misc. Rec. of J. W. Bif Co · Chancery Court1893–1896
- Leases, Oil and Gas · Register of Deeds1903–1985
- Release Books · Register of Deeds1944–1996
- Census Records · School Board1946–1956
- Greenbelt · Register of Deeds1986–1991
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
- Macon 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: Macon 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, Macon" 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: Smith County, Sumner County
Check the parent counties for earlier records: Smith County, Sumner County
Later formed partly from Macon County: Trousdale County
Records stay with the county that created them. If your ancestor lived here before 1842, 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.