Records that survive
These are the record series the Tennessee State Library and Archives (TSLA) has microfilmed for Putnam County, with the office that kept each and the earliest and latest years filmed. A span can include gaps.
Land and deeds
- Survey Books · Register of Deeds1825–1839
- Deed Index · Register of Deeds1854–1995
- Deeds · Register of Deeds1854–1995
- Trust Deeds · Register of Deeds1876–1993
- Trust Deed Index · Register of Deeds1917–1997
Wills
- Wills · Probate Records (County or Chan1876–1996
Estates and guardianships
- Settlements, Admin. and Exec · Probate Records (County or Chan1878–1907
- Estates, Inventories · Probate Records (County or Chan1899–1989
- Settlements, Guardian · Probate Records (County or Chan1899–1993
- Settlements, Administrators · Probate Records (County or Chan1902–1996
- Settlements, Executors · Probate Records (County or Chan1903–1995
- Probate Records, Index · Probate Records (County or Chan1910–1995
- Bonds, Administrators · Probate Records (County or Chan1933–1991
- Bonds, Guardian · Probate Records (County or Chan1935–1976
- Bonds, Executors · Probate Records (County or Chan1955–1993
- Estates, Claims Against · Probate Records (County or Chan1956–1993
Marriages, births and deaths
- Marriages · County Clerk1879–1995
- Marriage Index · County Clerk1894–1994
- Bonds, Marriages · County Clerk1899–1920
- Vital Statistics · County Clerk1908–1912
- Vital Statistics (Births) · County Clerk1925–1931
- Vital Statistics (Deaths) · County Clerk1925–1937
- Marriage Records FS · County Clerk1949–2003
Tax lists
- Tax Books · Trustee1883–1993
Military and pensions
- Military Discharges · Register of Deeds1918–1994
Court orders and minutes
- Minutes · Circuit Court1842–1901
- Minutes, Quorum · County Clerk1894–1984
- Minutes · Chancery Court1895–1996
- Minutes FS · Circuit Court1899–1901
- Minutes, Civil · Circuit Court1901–2004
- Recorders Docket · Algood, City of1901–1953
- Minutes · Cookeville, City of1904–1995
- Minutes, Criminal · Circuit Court1907–2004
- Magistrates Docket · Algood, City of1911–1926
- Minutes · Algood, City of1911–1983
- Minutes and Ordinances · Baxter, City of1915–1978
- Enrollments · Chancery Court1916–1921
- Minutes and Ordinances · Monterey, City of1924–1958
- Minutes, Quarterly · County Clerk1928–1996
- and 5 more series in the full listing
County government and the poor
- Bonds, Admin. Exec. and Guar · Probate Records (County or Chan1875–1933
Other records
- Record Book · Circuit Court1860–1865
- Loose Records FS · Chancery Court1867–1955
- Miscellaneous Records FS · Chancery Court1900–1955
- Ordinances · Cookeville, City of1912–1987
- Incorporation · Baxter, City of1915
- Charters · Register of Deeds1921–1994
- Charter Index · Register of Deeds1926–1994
- Release Records · Register of Deeds1932–1996
- Leases · Register of Deeds1947–1995
- Resolutions · Cookeville, City of1961–1987
- Resolutions · Algood, City of1962–1977
- Miscellaneous Records · Register of Deeds1975–1996
- Greenbelt · Register of Deeds1987–1993
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
- Putnam 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: Putnam 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, Putnam" 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: Fentress County, Jackson County, Overton County, White County
Check the parent counties for earlier records: Fentress County, Jackson County, Overton County, White County
Later formed partly from Putnam County: Cumberland 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.