Records that survive
These are the record series the Tennessee State Library and Archives (TSLA) has microfilmed for Rhea County, with the office that kept each and the earliest and latest years filmed. A span can include gaps.
Land and deeds
- Deed/Trust Deed Index Dir./Rev · Register of Deeds1808–1941
- Deeds · Register of Deeds1808–1999
- Entry Takers Book · Register of Deeds1819–1905
- Plats · Register of Deeds1889–1969
- Trust Deeds · Register of Deeds1899–1998
- Miscellaneous, Land Sales · Chancery Court1943–1968
- Deed/Trust Deed Index Dir · Register of Deeds1948–1968
- Deed/Trust Deed Index Rev · Register of Deeds1948–1968
- Liens · Register of Deeds1955–1998
Wills
- Wills · Probate Records1825–2000
Estates and guardianships
- Settlements, Guardian · Probate Records1858–1998
- Bonds and Letters, Administrators · Probate Records1890–1969
- Bonds and Letters, Guardian · Probate Records1890–1969
- Settlements, Administrators · Probate Records1902–1980
- Claims Against Estates · Probate Records1922–1969
- Bonds and Letters, Executors · Probate Records1940–1969
- Settlement, Inventories of · Probate Records1980–1986
Marriages, births and deaths
- Marriages · County Clerk1808–1999
- Vital Records (Births) · County Clerk1908–1912
Tax lists
- Tax List Loose Records * · County Clerk1810–1838
- Tax Books Districts 1-10 · Trustee1875–1908
- Tax Books Districts 1-4 · Trustee1909–1968
- Tax Books · Trustee1973–1999
Military and pensions
- Military Discharges · Register of Deeds1919–1998
Court orders and minutes
- Court Papers Loose Records * · County Clerk1785–1891
- Loose Rec. Case #1059-1500 · Circuit Court1809–1865
- Loose Rec. Case #1501-1839 · Circuit Court1809–1865
- Loose Rec. Case #1840-2363 · Circuit Court1809–1865
- Loose Rec. Case #2364-2695 · Circuit Court1809–1865
- Loose Rec. Case #390-1053 · Circuit Court1809–1865
- Loose Rec. Index Case #1-389 · Circuit Court1809–1865
- Minutes Loose Records * · County Clerk1810–1823
- Minutes · Circuit Court1815–1969
- Witness Docket Loose Rec. * · County Clerk1816–1838
- Enrollments · Chancery Court1823–1880
- Minutes · County Clerk1823–1992
- Loose Rec. Case #1047-1099 · Chancery Court1864–1920
- Loose Rec. Case #1100-1146 · Chancery Court1864–1920
- and 46 more series in the full listing
County government and the poor
- Bonds and Letters, Conservators · Probate Records1940–1956
Schools
- Common School Records · Probate Records1959–1967
Other records
- Signatures Loose Records * · County Clerk1796–1853
- Waterhouse Ledger Loose Rec. * · County Clerk1831–1832
- Cash Journals · Trustee1904–1912
- Register, Physician's · County Clerk1908–1951
- Register, Optometry · County Clerk1909–1952
- General Index Direct · Register of Deeds1948–1995
- General Index Reverse · Register of Deeds1948–1995
- Leases, Oil and Gas · Register of Deeds1966–1992
- Notice of Completions · Register of Deeds1975–1996
- Ordinances · Spring City, City of1975
- Greenbelt · Register of Deeds1984
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
- Rhea 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: Rhea 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, Rhea" 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: Roane County
Check the parent county for earlier records: Roane County
Later formed partly from Rhea County: Cumberland County, Hamilton County, McMinn County, Meigs County
Records stay with the county that created them. If your ancestor lived here before 1807, 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.