Records that survive
These are the record series the Tennessee State Library and Archives (TSLA) has microfilmed for Rutherford County, with the office that kept each and the earliest and latest years filmed. A span can include gaps.
Land and deeds
- Deed Index (Dir./Rev.) · Register of Deeds1804–1964
- Deeds (E-G missing) · Register of Deeds1804–1808
- Deeds (I-J missing) · Register of Deeds1811–1819
- Deeds (P missing) · Register of Deeds1819–1823
- Deeds (T missing) · Register of Deeds1824–1832
- Deeds (V missing) · Register of Deeds1834–1838
- Deeds · Register of Deeds1838–1963
- Deeds (6 missing) · Register of Deeds1851–1856
- Deeds (12 missing) · Register of Deeds1858–1864
- Trust Deed Index (Dir./Rev.) · Register of Deeds1865–1963
- Trust Deeds · Register of Deeds1868–1963
- Miscellaneous (Lien Books) · Register of Deeds1932–1963
- Chattel Mortgages · Register of Deeds1934–1963
Wills
- Wills · County Clerk1879–1963
Estates and guardianships
- Inventory Records · County Clerk1828–1829
- Inventory Books · County Clerk1863–1883
- Guardian Minutes · County Clerk1874–1910
- Guardian Bonds · County Clerk1877–1948
- Record Bks. (Sales) · County Clerk1883–1954
- Settlements · Register of Deeds1885–1963
- Executor's Bonds · County Clerk1906–1945
- Probate Docket/Claims · County Clerk1939–1960
- Guardian Settlements · County Clerk1940–1963
Marriages, births and deaths
- Marriages · County Clerk1804–1963
- Vital Statistics (Deaths/Births) · County Clerk1881–1912
- Marriages, Index · County Clerk1899–1914
- Marriage License Bond · County Clerk1902–1914
- Marriages (4-5 missing) · County Clerk1907–1920
- Vital Statistics (Births) · County Clerk1915–1935
- Marriages (9 missing) · County Clerk1929–1933
Tax lists
- Tax Books · Trustee1964–1983
- Tax Rolls · Trustee1978–1981
Military and pensions
- Military Discharges · Register of Deeds1919–1958
Court orders and minutes
- Minutes (C-E missing) · County Clerk1804–1808
- Minutes · County Clerk1812–1963
- Chancery Court Loose Records · Chancery Court, loose papers1816–1974
- Minutes (J missing) · County Clerk1816
- Trial Docket · County Clerk1842–1852
- Minutes · Chancery Court1845–1964
- Minutes, Civil/Criminal · Circuit Court1849–1963
- Minutes (B missing) · Chancery Court1856–1860
- Rule Docket (A missing) · Chancery Court1866–1876
- Enrollments · County Clerk1867–1895
- Minutes (J missing) · Chancery Court1871–1873
- Rule Docket · Chancery Court1876–1963
- Minutes, Quarterly · County Clerk1879–1963
- Minutes (JJ missing) · County Clerk1880–1885
- and 5 more series in the full listing
County government and the poor
- Merchant Bonds · County Clerk1842–1848
- Miscellaneous (Bond Books) · Register of Deeds1942–1962
Other records
- Record Books · County Clerk1804–1961
- Trial Sessions · County Clerk1807–1808
- Insanity Books · County Clerk1919–1964
- Index to Files · County Clerk1924–1941
- Misc. (Judgement Books) · Register of Deeds1930–1963
- Reg. Physicians Certificate · County Clerk1947–1962
- Planning Cimmission · Eagleville, City of1987–2009
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
- Rutherford 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: Rutherford 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, Rutherford" 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: Davidson County, Williamson County
Check the parent counties for earlier records: Davidson County, Williamson County
Later formed partly from Rutherford County: Bedford County, Cannon County
Records stay with the county that created them. If your ancestor lived here before 1803, 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.