Records that survive
These are the record series the Tennessee State Library and Archives (TSLA) has microfilmed for Sevier County, with the office that kept each and the earliest and latest years filmed. A span can include gaps.
Land and deeds
- Surveyors Book · Register of Deeds1824–1894
- Deeds · Register of Deeds1845–1950
- Deed and Trust Deed Index · Register of Deeds1846–1911
- Trust Deeds · Register of Deeds1883–1951
- Deed Index · Register of Deeds1911–1951
- Trust Deed Index · Register of Deeds1911–1946
- Deeds, Right of Way · Chancery Court1928–1954
- Deeds, Clerk and Master · Chancery Court1936–1956
Wills
- Wills · County Clerk1849–1955
Estates and guardianships
- Estates, Inventories · County Clerk1856–1896
- Estates · County Clerk1867–1954
- Estates, Insolvent Minutes · County Clerk1871–1873
- Guardian Settlements · County Clerk1871–1955
- Admin./Executors Bonds · County Clerk1872–1888
- Guardian Bonds & Letters · County Clerk1872–1955
- Guardian Minutes · County Clerk1873–1876
- Adm./Exc. Settlements · County Clerk1879–1906
- Administrator's Bonds · County Clerk1888–1917
- Administrator's Settlements · County Clerk1906–1958
- Estates, Claims Against · County Clerk1921–1933
Marriages, births and deaths
- Marriages · County Clerk1856–1951
- Vital Statistics · County Clerk1881–1882
Tax lists
- Tax Books · Trustee1864–1872
Military and pensions
- Military Discharges · Register of Deeds1919–1962
Court orders and minutes
- Enrollments · Chancery Court1843–1877
- Minutes · Circuit Court1850–1904
- Minutes · Chancery Court1854–1952
- Minutes · County Clerk1856–1900
- Enrollments · Circuit Court1858–1876
- Minutes, Quarterly · County Clerk1900–1952
- Minutes and Ordinances · Sevierville, City of1901–1958
- Minutes, Civil · Circuit Court1902–1952
- Minutes, Quorum · County Clerk1904–1952
- Minutes · School Board1908–1951
- Minutes, Criminal · Circuit Court1917–1956
County government and the poor
- Road Commission · County Clerk1881–1888
- Adm./Ex. Bonds & Letters · County Clerk1917–1958
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
- Sevier 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: Sevier 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, Sevier" 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: Jefferson County, Knox County
Check the parent counties for earlier records: Jefferson County, Knox County
Records stay with the county that created them. If your ancestor lived here before 1794, 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.