Search Tip: For a comprehensive index to names and places mentioned in Stewart County records, consult the Stewart County Master Index on the TNGenWeb Stewart County Genealogy web site. That index includes many of the records held at the Archives, and more.
County Records - Bound Volumes
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The bound records housed at the Stewart County Archives include:
A list of the bound volumes held at the Archives and at the Courthouse is available here (updated August 2025): 
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County Records - Case Files (Loose Records)
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The term 'loose' records is meant as a contrast to the records in bound volumes. A lot of paperwork was generated by county government, and not nearly everything was transcribed by a clerk into a bound volume. The loose papers were just as much a part of the public record as the bound volumes. Loose records are often the true genealogical gold of a courthouse or Archive.
Examples include case files from the courts, petitions, IOUs, summons, depositions, original deeds and wills, divorces, coroner's inquests, and clerks' or attorney's notes. Whereas a bound volume might mention that heirs of an estate were dividing up the estate, the loose papers will often name the heirs. Loose records at the Stewart County Archives include:
Download searchable indexes to our Loose Records by clicking the PDF files just below (last updated November 18, 2025). Download the Circuit Court case files at the link below, in the Circuit Court section.
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Online Records
Time, money and space prevent us from putting anything but a fraction of our holdings online. Listed below are indexes, or digital images, of some of our holdings, focusing on those that are not microfilmed.
Note that almost all of Stewart County's microfilmed courthouse records through the late 1960s are now viewable online for free at FamilySearch. Note also that Tennessee residents can view a large amount of county record sets online for free at Ancestry, simply by accessing Ancestry via the State Archives' Tennessee Electronic Library link.
Note that almost all of Stewart County's microfilmed courthouse records through the late 1960s are now viewable online for free at FamilySearch. Note also that Tennessee residents can view a large amount of county record sets online for free at Ancestry, simply by accessing Ancestry via the State Archives' Tennessee Electronic Library link.
County Court
Settlements and Bonds, 1804-1807 (typed copy, ca. 1920s) - added December 2025
Settlements and Bonds, 1806-1812 - added May 2026
Settlements and Bonds Book "A", 1809-1814 (WPA transcript of pp. 1-174) - added July 2023
Marriage Records 1838-1848 (1937 WPA manuscript from now-lost original book) - added July 2023
Marriage Records 1838-1848 (1937 WPA typescript) - added July 2023
Black Marriage Book 1865-1881 (scans of original pages, restored to their original order) - added September 2026
White Marriage Book 1867-1876 (scans of original pages, restored to their original order) - added September 2026
Death Records 1881-1882 - added September 2026
Death Records (1925-1938) - added March 2020
* please note that Birth and Death records are State, not county records; while we have a few registers of some births and deaths, the original certificates are held either by the Office of Vital Records or the Tennessee State Library and Archives in Nashville.
Stewart County Death Certificates, 1908-1959 (sorted by Name) - link to TNGenWeb site
Stewart County Death Certificates, 1908-1959 (sorted by Year) - link to TNGenWeb site
County Court Minute Book Index, 1804-1896 (PDF) - added August 2026
County Court Minute Book 1804-1807 (typed copy, ca. 1940s) - added December 2025
County Court Minute Book 1813-1815 - added August 2026
County Court Trial Docket, 1808-1813 - added July 2019
County Court Appeals to Circuit Court, 1824-1834 - added July 2018
County Court Execution Docket, 1824-1826 - added July 2018
County Court Execution Docket, 1826-1827 (PDF, with index) - added July 2018
1920 Automobile Registration Book
Merchant Licenses, 1836-1865 - added July 2026
Settlements and Bonds, 1806-1812 - added May 2026
Settlements and Bonds Book "A", 1809-1814 (WPA transcript of pp. 1-174) - added July 2023
Marriage Records 1838-1848 (1937 WPA manuscript from now-lost original book) - added July 2023
Marriage Records 1838-1848 (1937 WPA typescript) - added July 2023
Black Marriage Book 1865-1881 (scans of original pages, restored to their original order) - added September 2026
White Marriage Book 1867-1876 (scans of original pages, restored to their original order) - added September 2026
Death Records 1881-1882 - added September 2026
Death Records (1925-1938) - added March 2020
* please note that Birth and Death records are State, not county records; while we have a few registers of some births and deaths, the original certificates are held either by the Office of Vital Records or the Tennessee State Library and Archives in Nashville.
Stewart County Death Certificates, 1908-1959 (sorted by Name) - link to TNGenWeb site
Stewart County Death Certificates, 1908-1959 (sorted by Year) - link to TNGenWeb site
County Court Minute Book Index, 1804-1896 (PDF) - added August 2026
County Court Minute Book 1804-1807 (typed copy, ca. 1940s) - added December 2025
County Court Minute Book 1813-1815 - added August 2026
County Court Trial Docket, 1808-1813 - added July 2019
County Court Appeals to Circuit Court, 1824-1834 - added July 2018
County Court Execution Docket, 1824-1826 - added July 2018
County Court Execution Docket, 1826-1827 (PDF, with index) - added July 2018
1920 Automobile Registration Book
Merchant Licenses, 1836-1865 - added July 2026
Circuit Court
Circuit Court Minute Book, 1810-1820 fragment (WPA transcript of pp. 1-9) - added July 2023
Circuit Court Minute Book Index, 1821-1834 (PDF) - added October 2018
Circuit Court Enrolling Book, 1849-1861 - added May 2026
Index to Circuit Court Enrolling Book, 1849-1861 - added June 2019
Circuit Court Minute Book, 1865-1871 - added May 2026
Circuit Court Minute Book Index, 1865-1871 - added October 2018
Circuit Court case files, 1809-1889 (thousands of case files at the Google Drive link; see plaintiff/defendant index in looserecords.pdf file above) - added May 2026
Election Records, 1840-1883 - added April 2023
Index to Election Records
Citizenship Petitions, 1837-1909
Circuit Court Minute Book Index, 1821-1834 (PDF) - added October 2018
Circuit Court Enrolling Book, 1849-1861 - added May 2026
Index to Circuit Court Enrolling Book, 1849-1861 - added June 2019
Circuit Court Minute Book, 1865-1871 - added May 2026
Circuit Court Minute Book Index, 1865-1871 - added October 2018
Circuit Court case files, 1809-1889 (thousands of case files at the Google Drive link; see plaintiff/defendant index in looserecords.pdf file above) - added May 2026
Election Records, 1840-1883 - added April 2023
Index to Election Records
Citizenship Petitions, 1837-1909
Other Records at the Archives
Microfilmed County and area Records and Newspapers
The Archives has a large collection of microfilms of county records. The PDF link below will show you our current inventory. The reels that are also accessible from home on FamilySearch are hyperlinked in the document.
The Archives has a large collection of microfilms of county records. The PDF link below will show you our current inventory. The reels that are also accessible from home on FamilySearch are hyperlinked in the document.
| stewart_county_archives_microfilm_inventory.pdf |
In addition to the original county records and microfilm listed above, the Stewart County Archives also has a collection of other research materials to further assist visitors who visit the Archives in person:
- Bible Records
- Cemetery Records (field notes from the 1983 county cemetery book)
- Census Records, 1820-1860
- Church Records
- Cub Creek Baptist Church Minute Book, 1805-1929 (see Collections page for a link to the scans)
- Deed Book extracts, Deed Books 1-10 (1804-1834)
- Marriage abstracts (1804-1910)
- Middle Tennessee Genealogical Journal, nearly all issues 1985-2012
- Military Records
- Newspaper Archive (over 7,800 digital images of Stewart County newspapers), 1859-1960
- School yearbooks, various years/schools (see Collections page for a list)
- Store ledgers from various county businesses, including an early 1900's Indian Mound drug store
- Vertical files of compiled family histories, photographs, ephemera
- Family History books
- published research books
Be sure to view our Collections page for descriptions of the many Family collections that supplement the official county records in our care.
Records by Mail / E-Mail
The Stewart County Archives accepts requests for printed copies or digital scans of the over 10,000 case files (see Loose Records list above) that have been cleaned and organized to date. These case files are in the categories of:
Paper Copies by Mail
The Archives' fee schedule for mailed photocopies is 35 cents per printed page (includes postage). The Inventory link above will indicate how many pages are in each case file, so you'll know the total cost before you place your mail-in request, if you choose printed copies. The Order Form is below. Requests for printed copies, and a check payable to Stewart County Archives, can be mailed to:
Stewart County Archives
P. O. Box 367
Dover, TN 37058
Digital Copies by Email
We will email digital scans of case files and most bound-volume pages at no charge. But we ask that you request specific files from our list of Loose Records linked above, or specific book/page numbers from a bound volume, rather that just saying something like, "Please find, scan and email everything you have on John Smith." And we thank you in advance for giving us time to locate and digitize the items that you request.
The Archives' staff is all-volunteer, and works 1-2 days per week. Thanks for your patience.
Questions? Email [email protected]
- Citizenship (Naturalization) petitions (1837-1909) - now online (see Online Records below)
- Circuit Court Civil case files (1808-1949, over 5,000 files)
- Circuit Court Criminal (State) case files (1810-1949, over 5,000 files)
- Justice of the Peace (JP) case files (1860s-1890s, over 2,500 files)
- Divorces (1811-1950, 600 files)
- Inquests (1813-1942)
- Wills (1808-1948, 236 files)
Paper Copies by Mail
The Archives' fee schedule for mailed photocopies is 35 cents per printed page (includes postage). The Inventory link above will indicate how many pages are in each case file, so you'll know the total cost before you place your mail-in request, if you choose printed copies. The Order Form is below. Requests for printed copies, and a check payable to Stewart County Archives, can be mailed to:
Stewart County Archives
P. O. Box 367
Dover, TN 37058
Digital Copies by Email
We will email digital scans of case files and most bound-volume pages at no charge. But we ask that you request specific files from our list of Loose Records linked above, or specific book/page numbers from a bound volume, rather that just saying something like, "Please find, scan and email everything you have on John Smith." And we thank you in advance for giving us time to locate and digitize the items that you request.
The Archives' staff is all-volunteer, and works 1-2 days per week. Thanks for your patience.
Questions? Email [email protected]
| Archives Order Form |
The long-running TNGenWeb Stewart County Genealogy website is a great research destination for anyone researching Stewart County families.
Our neighbors at the Stewart County Public Library have a great Genealogy Room with unique books for local research.
Our neighbors at the Stewart County Public Library have a great Genealogy Room with unique books for local research.