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Mississippi Discontinued Counties

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Mississippi History & Facts

   The Mississippi Territory was organized on April 7, 1798, from territory ceded by Georgia and South Carolina; it was later twice expanded to include disputed territory claimed by both the U.S. and Spain. Land was purchased (generally through unequal treaties) from Native American tribes from 1800 to about 1830. Mississippi was the 20th state admitted to the Union, on December 10, 1817 and the official state website is located at http://www.ms.gov/.

   Microfilm and original copies of a large, although not complete, collection of Mississippi county records are in the collection held by the Mississippi Department of Archives and History. Microfilm copies are also generally available through the FHL. Researchers will still want to consult county courthouses for those materials that have either not been transferred or microfilmed, including, but not limited to, marriage licenses, probate files, court records, etc.
  Dates in the chart which follows indicate those materials jointly held by the Mississippi Department of Archives and History and the FHL. Known record losses from fires and other causes are indicated.
  Deeds, probate records, and marriages may be found at the chancery clerk at the county courthouse. Microfilmed marriage books for both whites and blacks are indicated, in that order, under "Marriages." Court records may be found in the appropriate clerk's office at the courthouse.

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Mississippi Destroyed Courthouses

   The destruction of courthouses greatly affects genealogists in every way. No only are these historic structures torn from our lives, so are the records they housed: marriage, wills, probate, land records, and others. Once destroyed they are lost forever. Even if they have been placed on mircofilm, computers and film burn too. The most heartbreaking side of this is the fact that many of our courthouses are destroyed at the hands of arsonist. Some Mississippi counties have had significant destruction of records by fire. However, not all records were lost. Below is a list of the Counties with the County seat and dates of Destruction

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