Tunica County, Mississippi Genealogical Records Information

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Tunica County History and Information

Tunica County Facts

Click HERE to see full size D.O.T. County Map

Tunica County was established February 9, 1836, and is one of the twelve counties formed in that year from the Chickasaw Indian cession of 1832. It was named for the Tunica Indian tribe, the word meaning “the people.” As originally established, Tunica County embraced an area of about 19 townships, or 684 square miles, and its limits were thus defined:

“Beginning at the northwestern corner of Tallahatchie County, and running thence due north to the dividing line between the Choctaw and Chickasaw tribes of Indians; thence with the said dividing line to the Mississippi River; thence up the said river, to the point where the line between townships 2 and 3 intersects the same; thence with the said township line, to the line between ranges 9 and 10 west; thence south with the said range line, and from its termination in a direct line to the northern boundary of Tallahatchie County, and thence west with said northern boundary, to the beginning.”

In 1873 it surrendered a part of its territory to Tate, and another portion in 1877 to Quitman.

A few of the prominent early settlers of the region were Walter H. Bell, the first representative from the county in the lower house of the legislature: E.H. Bridges, Probate Judge; J.H. Bridges, Sheriff; Joseph A. McNeely, Justice of the Peace; Wm. Camoon, Probate Clerk; T.W. Floyd, Circuit Clerk; R.J. Thornton, _____ Smith, William Phillips, James Porter, John Ballard, members of Board of Police, and Lorenzo A. Besancon, S. May, T.M. Fletcher, R.H. Byrne, Alfred Cox, James D. Hallam (Senator from Tunica 1837-1838), who were early members of the legislature from Tunica county.

Tunica, the present county seat, was built up on the line of the Yazoo & Mississippi Valley railroad and was a substantial center of trade. Evansville, Hollywood, Robinsonville, Maud and Dundee are some of the other stations along the line of that road. On the Mississippi River are two of the early county seats, or what remains of them. Commerce is the oldest town in the county, but did not compare as a flourishing river center with Austin, the other county seat. At one time the latter had a population of 2,000 people, with a large river and inland trade.

Tunica has the distinction of having within its bounds the place where Hernando De Soto discovered the Mississippi River, which, following authentic original records and historians generally, was at or near Commerce Landing, situated on the old “Willow Point.”

Tunica County is bordered by Crittenden County, Arkansas (north), DeSoto County (northeast), Tate County (east), Panola County (southeast), Quitman County (south), Coahoma County & Phillips County, Arkansas (southwest) and Lee County, Arkansas (west) . Cities and Towns include North Tunica, Tunica, Tunica Resorts (Robinsonville), (unincorporated) .

See Extended History for More information. The Official County Website is located at http://www.tunicacounty.com/. Tunica County, Mississippi History Books at Amazon.com

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Tunica County Court Records

See Also Mississippi Land Records, Marriage Records, Court & Probate Records

PLEASE READ!! Please call the clerk's department to confirm hours, mailing address, fees and other specifics before visiting or requesting information because of sometimes changing contact information. Dates following a slash indicate those materials jointly held by the Mississippi Department of Archives and History and the FHL

Tunica County Clerk of Circuit Court has Marriage Records from 1858 and Court Records from 1839 and is located at P. O. Box 184, Tunica, Mississippi 38676; Phone: 363-2842, Fax: 357-5934 .
Duties of the Circuit Clerk include Receivin and fileing all law suits, indictments, motions and other related papers in all Civil and Criminal Cases filed in the Circuit or County Courts and issues all process including summons and subpoenas, Draws Jurors and qualifies Juries, Keeps a record of all Judgments and Executions, Issues marriage licenses and keeps records of marriages.

Tunica County Chancery Court Clerk has Land Records from 1836 and Probate Records from 1839 and is located at P. O. Box 217, Tunica, Mississippi 38676; Phone: 363-2451, Fax: 357-5934.
The Chancery Clerk occupies perhaps the most unique and diverse office in all of Mississippi government. The various duties given the Chancery Clerk by statute, or assumed voluntarily by the individual Clerk, cover a wide range of vitally important functions. Some of the duties and functions of the Chancery Clerk are recording the official minutes. As public recorder, the Clerk handles the recording and storage of several types of documents and maintains various indexes that aid people in researching these records. The primary records are deeds and mortgages relating to real property, but the Clerk also records federal tax liens, Lis Pendens ( notices of pending lawsuits ) and military discharges. The Clerk is in charge of the storage and authorized disposal of older land rolls, tax receipts and many other County records after their active use lifespan. As Clerk of the Chancery Court, the Clerk handles a multitude of tasks such as matters of estates, guardianships, conservatorships, divorces, child custody, adoption, property disputes and other matters of equity.

There are a few online marriage databases which include: Mississippi Marriages 1767-1935; Mississippi Marriages to 1825; Mississippi Marriages 1826-1850 and Mississippi Marriages 1826-1900. Omline Land records include Mississippi Land Records; Land Claims in Mississippi Territory, 1789-1834 and the BLM Land Records which covers the State of Mississippi. May pioneers and settelers bought land from the government instead of individuals. Online court records include Mississippi Court Records, 1799-1835

Click Here to Search Mississippi Court, Land, Wills & Financial Records! - Researchers often overlook the importance of court records, probate records, and land records as a source of family history information.

Below is a list of online resources for Tunica County Court Records. Email us with websites containing Tunica County Court Records by clicking the link below:

Tunica County, Mississippi Court Books at Amazon.com
Mississippi Immigration & Emigration Records - Immigration records help the family historian to understand the movements of their ancestry as they relocated to different parts of the world.
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Tunica County Vital Records

See Also Research In Census Records

Click Here to Search Mississippi Voter Lists & Census Records! - Few, if any, records reveal as many details about individuals and families as do government census records. Substitute records can be used when the official census is unavailable.

   Federal Population Schedules that exist for Mississippi are 1820, 1830 (Partial), 1840, 1850, 1860 (Partial), 1870, 1880, 1890 (fragment, see below), 1900, 1910, 1920 and 1930. In 1817 Mississippi became the twentieth state to enter the union; therefore, the first federal population census available is that of 1820.
Variations of this census appear in three printed forms, none of which include slave or miscellaneous information. Enumerations for Pike County are missing in 1830, but the Gillis index used extant tax records to supplement their index. Transcriptions are subject to error; use these reprints simply as a guide to the original records.
   A significant addition to the 1840 census supplies the names and ages of pensioners. Schedules are missing for Hancock, Sunflower, and Washington counties in 1860.
   By 1870, with slavery abolished, all blacks, natives, and Chinese were included, along with information regarding citizenship. With the destruction of the 1890 population schedules, only the schedules enumerating Union veterans are available for Mississippi. There are free downloadable and printable Census forms to help with your research. These include U.S. Census Extraction Forms and U.K. Census Extraction Forms

Below is a list of online resources for Tunica County Census Records. Email us with websites containing Tunica County Census Records by clicking the link below:

Tunica County Maps & Atlases

   Genealogy Atlas has images of old American atlases during the years 1795, 1814, 1822, 1823, 1836, 1838, 1845, 1856, 1866, 1879 and 1897 for Alabama and other states.
   You can view rotating animated maps for Mississippi showing all the county boundaries for each census year overlayed with past and present maps so you can see the changes in county boundaries. You can view a list of maps for other states at Census Maps
   You can view rotating animated maps for Mississippi showing all the county boundary changes for each year overlayed with past and present maps so you can see the changes in county boundaries . You can view a list of maps for other states and State Department of Transportation Maps at County Maps. The Alabama Department of Transportation has county maps the show the locations of churches, cemeteries, roads, ect... free for viewing or download here

Below is a list of online resources for Tunica County Maps. Email us with websites containing Tunica County Maps by clicking the link below:

Tunica County Military Records

Click Here to Search Mississippi Military Records! - Military and civil service records provide unique facts and insights into the lives of men and women who have served their country at home and abroad.

The uses and value of military records in genealogical research for ancestors who were veterans are obvious, but military records can also be important to re-searchers whose direct ancestors were not soldiers in any war. The fathers, grandfathers, brothers, and other close relatives of an ancestor may have served in a war, and their service or pension records could contain information that will assist in further identifying the family of primary interest. Due to the amount of genealogical information contained in some military pension files, they should never be overlooked during the research process. Those records not containing specific genealogical information are of historic value and should be included in any overall research design.

Below is a list of online resources for Tunica County Military Records. Email us with websites containing Tunica County Military Records by clicking the link below:

Tunica County, Mississippi Military Books at Amazon.com
Revolutionary War Rolls, 1775-1783 (The National Archives): View, Print Copy & Save Original Documents in NARA publication M246 include muster rolls, payrolls, strength returns, and other miscellaneous personnel, pay, and supply records of American Army units, 1775-83.
Compiled Service Records of Soldiers Who Served in the American Army During the Revolutionary War (The National Archives): View, Print Copy & Save Original Documents in NARA publication M246 include muster rolls, payrolls, strength returns, and other miscellaneous personnel, pay, and supply records of American Army units, 1775-83.
Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty-Land Warrant Application Filesi (The National Archives): View, Print Copy & Save Original Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty-Land Warrant Application Files, from NARA publication M804.
Southern Claims Commission from the State of Mississippi (The National Archives): View, Print Copy & Save Original Documents In the 1870s, southerners claimed compensation from the U.S. government for items used by the Union Army, ranging from corn and horses, to trees and church buildings.
View, Print Copy & Save Original Organization Index to Pension Files of Veterans Who Served Between 1861 and 1900 from the State of Mississippi (The National Archives): View, Print Copy & Save Original Pension applications for service in the U.S. Army between 1861 and 1917, grouped according to the units in which the veterans served.
Compiled Service Records of Confederate Soldiers Who Served in Organizations from the State of Mississippi (The National Archives): View, Print Copy & Save Original Compiled service records of Confederate soldiers from Mississippi units, labeled with each soldier's name, rank, and unit, with links to revealing documents about each soldier
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Tunica County Tax Records

See Also Research In Tax Records

Local county courthouses maintain original tax records, both real and personal. Microfilm copies of the earlier records are found in the Mississippi Department of Archives and History where the collection is extensive, but there are gaps. Although not many, some counties have published selected years of tax rolls.

Below is a list of online resources for Tunica County Tax Records. Email us with websites containing Tunica County Tax Records by clicking the link below:

Tunica County Genealogical Addresses

See Also Other Mississippi Genealogical Addresses

The Repositories in this section are Archives, Libraries, Museums, Genealogical and Historical Societies. Many County Historical and Genealogical Societies publish magazines and/or news letters on a monthly, quarterly, bi-annual or annual basis. Contacting the local societies should not be over looked. State Archives and Societies are usually much larger and better organized with much larger archived materials than their smaller county cousins but they can be more generalized and over look the smaller details that local societies tend to have. Libraries can also be a good place to look for local information. Some libraries have a genealogy section and may have some resources that are not located at archives or societies. Also, take a special look at any museums in the area. They sometimes have photos and items from years gone by as well as information of a genealogical interest. All these places are vitally important to the family genealogist and must not be passed over.

Below is a list of online resources for Tunica County Genealogical Addresses. Email us with websites containing Tunica County Genealogical Addresses by clicking the link below:

Tate County MS Historical and Genealogical Society, P.O Box 974, Senatobia MS 38668, 1-601-562-0390
Genealogical Society of Desoto County MS, P.O Box 632, Hernando MS 38632-0632, 1-601-429-1310
Local Mississippi Researchers, Find a local researcher or become a local researcher.
Mississippi Department of Archives and History, Ph. (601) 576-6850, fax (601) 576-6964
Physical Address: 200 North Street, Jackson, MS 39201
Mailing Address: P. O. Box 571, Jackson, MS 39205-0571
Mississippi State Records Center, 929 High Str, Jackson, MS 39201; (601) 354-7688
Mississippi Historical Society, PO Box 571, Jackson, MS 39205-0571
Mississippi Genealogical Society, PO Box 5301, Jackson, MS 39296-5301
Mississippi Newspapers & Periodicals Records - Newspapers and periodicals are the diaries of local communities. They are excellent sources of family history details - often recorded nowhere else. Look for obituaries, marriages, legal notices, and more found in our Historical Newspaper Archives.
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Tunica County Church & Cemeteries

Click Here to Search Mississippi Obituary Records! - This database is a compilation of obituaries published in U.S. newspapers, collected from various online sources. Obituaries can vary in the amount of information they contain, but many of them are genealogical goldmines, including information such as names, dates, places of birth and death, marriage information, and family relationships.

There are many churches and cemeteries in Tunica County. Some transcriptions are online. A great site is the Tunica County Tombstone Transcription Project. The Mississippi Department of Transportation has county maps the show the locations of churches and cemeteries free for viewing or download here.

Below is a list of online resources for Tunica County Cemetery & Church Records. Email us with websites containing Tunica County Cemetery & Church Records by clicking the link below:

Family Trees & Genealogy Tidbits

Click Here to Search Mississippi Family Tree Records! - The use of published genealogies, electronic files containing genealogical lineage, and other compiled sources can be of tremendous value to a researcher.

When view family trees online or not, be sure to only take the info at face value and always follow up with your own sources or verify the ones they provide. Below is a list of online resources for Tunica County Family Trees, web forums and other family type information . Email us with websites containing Tunica County Family Trees, web forums and other family type information by clicking the link below:

Tunica County, Mississippi Family Books at Amazon.com
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County History

Tunica County was established on Feb. 9, 1836, and is one of the twelve counties formed in that year from the Chickasaw Indian cession of 1832. The county is situated in the northwestern part of the State, in the Mississippi bottom, and is quite irregular in shape. The Mississippi river washes its entire western border, the county of Desoto lies to the north and east, Tate and Panola counties on the east, the Coldwater river now forming the boundary between Tunica and Tate and Quitman and Coahoma counties on the south The county has a land surface of 449 square miles. It was named for the Indian tribe of that name, the word meaning, the people. As originally established, Tunica embraced an area of about 19 townships, or 684 square miles. In 1873, it surrendered a part of its territory to Tate, and another portion in 1877 to Quitman.

There are no large towns; Tunica, the present county seat has been built up on the line of the Yazoo & Mississippi Valley R.R., and is possessed of substantial business interests. Evansville, Hollywood, Robinsonville, Maud and Dundee are some of the other more important towns on the railroad; on the Mississippi River are Austin, one of the early county seats and once a large town of over 2,000 people, with a large river and inland trade, but now a place of only about 150 people; Commerce, another old county seat and the oldest town in the county; Field, O.K. , State Levee, and Trotter Landing.

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