Tennessee Free Public Records Directory

Tennessee, the 36th largest state, is located in the southeastern region of the United States. It consists of 42,143 sq. miles and 95 counties. Tennessee is bordered by eight states: Kentucky and Virginia on the north, North Carolina on the east, Georgia, Alabama and Mississippi on the south, and Arkansas and Missouri on the west.

Tennessee is geographically, economically and legally divided into three divisions: East Tennessee, Middle Tennessee, and West Tennessee. East Tennessee is dominated by the Appalachian Mountains. Middle Tennessee is called the Highland Rim, an elevated plain that surrounds the Nashville Basin. Middle Tennessee was a common destination of the settlers crossing the Appalachians from Virginia. It is also the primary population center. West Tennessee is called the Gulf Coastal Plain, and is the predominant land region in Tennessee.

Most of Tennessee has a humid subtropical climate with the exception of the higher elevations in the Appalachians. The dominant factor of Tennessee’s climate is the Gulf of Mexico, with winds from the south being responsible for most of the state’s annual precipitation. Even though Tennessee is far enough from the coast to avoid any direct impact from a hurricane, it can be affected by tropical cyclones, which can cause significant rainfall and damage.

Tennessee was initially part of North Carolina and then the Southwest Territory before becoming the 16th state on June 1, 1796. At the beginning of the Civil War in 1861, Tennessee withdrew from the Union to join the Confederate States of America. It was readmitted to the Union at the end of the war.

Tennessee’s state capital and largest city is the city of Nashville, with a population of 660,388. Nashville is a major music recording and production center, and is home to numerous colleges and universities. Tennessee’s second largest city is the city of Memphis, one of the most expansive cities in the U.S., with a population of 652,717. Tennessee is the 16th most populous state with a population of 6,715,984.

The major industries in Tennessee include agriculture, manufacturing and tourism. Cotton and soybeans are the state’s primary agricultural products due to the state’s fertile soil. Tourism contributes billions of dollars each year to the state’s economy with Tennessee being ranked among the top 10 tourist destinations in the U.S. Tennessee’s Great Smoky Mountains National Park is the nation’s most visited national park.^[1]

The below list of available public records is sorted by category for easy access to the records.

Abbreviation	TN, Tenn.
Capital	Nashville
Population	6,715,984 (2017 est.)
Area size	42,143 sq. mi.
Demonym	Tennessean
Primary languages spoken	English
Governor	Bill Haslam
Lieutenant Governor	Randy McNally
U.S. Senators	Lamar Alexander, Bob Corker
U.S. House Delegation	7 Republicans, 2 Democrats
Time Zone --- East --- Middle and West	Eastern: UTC -5/-4 Central: UTC -6/-5

*The map and data in the table are from Wikipedia.

Browse by Public Record Category

There are two types of public records; 1) personal public records that document major life milestones such as birth certificates, death certificates, divorce records, and marriage records, etc.; and 2) government records that are made public such as property tax records, recorded land records, voter records, crime data, jail inmate records, and court records. The Freedom of Information Act is a national law that releases government agency public records and makes it possible to view most public records.^[2] Tennessee Open Records Act, Title 10, Chapter 7, Part 503, defines public records as the following: As used in this part and title 8, chapter 4, part 6, “public record or records” or “state record or records” means all documents, papers, letters, maps, books, photographs, microfilms, electronic data processing files and output, films, sound recordings or other material, regardless of physical form or characteristics, made or received pursuant to law or ordinance or in connection with the transaction of official business by any governmental agency.^[3]

Since there are a multitude of records available, it can be difficult to know how or where to access them. When you are ready to start your search, you’ll find our Public Records Directory website easy to use since all of the records can be searched by federal, state, county, city, town or type of record. The links provided will connect you to the best website for the record search, provide details about the record, or provide contact information for those records without search capabilities.