Franklin County, Mississippi Genealogy

United States

Mississippi

Franklin County

Guide to Franklin County, Mississippi ancestry, genealogy and family history, birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.

Mississippi Online Genealogy Records

County Facts County seat: Meadville Organized: 21 December 1809 Parent County(s): Adams Neighboring Counties Adams  • Amite  • Jefferson  • Lincoln  • Wilkinson See County Maps Courthouse Location Map Adoption This page is available for adoption

County Information

Description

This county was named for Benjamin Franklin. Franklin County is located in the southeast area of the state.

County Courthouse

Franklin County Courthouse
PO Box 297
Meadville, MS 39653
Phone: 601-384-2330
Franklin County Website

Clerk Chancery Court has court, land and probate records.
Clerk Circuit Court has military records.
Clerk Circuit Court also has marriage records.

Franklin County, Mississippi Record Dates

Information for this chart was taken from various sources, often containing conflicting dates. This information should be taken as a guide and should be verified by contacting the county and/or the state government agency.

Known Beginning Dates for Major County Records
Birth*	Marriage	Death*	Court	Land	Probate	Census
1 Nov 1912	1825	1 Nov 1912	1836	1842	1842	1810
*Statewide registration started in Nov 1912 for births and deaths. General compliance by 1921.

Record Loss

1877 Some records were lost in a fire. For suggestions about research in places that suffered historic record losses, see: Burned Counties. By Michael John Neill at 24-7 Family History Circle. When the Records are Gone. By Arlene Eakle at Arlene Eakle's Tennessee Blog. Burned Counties Research in the FamilySearch Research Wiki.

Boundary Changes

1809 Franklin County was created 21 December 1809 from Adams County. County seat: Meadville For animated maps illustrating Mississippi county boundary changes, "Rotating Formation Mississippi County Boundary Maps" (1785-1918) may be viewed for free at the MapofUS.org website. See Mississippi: Individual County Chronologies, Atlas of Historical County Boundaries

Populated Places

For a complete list of populated places, including small neighborhoods and suburbs, visit Hometown Locator. The following are the most historically and genealogically relevant populated places in this county:

Towns
Bude	Meadville (county seat)	Roxie
Unincorporated communities
Eddiceton Hamburg Knoxville	Little Springs Lucien McCall Creek	Quentin Veto

Resources

Cemeteries

Cemeteries of Franklin County, Mississippi online and in print
Tombstone Transcriptions Online	Findagrave.com MSGenWeb Tombstone Project MSInterment Billion Graves
Tombstone Transcriptions in Print (Often more complete)	Family History Library WorldCat
List of Cemeteries in the County	Findagrave.com Billion Graves FamilySearch Places
See Mississippi Cemeteries for more information

 

Census Records

Historical populations
Census	Pop.	%±
1810	2,016	—
1820	3,821	89.5%
1830	4,622	21.0%
1840	4,775	3.3%
1850	5,904	23.6%
1860	8,265	40.0%
1870	7,498	−9.3%
1880	9,729	29.8%
1890	10,424	7.1%
1900	13,678	31.2%
1910	15,193	11.1%
1920	14,156	−6.8%
1930	12,268	−13.3%
1940	12,504	1.9%
1950	10,929	−12.6%
1960	9,286	−15.0%
1970	8,011	−13.7%
1980	8,208	2.5%
1990	8,377	2.1%
2000	8,448	0.8%
2010	8,118	−3.9%
Source: "Wikipedia.org".

For tips on accessing Franklin County census records online, see: Mississippi Census.

• 1660-1820 U.S. Census Reconstructed Records, 1660-1820 at Ancestry $
• 1792-1866 Mississippi, State and Territorial Census Collection, 1792-1866 at Ancestry $
• 1805-1890 Mississippi, Compiled Census and Census Substitutes Index, 1805-1890 at Ancestry $
• 1810 1810 Territory Census Returns at FamilySearch
• 1816 1816 Territory Census Returns at FamilySearch
• 1820 1820 State Census Returns at FamilySearch
• 1833 1833 State Census Returns at FamilySearch
• 1841 1841 State Census Returns at FamilySearch
• 1845 1845 State Census Returns at FamilySearch
• 1870 1870 State Census Returns at FamilySearch
• 1880 1880 State Census Returns at FamilySearch

Church Records

Church records and the information they provide vary significantly depending on the denomination and the record keeper. They may contain information about members of the congregation, such as age, date of baptism, christening, or birth; marriage information and maiden names; and death date. For general information about Mississippi denominations, view the Mississippi Church Records wiki page.
List of Churches and Church Parishes

• FamilySearch Places

Ward and Branch Records of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

• Franklin

Land and Property Records

Land and property records can place an ancestor in a particular location, provide economic information, and reveal family relationships. Land records include: deeds, abstracts and indexes, mortgages, leases, grants and land patents.

See Mississippi Land and Property for additional information about early Mississippi land ownership. After land was transferred to private ownership, subsequent transactions were usually recorded at the county courthouse and where records are currently housed.

Local Histories

Local histories are available for Franklin County. County histories may include biographies, church, school and government history, and military information. For more information about local histories see the wiki page section Mississippi Local Histories.

• Brief History (Pre-1817) of Franklin County, Mississippi, USGenWeb for Franklin County, Mississippi

Maps and Gazetteers

Click a neighboring county
for more resources

• FamilySearch Places:Cities and Towns- How to Use FS Places
• Maps of Mississippi (1785-1918)
• Family Maps of Franklin County, Mississippi Genealogy (land patent maps) at HistoryGeo.com.($). Free surname search.

Military Records

Civil War

• 1861-1865 Mississippi, Civil War Service Records of Confederate Soldiers, 1861-1865 at FamilySearch
• 1861-1865 Mississippi, Civil War Service Records of Union Soldiers, 1861-1865 at FamilySearch
• 1861-1865 U.S., Confederate Soldiers Compiled Service Records, 1861-1865 at Ancestry index free
• 1861-1865 U.S., Union Soldiers Compiled Service Records, 1861-1865 at Ancestry index free
• 1889-1942 Mississippi, Confederate Records, 1889-1942 at FamilySearch
• 1900-1974 Mississippi, Confederate Veterans and Widows Pension Applications, 1900-1974 at FamilySearch

Regiments. Men in Franklin County served in various regiments. Men often joined a company (within a regiment) that originated in their county. Listed below are companies that were specifically formed in Franklin County:

- 4th Regiment, Mississippi Cavalry

Company I - Stockdale Rangers

- 7th Regiment, Mississippi Infantry

Company A - Franklin Rifles

Company K - Quitman Rifles

Company E - Franklin Beauregards

World War I

• 1917-1919 Mississippi, World War I Service Cards, 1917-1919 at FamilySearch — index
• 1917-1918 Mississippi, World War I Army Veterans, Master alphabetical index, 1917-1918 at FamilySearch — index and images

Probate Records

Probate records are held by the Franklin County, Mississippi Genealogy Clerk of Court and are housed at the Franklin County, Mississippi Genealogy Courthouse. Microfilmed records can be found online at Mississippi Probate Records, 1781-1930. See the wiki page Mississippi Probate Records for information about how to use probate records.

Content: Probate Records may give the decedent's date of death, names of his or her spouse, children, parents, siblings, in-laws, neighbors, associates, relatives, and their place of residence.

Record types: Wills, estates, guardianships, naturalizations, and adoptions.

Online Records

• 1780-1982 Mississippi Wills and Probate Records 1780-1982 at Ancestry $
• 1781-1930 Mississippi Probate Records 1781-1930 at FamilySearch

Social Security Records

• 1935-2014 United States Social Security Death Index at FamilySearch - How to use this collection; index. Also at Ancestry, findmypast, Fold3, GenealogyBank, MyHeritage, and Steve Morse. Click here for more information.
• 1936-2007 U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007 at Ancestry ($) — index, click here for more information.

Tax Records

Mississippi tax records replace missing censuses and provide lists of residents during years between censuses. There may be gaps of several years. For more information, see Mississippi Taxation.

• 1810-1887 Territorial and County Tax Rolls at FamilySearch

Vital Records

Vital Records consist of births, adoptions, marriages, divorces, and deaths recorded on registers, certificates, and documents. Mississippi law did not require keeping birth or death records until 1912. Births and deaths are kept by the Mississippi Bureau of Vital Statistics. Marriage records are kept by the county. See also How to order Mississippi Vital Records or order electronically online.

See Mississippi Vital Records for more information on getting Mississippi records.

Marriage

• 1776-1935 Mississippi Marriages, 1776-1935 at Ancestry $
• 1800-1825 Mississippi Marriages to 1825 at Ancestry $
• 1800-1911 Mississippi, Marriages, 1800-1911 at FamilySearch
• 1816-1899 Marriages On-Line Index: Franklin County, Mississippi. Courtesy: MSGenWeb
• 1818-1928 Franklin County Marriage Books 1-6 Index 1818-1928 in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch
• 1826-1850 Mississippi Marriages, 1826-50 at Ancestry $
• 1826-1900 Mississippi Marriages, 1826-1900 at Ancestry $
• 1858-1979 - Mississippi, County Marriages, 1858-1979 at FamilySearch for various counties — index and images

Death

• 1822-1921 - Mississippi Deaths and Burials, 1822-1921 at FamilySearch — index, some images
• 1912-1943 - Mississippi, Death Certificate Index, 1912-1943 at FamilySearch — index
• 1912-1943 Reclaim the Records: Mississippi Death Index at Archive.org - images of index

Research Facilities

Archives

Listed below are archives in Franklin County. For state-wide archival repositories, see Mississippi Archives and Libraries.

Family History Centers

Family History Centers provide one-on-one assistance, free access to center-only databases, and to premium genealogical websites.
FamilySearch Affiliate Libraries have access to most center-only databases, but may not always have full services normally provided by a family history center.

• Family History Center and Affiliate Library Locator

Local Centers and Affiliate Libraries

Libraries

Listed below are libraries in Franklin County. For state-wide library facilities, see Mississippi Archives and Libraries.

Societies

Listed below are societies in Franklin County. For state-wide genealogical societies, see Mississippi Societies.

Websites

• Mississippi Genealogy Network Group on Facebook
• USGenWeb Franklin County, Mississippi project. Has maps, name indexes, history or other information for this county.
• FamilySearch Catalog – The FamilySearch catalog contains descriptions and access information for all genealogical materials (including books, online materials, microfilm, microfiche, and publications) in their collection.  Use Historical Records to search for specific individuals in genealogical records.