Access Chattooga County Genealogy

Chattooga County genealogy records go back to 1838, when the county was formed from Floyd and Walker counties in northwest Georgia. The Probate Court in Summerville holds marriage licenses, wills, estate files, and guardianship records. The Clerk of Superior Court keeps land deeds, divorce records, and court files from the same year. Chattooga County sits in the Appalachian foothills near the Alabama border, and many families here have deep roots in the mountain communities of northwest Georgia. The courthouse in Summerville has nearly 190 years of genealogy records on file.

Chattooga County Probate Court Records

The Chattooga County Probate Court is the main source for marriage and estate records. Marriage licenses start in 1838. The court holds wills, letters of administration, guardianship files, and estate inventories. These records are key for tracing family lines in northwest Georgia.

The courthouse is at 26 E. Washington Street in Summerville. The phone number is 706-857-0700. For mail requests, send a self-addressed stamped envelope with payment by check or money order. Under O.C.G.A. § 15-9-30, the Probate Court has jurisdiction over wills, estates, guardianships, conservatorships, and marriage licenses in Chattooga County.

Birth and death certificates from 1919 forward cost $25 for the first copy and $5 for each additional. These are standard state fees.

Note: Chattooga County was formed from Floyd and Walker counties. For records before 1838, check those parent counties.

Chattooga County GAGenWeb Genealogy

The Chattooga County GAGenWeb page is a free volunteer-run resource with cemetery records, census data, family trees, and shared genealogy research.

Volunteers post courthouse records, cemetery transcriptions, church records, and old newspaper extracts. This is a solid starting point for anyone researching Chattooga County family history.

Chattooga County Superior Court Genealogy

The Clerk of Superior Court in Summerville holds land records, divorce files, and court records from 1838. Land deeds show property transfers and family ties. They are especially valuable in this mountain region where farming families often passed land from one generation to the next. Divorce records list children and property.

Under O.C.G.A. § 50-18-70, most court records in Georgia are open to the public. The Open Records Act under O.C.G.A. § 50-18-71 caps copy fees at 10 cents per page for standard documents. Civil case files can reveal estate disputes and other family connections.

Tax digests at the Superior Court help fill gaps when census records are missing. Georgia lost its 1790, 1800, 1810, and 1890 federal census records. Chattooga County tax digests from those years can help track your ancestors.

Vital Records for Chattooga County

Georgia started statewide vital records in 1919 under O.C.G.A. § 31-10-9. Birth and death certificates from that year forward are available from the Chattooga County Probate Court or the Georgia Department of Public Health. Certified copies cost $25 for the first and $5 for each additional.

Under O.C.G.A. § 31-10-26, certified birth certificates are restricted to the person named, parents, grandparents, adult siblings, adult children, spouses, or legal guardians. Death certificates have fewer limits.

The Georgia Virtual Vault has free death certificates from 1919 to 1943 online. FamilySearch has Georgia death records from 1914 to 1943 at no cost. For records before 1919, check church records, cemetery inscriptions, and family Bibles in the Chattooga County area.

Chattooga County Online Genealogy Resources

Search Chattooga County records through the E-Access to Court Records system. Registration is free. Basic case data costs nothing. Documents cost $2.50 for the first page and $1.00 for each additional page.

Free online resources include FamilySearch with Georgia marriages from 1754 to 1960, probate records from 1742 to 1990, and death records from 1914 to 1943. The Georgia Historic Newspapers archive has digitized newspaper pages from across Georgia with obituaries and legal notices.

Research Tips for Chattooga County

Start with what you know. Write down names, dates, and places. Then work backward. Census records are available from 1840 for Chattooga County. Pre-1838 records are in Floyd and Walker counties.

Pre-1900 Chattooga County records are on microfilm at the Georgia Archives at 5800 Jonesboro Road, Morrow, GA 30260. Hours are Tuesday through Saturday, 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM. Free access to Ancestry.com, FamilySearch.org, and Fold3 is available in the search room.

• Check mountain cemetery records for headstone inscriptions
• Search church records for baptisms, marriages, and burials
• Look at Alabama records if your family crossed the state line
• Use tax digests for years when census data is missing
• Review estate and guardianship records for family details

Chattooga County's location near the Alabama border means some families had ties to both states. Check Cherokee County, Alabama for related records. The Virtual Vault has "Georgia Counties: Their Changing Boundaries" to track county line shifts over time.

Cities in Chattooga County

Summerville is the county seat and largest city in Chattooga County. All genealogy records are maintained at the Chattooga County Probate Court and Superior Court Clerk in Summerville. No cities in Chattooga County meet the population threshold for a separate city page.

Nearby Counties

These counties border Chattooga County. Floyd and Walker are the parent counties with pre-1838 records.