In the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, Tennessee was the gateway west through the Appalachians. By the tens of thousands, migrants—primarily from the Carolinas, Virginia, and Pennsylvania—poured into and through this long slice of frontier. In Research in Tennessee, 2nd Edition, descendants of those who stayed and those who pushed farther westward will discover a comprehensive guide to a myriad of records that will help them trace their ancestors.
The book notes that a preponderance of records can be found at the Tennessee State Library and Archives in Nashville but it also provides up-to-date information about online sources and records found in libraries nationwide. In his discussion of the records, the author weaves in the historical context as an added aid to family historians. The records covered include atlases, gazetteers, and maps; court, land and church records; state, county, and tax records; and military and pension records from the Revolutionary War through World War II. Readers will also find discussions of records on women and ethnic groups, including American Indian, African American, and Melungeon (a multi-racial group from Appalachia whose origins can be traced to the colonial era).
Published by NGS, Research in Tennessee, 2nd Edition, is one volume in the Research in the States series edited by Barbara Vines Little, CG, FNGS, FUGA, FVGS. It is available for purchase in the NGS online store in both PDF and print versions.
The first edition of Research in Tennessee was written by Gale Williams Bamman, a certified genealogist emeritus. The succeeding editions were updated and revised by Charles A. Sherrill, State Librarian and Archivist of Tennessee and author of twenty books on Tennessee history and genealogy.