to the home page of the Hamilton County Tennessee Genealogical Society. The Hamilton County Genealogical Society was formed April 17, 2001 by a group of enthusiastic genealogists who wanted to share their knowledge of Hamilton County with others and provide a forum for fellow researchers interested in the genealogy of Hamilton County Tennessee. Although our organization is new, there is already a wealth of information on our website and more is being added daily. We hope you enjoy your visit and come back often.

    Hamilton County Tennessee was created by an act of the General Assembly of the State of Tennessee on October 25, 1819 with lands taken from Rhea County. Only lands north of the Tennessee River were included in its boundaries until the Treaty of 1835 added the Cherokee Nation, south of the river.
    The county was named for Alexander Hamilton, Secretary of the Treasury in the administration of George Washington. The first courthouse for Hamilton County was Poe’s Tavern at Poe’s Cross Roads. Later the farm of Asahel Rawlings was selected as the county seat and a log courthouse was erected. The county seat was originally known as “Hamilton County Courthouse” until it was given the name Dallas, in honor of Alexander James Dallas. Dallas remained the county seat until 1840 when it was moved to Vann’s Town and soon afterward to Harrison. In 1870 the county seat was moved to Chattanooga where it remains today.