The Ancestor Hunt regularly adds and updates new collection links, as well as searches for and fixes broken links.
(This page's most recent update is November 2024)
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One of the main goals for genealogists is finding birth, baptism, and/or christening information about their ancestors.
Over the past few decades, thanks to volunteers, librarians, and archivists, many indexes to birth and baptism collections have been provided for free online. These searchable indexes provide specific birth, baptism, or christening information, and sometimes scanned images of the actual birth documents. These free online collections have millions of records in them in total.
There are a great number of online and offline collections that may include birth information that is not included in the lists below. These different types can be found in 32 Ways to Find Ancestor Birth Information
If you are interested in baptism indexes that may include the birth date as well as baptism information, make sure and check out Church Records.
The lists below are specific birth, baptism, and christening indexes and record collections that are available for free online for the state.
Note: Some links listed take you to a FamilySearch Collection of digital images. Near the bottom of the page under Film/Digital Notes is the name of each sub-collection. If there is a camera icon at the right of the name (in the Format column) then the collections’ images are browsable. If there is a camera with a key icon, it is only available at a Family History Center or affiliated library. If there is a film reel icon, then it is only available in microfilm format, not digital. To take full advantage make sure that you are logged in to FamilySearch. The results may be different if you are signed in, rather than not.
Note: I have included links to Free Ancestry records and indexes. You do not need a subscription, but do need an Ancestry account. Without a subscription, you can view indexes. If there is an image associated with a record, in most cases you will need a subscription, but the index does include very usable information.
Tennessee Birth Records
- Anderson County Miscellaneous Vital Records
- Anderson County Vital Statistics: Births, 1881-1882; Births and Deaths, 1891-1899, 1909-1912
- Anderson County, Birth Indexes
- Bedford County, Birth Indexes
- Benton County, Birth Indexes
- Blount County Births
- Blount County Births and Deaths 1881-1882, 1908-1912
- Bradley County Vital Statistics; Births, Deaths, 1908-1912
- Cannon County Births, 1881-1903, 1908-1912
- Cannon County, Birth Indexes
- Carroll County, Birth Indexes
- Carter County Vital Statistics, Births, Deaths, 1881-1912
- Chattanooga Birth Records, 1911-1915
- Cheatham County Vital Statistics: Births, Deaths, 1881-1882, 1908-1912; Deaths, 1925-1941
- Claiborne County Vital Statistics, 1908-1912
- Clay County Births and Deaths, 1908-1912
- Cocke County Records, 1860-1930
- Cocke County Vital Statistics, Births and Deaths, 1908-1912
- Coffee County Newspaper Index
- Crockett County Births, 1908-1911, ca. 1925-1939; Deaths, 1908-1911, ca. 1924-1939
- Davidson County Birth Index, 1908-1912
- Decatur County Births, 1881-1883
- Decatur County, Birth Indexes
- Dickson County Marriage Records 1859-1950, Court Ordered Birth Records ca. 1875-1941, Death Records 1930-1939
- Dyer County Delayed Birth Records 1900-1946
- Dyer County Vital Statistics; Birth & Death 1908-1912
- Fayette County Collection
- Franklin County Vital Statistics, 1881-1885
- Gibson County Births, 1881-1882; Births & Deaths, 1909-1912
- Gibson County, Vitals Records, 1881-1999
- Giles County Vital Statistics: Births, Deaths, 1908-1912
- Grainger County Births 1881
- Grainger County Vital Statistics; Births, Deaths, 1908-1912
- Greene County Listing of Miscellaneous Records 181-1939
- Greene County Vital Statistics: Births and Deaths, 1881-1882, 1925-1939
- Greene County, New Hope Monthly Meeting of Friends, Births, Marriages, Deaths
- Grundy County Vital Statistics; Births, Deaths, 1908-1912
- Hamblen County Vital Statistics; Births and Deaths, 1909-1912
- Hamilton County Vital Statistics Record No. 1, 1908-1915; Vital Statistics Record No. 2, 1911-1912
- Hancock County, Birth Indexes
- Hardeman County Birth, Marriage, and Death Indexes
- Hardeman County Birth and Deaths Records 1881-1939
- Hardin, Perry, Putnam, Counties, Vital Records, 1908-1939
- Hawkins County Vital Records Indexes
- Haywood County Vital Statistics: Births, 1881-1882; Births & Deaths, 1908-1912
- Henderson County Vital Records Indexes
- Henderson County, Birth Indexes
- Henderson County, Birth Records of Babies Delivered by Dr. C.E. Bolen, 1899-1944
- Henry County Vital Statistics, Birth, Death, 1881-1939
- Henry County, Birth Records, 1914-1936
- Houston County Vital Statistics; Birth, Death, 1881-1882
- Humphreys County Vital Statistics: Births, Deaths, 1908-1912
- Jackson County Records, 1801-1974
- Jefferson County Vital Statistics: Births, Deaths, 1908-1912
- Johnson County Vital Statistics: Births, Deaths, 1908-1912
- Knoxville Birth Records, 1881-1913
- Lauderdale County Birth Indexes
- Lauderdale County Birth & Death Records 1881-1882
- Lauderdale County, Birth Indexes
- Lawrence County Birth Marriage, and Death Indexes
- Lawrence County Vital Statistics: Births and Deaths, 1908-1912
- Lewis County Vital Statistics: Births, Deaths, 1908-1912
- Lincoln County Births, 1881-1883
- Loudon County Vital Statistics: Births, Deaths, 1908-1936
- Macon County Record of Births & Report of Births, [vols. A-C], ca. June 1908–March 1939
- Madison County Birth Records, 1925-1939
- Madison County Vital Statistics from School Districts, 1908-1912
- Madison County, Birth Indexes
- Marion County Vital Statistics; Birth and Death, 1908-1912
- Maury County Newspapers (Abstracts) 1810-1844, 1846-1850
- Maury County Vital Statistics; Births, Deaths, 1908-1912
- McMinn County Vital Statistics; Births, Deaths, 1908-1912
- McNairy County Birth and Death Records
- McNairy County Birth Records, 1881-1883
- Miscellaneous BMD Records by County
- Monroe County Vital Statistics; Births and Deaths, 1881-1882, 1908-1940
- Montgomery County Delayed Birth Certificates, 1868-1954
- Montgomery County Delayed Birth Certificates, 1880-1910
- Montgomery County, Delayed Birth Certificates, 1880-1910
- Moore County Vital Statistics, Births and Deaths 1908-1911, Births 1881-1882
- Morgan County Vital Statistics: Births, Deaths, 1908-1912
- Nashville Birth Index, 1881-1913
- Nashville Births 1881-1913
- Nashville Birth Records, 1881-1913
- Obion County Vitals Indexes
- Obion County Miscellaneous Records, 1870-1900
- Obion County Vital Statistics: Births, Deaths, 1881
- Overton County Vital Records
- Perry County Birth, Marriage, and Death Indexes
- Perry County Vital Statistics, 1881-1912
- Rhea County Birth Records, 1908-1912
- Roane County Vital Statistics: Births, Deaths, 1881
- Robertson County Births and Deaths, 1908-1912
- Rutherford County Birth Record Index
- Sequatchie County Births 1881,1908-1920; Deaths, 1881,1908-1911
- Sevier County Births
- Sevier County, Birth Indexes
- Shelby County Births, Marriages, Deaths
- Shelby County, Birth Indexes
- Smith County Birth Records, 1881-1882
- Smith County Birth Records, 1914-1930
- Smith County Birth Records, 1925-1938
- Smith County Death and Birth Records, 1881-1883
- Smith County Delayed Births 1942, 1957-1965
- Smith County Vital Statistics Records, 1908-1912
- Smith County Vital Statistics; Birth, Death, 1881-1912
- Stewart County Birth, Marriage, and Death Indexes
- Stewart County Vital Statistics, 1881-1912
- Stewart County, Birth Indexes
- Sullivan County Deaths, 1881-1894; Births, 1881-1882, 1908-1912
- Sumner County Birth Indexes
- Sumner County Birth Record, 1908-1912; and Death Records, 1881
- Tennessee Births and Christenings, 1828-1939
- Tennessee, Birth Records (ER Series), 1908-1912
- Tennessee, Birth Records, 1879-1916
- Tennessee, Genealogical Collection
- Tennessee, Births (enumerator Record Series), 1908-1912
- Tipton County, Birth Indexes
- Tipton County, Birth Records, 1881-1950; Death Records, 1930-1945, 1881-1950
- Trousdale County Birth Records, 1908-1940
- Union City, Deaths and Births 1869-1883, 1869-1883
- Union County Record of Births, 1881-1882
- United States Births and Christenings, 1867-1931
- Van Buren County Vital Statistics; Births and Deaths, 1908-1911
- Warren County Vital Statistics, 1881-1912; Births, 1881-1898, Deaths, 1908-1912
- Washington County Delayed Birth Registrations 1861-1945
- Wayne County Vital Statistics (Deaths, 1881-1883 and 1908-1912; Births, 1908-1912) Reports from School Districts, 1881-1912
- Weakley County Births and Deaths, 1908-1912
- White County Records, 1809-1975
- White County Vital Statistics, 1881-1909
- Williamson County Births
- Williamson County Birth and Death Records 1881-1939
- Williamson County Births, and Deaths, 1881, 1908-1912
- Wilson County Birth Records, 1881-1882, 1908-1912, and Death Records, 1908-1912
Good Luck and Happy Hunting!