Maybe things have changed. I was last there in 1993 or so. The couty clerk's office people were quite friendly and helpful. They allowed me into the vault where the records were kept and gave me a chance to look for what i needed. I had no trouble with that part -- what i did have a problem with was the mail requests. Those are the ones that produced the certicates I memntioned. I asked for photocopies of the pages in the marriage books, but that request was referred to a Delma Wallace who sent the certificates. John & Sandy Brandt wrote: > In defense of the White Co. Courthouse in Sparta: I found them, the > courthouse staff, to be extremely friendly, courteous, and helpful. > Somewhere in the bottom of my notes from that trip (Oct.1998), I have the > name of the lovely Octogenarian woman, who has done an immense amount of > genealogical work in that courthouse-for others, by mail, and for every > visitor. She led and assisted me through ALL of the records I wanted to > find! Perhaps, she, for what ever reason, is no longer available to do this > work. The > staff in the Clerk's Office were the first to admit their lack of > experience and knowledge with those records and were kept quite busy with > usual Clerk functions throughout my visit. Nobody was sitting on their > hands. This may be a case of "changing of the guard" and the new person may > feel a bit overwhelmed. Try to fit a visit to Sparta into your travels; > it's N of Chattanooga, Tn., has a nice motel and B&B, and the area is > beautiful!-esp. in fall! As Paul Harvey says; "there's always the rest of > the story!" > Good luck! My ancestors were HENSLEY and VOLIVA. > Sandra Brandt > brandt@comwares.net > ---------- > > From: Bruce Bumbalough <brucebumbalough@home.com> > > To: TNWHITE-L@rootsweb.com > > Subject: Re: [TNWHITE] Records > > Date: Monday, September 13, 1999 9:11 AM > > > > Good luck! > > > > Several years ago I requested several marriage records for Bumbaloughs > from White County. The request was sent to the White County Clerk and > > then referred to a person in charge of old records. She sent me > certificates that party X had married party Y on date Z and that in > information > > appeared on the XX page of marriage book YY. It was little more than > what I had learned from the marriage books about White County. > > > > I notice that the Genealogy Society there is getting the requests now. > Maybe they will actually go to the courthouse, dig the information out > > and make copies for you. I would ask for that. > > > > White County government seems quite uncooperative when it comes to > helping genealogy researchers. > > > > Bruce Bumbalough > > Watauga, TX > > > > Debra Summers wrote: > > > > > Hello, > > > I called the county clerk's office in Sparta TN this morning to get > fees for > > > ordering the marriage certificate of my gggrandparents for 14 March > 1859 > > > and was advised that as they did not have a genealogist on staff I had > to > > > send my request for fees and anything else to the Genealogical Society > c/o > > > City Hall in Sparta. The address I was given was E. Bockman Way, Sparta > TN. > > > So anyone planning to order a certificate, I guess this is the way we > have to go > > > about it. > > > Debra Summers > > > > > > ==== TNWHITE Mailing List ==== > > > For researching White County, Tennessee Genealogy, please visit Sandy > Keathley's White County TNGenWeb Site at http://www/tngenweb.org/white/ > > > > > > ==== TNWHITE Mailing List ==== > > For the best in Tennessee Genealogy, please visit the TNGenWeb Site at > http://www.tngenweb.org/