Tennessee, county records

Polk County, Tennessee Public Records

Find the right office in Polk County. Court cases, deeds and parcels, sheriff and jail records, vital records and county filings, each linked to the office that keeps them.

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Most requested Polk County records

Every card below goes to the government office responsible for that record. Use the category buttons to narrow the list.

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Showing 7 official sources

Official

County court

Tennessee Federal Cases

The U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee hears bankruptcy cases in Chattanooga, Greeneville, Knoxville and Winchester, with dockets and claims available through PACER.

tneb.uscourts.gov
Open official site Tennessee Federal Cases
Official

Police & jail

Tennessee Death Row

The Tennessee Department of Correction publishes its own list of offenders now under a sentence of death in Tennessee, with related facts on the state's death penalty.

tn.gov
Open official site Tennessee Death Row

Local record guide

About public records in Polk County

County profile

Polk County at a glance

State
Tennessee
County seat
Benton
Population
17,544
Area
442 sq mi
Founded
1839
Cities and towns
9

Polk County offices and records

Sheriff & Law Enforcement. Polk County Sheriff's Office is responsible for law enforcement in the unincorporated areas of Polk County.

Police Departments. In addition to Polk County Sheriff's Office, law enforcement is provided by municipal police departments within Polk County.

Law Enforcement & Arrests. Polk County Sheriff's Office, led by the elected Sheriff, is the primary law enforcement agency serving unincorporated areas of Polk County, Tennessee. Inmate information and jail roster details can be obtained by contacting Polk County Jail directly or visiting the Sheriff's Office in person during business hours.

Criminal Records. For an authoritative source, see Polk County Sheriff Department, TN Arrests, Warrant Lookup .

Arrest Records. They are maintained by the arresting agency, primarily the County Sheriff's Office and municipal police departments.

Abandoned mine records

Old mine workings in Polk County

Where the workings are, and the office that holds the mine maps.

From the old mine records

What is on record in Polk County

Old mine sites
23
Past producers, now closed
17
Prospects and occurrences, never worked
6
Producing when recorded
6
Processing plants, not workings
2
Worked underground, in the mine records
12
Main minerals
Iron; Copper
Holes drawn on the old survey maps
15
Shafts and tunnels
5
What they are
open pit mine or quarry, iron, gravel pit
Maps surveyed
1935 to 1968
Records behind them
71 records for 46 sites, the rest are the same working written down more than once

Is an old working under a property here?

The mine records hold 31 mine sites inside the county: 17 past producers, now closed, 6 prospects or occurrences that were never worked, 6 sites producing when the record was made, 2 processing plants, which are not workings; the old survey maps add 15 holes drawn inside the county, 5 of them shafts or tunnels. The minerals the records name are Iron; Copper.

A point in either file is a location, not a property line: the sheet shows the opening on the surface, not the rooms under it. The record that shows what runs under a parcel is the mine map. The OSMRE National Mine Map Repository holds scanned underground mine maps and answers requests for a named mine or an area. Tennessee's coal regulatory program was run by OSMRE until the state took it back; the state AML program is in TDEC.

Delano Benton Ducktown Copperhill Farner Ocoee Conasauga N 10 miles
Polk County: the boundary from the Census Bureau, and one dot for each old mine or hole on record inside it. The purple dots come off the old survey maps and the darkest of those are shafts and tunnels; the red, green and orange ones are mine records. The small open circles with a name are the towns and the pale shapes around the edge are the neighbouring counties, both from the Census Bureau. Hover a dot for its name.
Tennessee mine map and abandoned mine records
Named workings recorded in Polk County (36 shown, 10 unnamed on the map)

Rows taken off the old survey maps open the USGS record of what sits at that spot, because no single feature on those maps has a page of its own. Rows from the mine records open their own USGS page.

Tennessee abandoned mine maps ranks every county and town in the state by the workings recorded inside it, names the office that holds the mine maps, and says what to do if the ground moves.

Disclaimer: The mine information here is for general information only. Old mine records can be incomplete, outdated or wrong, and finding nothing here does not mean there is nothing there. Check with the mine map office named here before you rely on it, and have a qualified engineer look at any ground you are worried about. PublicRecordCenter.com assumes no responsibility or liability for any errors, omissions, or consequences arising from the use of this information.

Labor Department file

Wage and hour cases in Polk County

The U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division closed 8 investigations in Polk County since fiscal 2005 and recorded $39,788 in back wages agreed for 50 workers. The county is the one the Census Bureau puts each employer's ZIP code in. Snapshot of April 22, 2026; a case here is a finding by the Division, not a court judgment.

Investigations closed
8
Back wages agreed
$39,788
Workers due back wages
50
Civil money penalties
$1,375
Employers on the record
6
EmployerCityCasesBack wagesWorkers
City of CopperhillCopperhill2$7,8106
Roger & Carol's Quick BurgerCopperhill1$4,2866
Mucho Kaliente, Inc.Copperhill1$3,97014
Jaysen Executive ServicesDucktown1$1,7772
Ocoee Whitewater Properties, LLCOcoee1$00
Low ReidTurtletown1$00

Every employer on the Polk County record, by back wages agreed; 2 employers have a page of their own and open from the table, the rest show their whole record in this row. The Tennessee wage theft records page ranks the whole state.

Straight answers

Polk County public-records FAQs

Open only the answer you need.

Where can I find mugshots or booking photos in Polk County, Tennessee?

Booking photos are kept by the agency that made the arrest, such as the Polk County Sheriff's Office or a city police department in Polk County. Ask that agency for its record.

How do I get a criminal background check in Polk County, Tennessee?

The Tennessee criminal history record comes from the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI). Request a Tennessee name based criminal history check online through Tennessee Open Records Information Services (TORIS), paying by credit card. Fee: $29.00 for each name based check.

How can I look up sex offenders in Polk County, Tennessee?

Search the Tennessee Sex Offender Registry (TBI), or every state at once on the National Sex Offender Public Website run by the U.S. Department of Justice.

How do I register to vote in Polk County, Tennessee?

Register with the county election commission or through the Tennessee Secretary of State, Division of Elections. You can also register online with the state online registration. You must be registered no later than 30 days before the election; mailed forms must be postmarked at least 30 days before.

How do I look up property records in Polk County, Tennessee?

Deeds and other recorded land documents in Polk County are kept by the Polk County register of deeds. Property values are set by the county assessor of property, and tax bills come from the county trustee.

How do I get a birth or death certificate in Polk County, Tennessee?

Certified birth and death certificates for Tennessee come from the Tennessee Department of Health, Office of Vital Records. All county health departments can issue any birth or death certificate registered statewide with the Tennessee Office of Vital Records; you do not need to go to the county where the event occurred. In person with no appointment at Tennessee Vital Records, 1st Floor, Andrew Johnson Tower, 710 James Robertson Parkway, Nashville, TN 37243, or at any county health department; by mail to that address with a check or money order payable to Tennessee Vital Records; or online through VitalChek. Fee: $15.00 for each birth or death certificate, first and additional copies.

How do I find business license records in Polk County, Tennessee?

Business entity filings are searched with the Tennessee Secretary of State, Division of Business and Charitable Organizations. Business licenses are issued by the county clerk, and by the city if it imposes the business tax, where the business is located; businesses with taxable receipts over $3,000 need one.

Same county

Cities, towns and neighboring counties

Use the city page when a record was created by a municipal police department or city office; use the county page for courts, deeds, vital records and jail custody.