Affiliate disclosure: This page contains affiliate links. We may earn a commission if you use them, at no extra cost to you. Our editorial recommendations are independent of these relationships.
Mississippi County
Franklin County, Mississippi
Meadville and Homochitto National Forest - from Meadville's role as the governmental center of one of Mississippi's more remote southwestern counties to the Homochitto National Forest (covering significant portions of Franklin and surrounding counties, the Homochitto National Forest provides hunting, hiking, and timber harvesting across the longleaf pine and hardwood landscape of southwest Mississippi, with the forest's Pipes Lake recreation area offering camping and water recreation in the forested hill country).
Affiliate disclosure: This page contains affiliate links. We may earn a commission if you use them, at no extra cost to you. Our editorial recommendations are independent of these relationships.
What do you need to do?
Tell us your goal and we'll guide you step-by-step to the right office, forms, and official resources.
Office: Franklin County Emergency Management – confirm current phone via franklincoms.weebly.com or msema.org’s county contact directory.
Sheriff: Franklin County Sheriff’s Office – PO Box 396, Meadville, MS 39653 | (601) 384-2323 | Fax: (601) 384-3770; elected at-large, four-year term.
Notes: For an active emergency, call 911.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: US-98 and US-84 bypass Meadville, the county seat, to the south, leading east to Brookhaven and southeast to McComb; Bude is the county’s largest town, situated near the Homochitto River and accessible via US-98.
Notes: Franklin County was formed December 21, 1809 from portions of Adams County – the fourth county organized in Mississippi – named for Founding Father Benjamin Franklin. Roughly 7,490-7,675 residents across 564-567 square miles, bisected diagonally by the Homochitto River. Meadville was named for Cowles Mead, second secretary of the Mississippi Territory; the original county seat, Franklin, was located about 2.5 miles to the west before the seat moved to Meadville around 1820 (incorporated as a town in 1860). Mississippi Congressman Dan C. McGeehee was a Meadville native.
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: Franklin County Courthouse – PO Box 297, Meadville, MS 39653 | (601) 384-2330.
Notes: Part of the Homochitto National Forest extends into Franklin County, offering hunting, hiking, and outdoor recreation. The county remains largely rural and agricultural, with cotton historically its primary crop.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Franklin County Veterans Service Office – confirm current contact via franklincoms.weebly.com.
Federal: VA facilities accessible via a Jackson, MS or Natchez, MS VA clinic; confirm current routing.
Libraries
LIBRARIES
Franklin County Public Library – located behind the Courthouse in downtown Meadville, MS 39653 | (601) 384-2997 | Hours: Mon/Wed 9 AM-5 PM, Tue/Thu 9 AM-6 PM, Fri/Sat 9 AM-Noon; part of the Lincoln-Lawrence-Franklin Regional Library system.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: The Homochitto National Forest and the Homochitto River corridor are the county’s premier outdoor recreation attractions.
Notes: The historic Franklin County Courthouse in downtown Meadville and the town’s small-scale rural charm are notable local features.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Franklin County Tax Assessor – confirm current contact via franklincoms.weebly.com.
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
No dedicated Franklin County animal shelter was confirmed – flagged honestly rather than smoothed over. Confirm current local options via franklincoms.weebly.com or the Sheriff’s Office, (601) 384-2323.
Environmental & Waste
ENVIRONMENTAL / WASTE MANAGEMENT
Office: Franklin County – confirm current contact via franklincoms.weebly.com.
NOTES: Franklin County is the fifth county in the third batch of the Mississippi v2 A+ sourced redo. The county’s role as the fourth organized in Mississippi and its Homochitto National Forest heritage are notable local facts. All contact information above was sourced via web search as of early August 2026 and should be reconfirmed directly with the relevant office before a visit, deadline-sensitive filing, or emergency-adjacent decision.
About Franklin County
Franklin County is southwest Mississippi’s Homochitto National Forest and pine belt county – the national forest anchors the county’s outdoor recreation and timber economy while Meadville serves as the quiet governmental hub for one of Mississippi’s older and more rural southwestern counties between Natchez and Brookhaven.
Meadville (the county seat, population ~450) is one of Mississippi’s smaller county seats, with Bude serving as a secondary community in Franklin County’s sparsely settled southwest Mississippi landscape.
All Services
Browse every category and topic available for this county.
Franklin County Assessor at 10 S. Cedar Street, Meadville, MS 39653, phone 601-384-2330. MS assessed at percentage of true value by property class.
Courts & Legal
Franklin County Circuit Court at 10 S. Cedar Street, Meadville, MS 39653, phone 601-384-2330, handles probate.
Marriage & Vital Records
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
CHANCERY CLERK
7 S. Jackson St., Meadville, MS 39653
(601) 384-2330
CIRCUIT CLERK
7 S. Jackson St., Meadville, MS 39653
(601) 384-2330
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Franklin County Chancery Court (probate case files – see Probate section above).
Local societies
No dedicated Franklin County genealogical society was confirmed in available directories.
Probate & Estate
Losing someone and having to deal with courts and paperwork at the same time is hard. This section won’t make that easier, but it should tell you what to expect, what it costs, and where to go – so at least you’re not walking in blind.
Where to go
Franklin County Chancery Court P.O. Box 297, Meadville, MS 39653 (601) 384-2330 Franklin County was founded 1809, in southwestern Mississippi, seated in Meadville.
Step 1: figure out which path applies
Mississippi has not adopted the Uniform Probate Code and instead follows its own statutory framework under Miss. Code Ann. Title 91, Chapter 7. Mississippi’s small-estate threshold, at $75,000, is one of the lowest in the country, so most estates end up needing at least some court involvement.
Small Estate Affidavit (Miss. Code Ann. § 91-7-322) – personal property only, up to $75,000 (excluding liens and encumbrances). A 30-day waiting period after death applies. The affidavit is presented directly to whoever holds the property (a bank, for instance); that party is not required to investigate the truth of the affidavit and is protected from liability once it complies.
Muniment of Title (Miss. Code Ann. § 91-5-35) – a limited proceeding to transfer real property named in a will, without full administration, when the estate’s non-real-estate assets are $75,000 or less and all debts (including taxes) have been paid. A petition is still filed with the Chancery Court to declare the will valid; the will and court order are then recorded in the land records.
Formal Administration – required for most estates with real property beyond the muniment-of-title threshold or significant liquid assets. The Chancery Judge reviews the petition, the will (if any), and supporting documents before issuing Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration appointing the personal representative.
Step 2: filing for probate
File a petition with the Chancery Court in the county where the decedent was domiciled.
The personal representative inventories assets and notifies creditors; Mississippi’s creditor claim period runs 90 days (Miss. Code Ann. § 91-7-145).
Claims and disputes are adjudicated by the Chancery Court if contested.
Once debts are settled and the creditor period closes, the estate can be distributed and closed.
What it costs
Costs are the Chancery Clerk’s per-county filing fee (built on the statewide base under Miss. Code § 25-7-9), plus recording fees and publication costs.
Mississippi has no state estate tax or inheritance tax. Only the federal estate tax could separately apply, and only to very large estates.
Probate filings, estate administration, and guardianship matters are handled by the following office(s):
Public Safety & Arrests
Arrest records, inmate search, and law enforcement services are handled by the following office(s):
SHERIFF
7 S. Jackson St., Meadville, MS 39653
(601) 384-5881
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
ELECTIONS
7 S. Jackson St., Meadville, MS 39653
(601) 384-2330
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
MS Dept of Health — Southwest Region
(601) 384-2381
Southwest Mississippi Regional Medical Center
smrmc.com (McComb — accessible)
Public Health Information
PUBLIC HEALTH
Office: Franklin County Health Department (Mississippi State Department of Health) – confirm current phone via franklincoms.weebly.com.
Editorial independence: CountyOffices maintains strict editorial independence from our affiliate partners. Our content is researched from official government sources. Affiliate relationships do not influence our recommendations or the information we publish.
Editorial Trust
5 official sources cited
Reviewed by CountyOffices Editorial Team
Last verified June 2026
County Facts
County Seat: Meadville
Population: 7,500
Area: 567 sq mi
Established: 1809
Tier: 4
Public Records
TruthFinder
Search public records for Franklin County residents.
