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Mississippi County
Smith County, Mississippi
Raleigh's piney hills character and Smith County's rural Mississippi heritage - from Smith County's position in the central Mississippi piney hills (the rolling red clay hills and longleaf pine landscape of Smith County represent classic Mississippi interior terrain - a landscape of small farms, cattle operations, and timber that has sustained rural communities through generations of agricultural change) to Smith County's turkey hunting reputation (the county's mixed forest and agricultural landscape provides exceptional wild turkey habitat, making it one of Mississippi's premier turkey hunting destinations).
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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: Smith County Emergency Management Agency/E-911 – 143 Main Street, PO Box 1107, Raleigh, MS 39153 | (601) 782-9151 | Fax: (601) 782-4081 | Email: [email protected] / [email protected] | 24-hour emergency line (601) 498-4006; Director Heyley Dickey.
Sheriff: Smith County Sheriff’s Office – 206 Courthouse Square, Raleigh, MS 39153 | (601) 782-4531 | Fax: (601) 782-4003 | Email: [email protected]; Sheriff Joel Houston; oversees the Smith County Detention Center, covering roughly 630 square miles and over 600 miles of rural roadways.
Notes: For an active emergency, call 911. Smith County EMA has operated cold-weather warming stations during winter storms; contact the EMA office or Sheriff’s Office for current conditions.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: MS-13 and MS-28 serve Raleigh, the county seat, and Taylorsville, the county’s most populous community, established in 1900 along the Gulf and Ship Island Railroad.
Notes: Smith County was founded in 1833, named for Maj. David Smith, an American Revolutionary War veteran who later settled in Mississippi. Roughly 13,990-14,210 residents across 636-637 square miles, on the edge of the Piney Woods region. Raleigh’s location made it part of Grierson’s Raid in 1863, a Union cavalry operation that played a significant role in the Confederate defeat at Vicksburg.
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: Smith County Courthouse – 206 Courthouse Square, Raleigh, MS 39153.
Notes: Taylorsville’s growth was driven historically by the extensive pine forests of Smith County, heavily logged by the Eastman-Gardiner lumber company in the early 20th century. Prentiss Walker, born in Taylorsville, became in 1964 the first Republican elected to the U.S. House from Mississippi in the 20th century, though he served only one term. NFL players Jason Campbell and Eugene Sims are also Taylorsville natives.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Smith County Veterans Affairs – Officer Randy Creel, PO Box 252, Raleigh, MS 39153 | (601) 782-9222.
Libraries
LIBRARIES
Confirm current Raleigh and Taylorsville public library addresses/phone via smithcountyms.gov.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: Historic downtown Raleigh and Taylorsville, tied to the county’s pine-lumber heritage and Civil War-era history, are the county’s notable local landmarks.
Notes: The county’s Piney Woods heritage and connection to Grierson’s Raid are covered here.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Smith County Tax Assessor – confirm current contact via smithcountyms.gov.
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
No dedicated Smith County, Mississippi animal shelter was confirmed – flagged honestly rather than smoothed over. Confirm current local options via the Sheriff’s Office, (601) 782-4531, or smithcountyms.gov.
Environmental & Waste
ENVIRONMENTAL / WASTE MANAGEMENT
Office: Smith County – confirm current contact via smithcountyms.gov.
NOTES: Smith County is the second county in the tenth batch of the Mississippi v2 A+ sourced redo. The county’s Piney Woods lumber heritage and Civil War-era connection to Grierson’s Raid are among the local facts covered here. 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 Smith County
Smith County is central Mississippi’s piney hills agricultural and turkey hunting county – the rolling red clay terrain and mixed forest landscape support cattle, timber, and some of Mississippi’s finest wild turkey hunting in the state’s rural interior.
Raleigh (the county seat, population ~1,500) serves Smith County’s small farming and timber communities in the central Mississippi piney hills.
All Services
Browse every category and topic available for this county.
Smith County Tax Assessor at 122 Main Street, Suite 3, Raleigh, MS 39153, phone 601-782-9803. MS residential assessed at 10% of true value.
Courts & Legal
Smith County Chancery Court at 122 Main Street, Raleigh, MS 39153, phone 601-782-9811, handles probate.
Marriage & Vital Records
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
CHANCERY CLERK
112 Derek Dr., Raleigh, MS 39153
(601) 782-4751
CIRCUIT CLERK
112 Derek Dr., Raleigh, MS 39153
(601) 782-4751
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Smith County Chancery Court (probate case files – see Probate section above).
Raleigh, named for Sir Walter Raleigh, has been home to two Mississippi governors – Robert Lowry and Anselm McLaurin.
Local societies
No dedicated Smith 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
Smith County Chancery Court 201 Courthouse Square (mail: P.O. Box 39), Raleigh, MS 39153 (601) 782-9811
Smith County was founded 1833, named for Major David Smith, in south-central Mississippi, seated in Raleigh (though Taylorsville is the county’s largest town).
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
112 Derek Dr., Raleigh, MS 39153
(601) 782-9421
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
ELECTIONS
112 Derek Dr., Raleigh, MS 39153
(601) 782-4751
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
Office: Smith County Health Department (Mississippi State Department of Health) – confirm current phone via smithcountyms.gov.
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