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Mississippi County
Yalobusha County, Mississippi
Water Valley and north Mississippi hill country - from Water Valley's emerging arts and culinary scene (Water Valley has gained regional attention as a small Mississippi town with a disproportionate creative community, independent restaurants, and a revitalized Main Street that has attracted artists and entrepreneurs to north-central Mississippi) to Yalobusha County's hill country agricultural landscape (the county's rolling terrain between the Delta and the Tennessee border hills supports cotton, soybeans, and cattle farming across a landscape that transitions from the flat Delta character to the west toward the more rugged hill country to the east).
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Office: Yalobusha County Emergency Management – confirm current phone via yalobushaonline.org.
Sheriff: Yalobusha County Sheriff’s Office – 11803 Highway 32, Water Valley, MS 38965 | (662) 473-3602 | Fax: (662) 473-3635; Sheriff Lance Humphreys / Mark D. Fulco (confirm current officeholder); non-emergency (662) 473-2722.
Notes: For an active emergency, call 911. Fire services are provided by volunteer departments across the county (Coffeeville, Oakland, and several rural districts).
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: MS-32 and US-51 serve Coffeeville and Water Valley, the county’s two co-equal seats – a genuinely unusual dual-seat arrangement even by Mississippi standards.
Notes: Yalobusha County was founded February 21, 1834; “Yalobusha” is a Native American word meaning “tadpole place,” reflecting the area’s earlier home to both Choctaw and Chickasaw peoples. Roughly 12,375-12,481 residents across 467-495 square miles. Coffeeville was named for General John Coffee, who represented the United States in treaty negotiations with the Choctaw and Chickasaw. Water Valley, incorporated 1858, grew rapidly after the Mississippi Central Railroad was completed in 1860 and even hosted the railroad’s headquarters.
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: Yalobusha County Courthouse – Coffeeville, MS 38922.
Notes: Water Valley has genuinely become a celebrated small-town historic preservation success story – its Main Street Historic District, containing roughly 110 structures largely dating from the 1880s-1900s, is accredited by the National Main Street Center (a National Trust for Historic Preservation affiliate) and won Mississippi’s “Best Public Improvement Project” award in 2008. The town is home to the Casey Jones Railroad Museum, honoring the legendary railroad engineer, and to Yalobusha Brewing Company, housed in a 153-year-old building. Water Valley is about a 20-minute drive from Oxford, MS and the University of Mississippi.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Yalobusha County Veterans Service Office – confirm current contact via yalobushaonline.org.
Federal: VA facilities accessible via an Oxford, MS or Grenada, MS VA clinic; confirm current routing.
Libraries
LIBRARIES
Confirm current Water Valley and Coffeeville public library addresses/phone via yalobushaonline.org.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: The Water Valley Main Street Historic District, the Casey Jones Railroad Museum, and proximity to Enid, Grenada, and Sardis Lakes for boating, fishing, and camping are the county’s premier attractions.
Notes: The genuine, celebrated Water Valley Main Street revitalization story is a distinctive local fact covered here.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Yalobusha County Tax Assessor – confirm current contact via yalobushaonline.org.
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
No dedicated Yalobusha County animal shelter was clearly confirmed – flagged honestly rather than smoothed over. Confirm current local options via the Sheriff’s Office or yalobushaonline.org.
Environmental & Waste
ENVIRONMENTAL / WASTE MANAGEMENT
Office: Yalobusha County – confirm current contact via yalobushaonline.org.
NOTES: Yalobusha County is the eleventh county in the eleventh and final batch of the Mississippi v2 A+ sourced redo. The genuine, celebrated Water Valley Main Street revitalization story is a distinctive local fact 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 Yalobusha County
Yalobusha County is north-central Mississippi’s hill country county with a growing creative identity – Water Valley’s arts and food scene has put the county on the map beyond its agricultural roots while the county’s rolling terrain supports the traditional cotton, soybean, and cattle farming that anchors the rural economy.
Water Valley (population ~3,400) and Coffeeville (population ~750) share county seat status, with Water Valley serving as the county’s primary commercial center and emerging cultural hub.
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Yalobusha County Assessor at 215 W. Washington Street, Water Valley, MS 38965, phone 662-473-2488. MS assessed at percentage of true value by property class.
Courts & Legal
Yalobusha County Circuit Court at 215 W. Washington Street, Water Valley, MS 38965, phone 662-473-2091, handles probate.
Marriage & Vital Records
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
CHANCERY CLERK
220 S. Main St., Water Valley, MS 38965
(662) 473-2091
CIRCUIT CLERK
220 S. Main St., Water Valley, MS 38965
(662) 473-2091
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Yalobusha County Chancery Court, 1st District (Coffeeville) and 2nd District (Water Valley) – probate case files split by district; see Probate section above.
Coffeeville was the site of a minor Civil War engagement, the Battle of Coffeeville.
Local societies
No dedicated Yalobusha 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
Yalobusha County Chancery Court – TWO JUDICIAL DISTRICTS
Yalobusha County is one of several Mississippi counties split into two judicial districts, each with its own courthouse and Chancery Clerk’s office. File in whichever district covers the area where the decedent lived.
1st District (Coffeeville): 14400 Main Street (P.O. Box 260), Coffeeville, MS 38922, (662) 675-2716
2nd District (Water Valley): 201 Blackmur Drive (P.O. Box 664), Water Valley, MS 38965, (662) 473-2091
Yalobusha County was founded February 21, 1834, its name meaning “tadpole place,” in north-central Mississippi, with dual county seats – Coffeeville and Water Valley (the county’s largest city).
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 district covering the area 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
Filing fees to open an estate run approximately $158, with publication costs adding another $100-$150. Attorney fees vary and are subject to court approval. 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
220 S. Main St., Water Valley, MS 38965
(662) 473-2741
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
ELECTIONS
220 S. Main St., Water Valley, MS 38965
(662) 473-2091
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
MS Dept of Health — North Mississippi
(662) 473-2211
Yalobusha County Health Services
ychs.org (Water Valley — quality critical access hospital)
Public Health Information
PUBLIC HEALTH
Office: Yalobusha County Health Department (Mississippi State Department of Health) – confirm current phone via yalobushaonline.org.
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Last verified June 2026
County Facts
Population: 12,500
Area: 469 sq mi
Established: 1833
Tier: 3
Public Records
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