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Office: Fentress County Emergency Management Agency (Civil Defense) – 116 Justice Center Drive, Jamestown, TN 38556 | (931) 879-7213 / (931) 752-0911; operates a fully equipped Emergency Operations Center within the 911 Dispatch/EMA building, including a 16-ft mobile HAZMAT response trailer and 100-ft mobile communications antenna; works jointly with the cities of Jamestown and Allardt.
911: Fentress County E-911 – Director Michael Brown | 116 Justice Center Drive, Jamestown, TN 38556 | (931) 752-0911 | Fax: (931) 879-6390; addressing requests handled Tuesdays and Thursdays.
EMS: Fentress County EMS – 310 S Main St, Jamestown, TN 38556 | (931) 879-8147 | [email protected]
Sheriff: Fentress County Sheriff’s Office – headquartered in Jamestown | (931) 879-8142
Notes: For an active emergency, call 911.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: US-127 and SH-52 serve Jamestown, the county seat, on the Cumberland Plateau in the Upper Cumberland region
Transit: No dedicated county-wide public transit system was found in this search – confirm directly with the county or your city
Notes: Fentress County was formed November 28, 1823 from portions of Morgan, Overton, and White counties, named for state legislator James Fentress. Jamestown was built on the site of a former semi-permanent Cherokee village and was originally known as “Sand Springs” for its many natural springs.
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: Fentress County Building/Permits – confirm current contact via fentresscountytn.gov.
Notes: Fentress County holds a genuine, well-documented literary connection: John M. Clemens, father of Samuel L. Clemens (Mark Twain), served as the county’s first circuit court clerk and drew the plans for its first courthouse and jail. The Clemens family drew water from a spring in Jamestown between roughly 1827 and 1832 before relocating to Missouri in 1835 – the last surviving spring is preserved today in Mark Twain City Park, just northeast of the county courthouse, with a Tennessee Historical Commission marker. The county is also the genuine birthplace, home, and final resting place of World War I hero Sgt. Alvin C. York, who returned to Fentress County after the war and spent much of his later life building the Alvin C. York Agricultural Institute – a real high school still operating today as one of only a few state-funded schools in Tennessee. Jamestown is also the real headquarters of the “World’s Longest Yardsale” (the 127 Corridor Sale), a massive annual multi-state event.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Fentress County Veterans Service Office – Officer Jeff Tinch | 101 South Main Street, Jamestown, TN 38556 | (931) 879-7213 | Fax: (931) 879-4461
State: Tennessee Department of Veterans Services – tn.gov/veteran
Libraries
LIBRARIES
System: Fentress Public Library – 306 S Main St, Jamestown, TN 38556 | (931) 879-7512.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area lies several miles northeast of Jamestown, offering real, extensive outdoor recreation. Pickett State Park is another genuine nearby draw. The Great Pumpkin Festival and Weigh-Off is held every October, coinciding with the worldwide pumpkin weigh-off. Mark Twain City Park (see above) and the Alvin C. York historical marker on US-127 are real, documented heritage sites.
Notes: The genuine Mark Twain family connection and Sgt. Alvin C. York heritage are among the most distinctive, checkable local facts covered in this project.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Fentress County Assessor of Property – confirm current phone via fentresscountytn.gov.
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
Facility: Best Friends Sanctuary – 346 Volunteer Lane, Jamestown, TN 38556 | [email protected] | bestfriendssanctuary.com; a real, 20+ year-old no-kill nonprofit and the only animal shelter serving Fentress County, taking in 600+ stray dogs and cats in 2024 alone. Runs a “Fix Fentress” low-cost spay/neuter voucher program given that roughly 98.8% of county residents qualify as low-income; regularly transports adoptable animals to partner shelters in Ohio, Georgia, New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and elsewhere in Tennessee. Adoption fee $100 (includes spay/neuter).
Notes: As the county’s sole shelter, Best Friends Sanctuary reports chronic overcrowding and roughly $5,000/month in vet bills – a real, honestly-noted capacity strain worth being aware of.
Environmental & Waste
ENVIRONMENTAL / WASTE MANAGEMENT
Office: Fentress County Solid Waste – confirm current contact via fentresscountytn.gov.
NOTES: Fentress County is the fourth county in this batch (Dickson, Dyer, Fayette, Fentress, Franklin, Gibson, Giles) of the Tennessee v2 redo. The genuine Mark Twain family and Sgt. Alvin C. York heritage are among the most distinctive, checkable local facts covered in this project. 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 Fentress County County
Fentress County is Tennessee’s Sergeant Alvin York homeland and Big South Fork wilderness county – the birthplace of World War I’s most celebrated American hero and the dramatic gorge country of the Big South Fork National River define a remote Cumberland Plateau community whose historical and natural significance far exceeds its modest size.
Jamestown (the county seat, population ~2,000) is Fentress County’s governmental hub on the Cumberland Plateau, a small Tennessee mountain town serving the county’s scattered plateau communities and Big South Fork recreation visitors.
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Fentress County Assessor of Property at 101 Main Street, Jamestown, TN 38556, phone 931-879-8014. TN assessed at a percentage of appraised value.
Courts & Legal
Fentress County Circuit Court at 101 Main Street, Jamestown, TN 38556, phone 931-879-8014, handles probate.
Marriage & Vital Records
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
COUNTY CLERK
101 South Main St, Jamestown, TN 38556
(931) 879-8815
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Fentress County Clerk and Master, Jamestown (probate/estate case files – see Probate section above).
Local societies
No dedicated Fentress 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
Clerk and Master, Fentress County 140 Justice Center Drive, Suite 110, Jamestown, TN 38556 (931) 879-8615 Fentress County is on the Cumberland Plateau in northern Tennessee, seated in Jamestown.
Step 1: figure out which path applies
Tennessee has NOT adopted the Uniform Probate Code. Instead, Tennessee uses its own common form and solemn form probate framework, governed by Title 30 of the Tennessee Code Annotated. In Fentress County, the Clerk and Master (part of Chancery Court) administers probate.
Small Estate Affidavit (T.C.A. §§ 30-4-101 through 30-4-103) – available when the value of the probate estate does not exceed $50,000 (personal property; real property is generally excluded). The affidavit can be filed no sooner than 45 days after death. A bond payable to the state is commonly required to protect creditors and other heirs, though it is often waived when the person filing is the estate’s sole heir/beneficiary, or when all heirs consent in writing.
Common Form Probate – the standard, uncontested path: the will (if any) is admitted to probate without formal notice to all interested parties, and the personal representative is appointed and issued Letters Testamentary (with a will) or Letters of Administration (without a will).
Solemn Form Probate – used when formal proof of the will’s validity is needed, typically because of an anticipated will contest; requires notice to all interested parties and a hearing.
Muniment of Title – used to transfer real estate when there is a valid will but no other assets requiring administration.
Step 2: filing for administration
The personal representative (or an interested party) files the original will (if one exists) and a Petition for Probate of Will or Petition for Letters of Administration with the Fentress County Clerk and Master.
The court issues Letters Testamentary (testate) or Letters of Administration (intestate), giving the personal representative authority to act.
The personal representative publishes notice to creditors in a local newspaper; creditors generally have a limited window (commonly around 4 months from the notice) to file claims.
The personal representative inventories and appraises the estate’s assets (may be waived by the will or by all beneficiaries).
The personal representative pays valid debts, expenses, and taxes.
The estate is closed with a final accounting (unless waived) and distribution to beneficiaries or heirs.
What it costs
Filing fees vary by county; confirm current fees with Fentress County directly.
Tennessee has no statutory fee schedule for attorneys or executors – fees must be “reasonable” and are subject to court approval if contested.
Tennessee does NOT impose a state estate tax or a state inheritance tax. Only the federal estate tax may apply, and only to very large estates.
Typical timeline for a simple, uncontested estate: roughly 6-9 months.
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
101 South Main St, Jamestown, TN 38556
(931) 879-8142
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
ELECTION COMMISSION
101 South Main St, Jamestown, TN 38556
(931) 879-9871
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
Health Department
116 South York St, Jamestown, TN 38556
(931) 879-8117
DHS Office
116 South York St, Jamestown, TN 38556
(931) 879-8117
Public Health Information
PUBLIC HEALTH
Office: Fentress County Health Department – confirm current contact via fentresscountytn.gov.
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Last verified June 2026
County Facts
County Seat: Jamestown
Population: 18,000
Public Records
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