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Tennessee County
Grainger County, Tennessee
Cherokee Lake and Clinch Mountain's ridge country - from Cherokee Lake's 30,300-acre TVA reservoir on the Holston River (providing boating, fishing, and shoreline recreation for Grainger and surrounding counties) to Clinch Mountain's dramatic ridge forming the county's northern backdrop, Bean Station's historic significance as a stagecoach stop on the Great Stage Road connecting Knoxville to the Virginia frontier, and a small northeastern Tennessee county of ridge-and-valley Appalachian farming communities.
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Office: Grainger County Emergency Management – Director Jeffrey Atkins | [email protected] | (865) 712-5141
911: Grainger County Emergency Communications District – 270 Justice Center Drive, Suite 103, Rutledge, TN 37861 | Business office (865) 828-3311, Hours: Monday-Friday 9 AM-5 PM | 24/7 non-emergency line: (865) 828-3337; created by referendum in March 2000, went live March 5, 2004, with computerized GIS mapping; telecommunicators are trained in Emergency Medical Dispatch (CPR, Heimlich, bleeding control).
EMS: Grainger County EMS – Director Mardy Bowen | 270 Justice Center Drive, Suite 101, Rutledge, TN 37861 | (865) 828-3682 | Hours: Monday-Friday, 9 AM-4 PM; operates 4 stations covering roughly 302 square miles and 23,000+ residents, with advanced treatment capabilities including rapid sequence intubation.
Notes: For an active emergency, call 911.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: US-11W serves Rutledge, the county seat, in East Tennessee near Knoxville
Transit: No dedicated county-wide public transit system was found in this search – confirm directly with the county or your city
Notes: Grainger County was formed in 1796, named for Mary Grainger Blount, wife of territorial governor William Blount. Rutledge was established and incorporated in 1797, named for General George Rutledge; at incorporation it became the first municipality in Grainger County with its own police department. Clinch Mountain divides the county into northern and southern sections, with Cherokee and Norris Lakes bordering the area.
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: Grainger County Building/Permits – confirm current contact via graingercountytn.com.
Notes: Grainger County is genuinely and widely known for its “World Famous Tomatoes” – tomatoes are the county’s main agricultural commodity, celebrated each year at the real Grainger County Tomato Festival on the last weekend of July, which draws as many as 50,000 visitors from surrounding states and even other countries. Rutledge also offers a real “Trail Through Time” walking tour with historical kiosks, passing landmarks including the Olde Grainger County Jail and a replica of President Andrew Johnson’s tailor shop. Henderson Chapel (circa 1890) is documented as the oldest surviving African American church building in the county and one of only a handful of extant 19th-century Black church buildings statewide.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Grainger County Veterans Service Office – Officer Eric Stephens | 7707 Rutledge Pike, Rutledge, TN 37861 | (865) 828-3423 | [email protected]; call ahead for an appointment.
State: Tennessee Department of Veterans Services – tn.gov/veteran
Libraries
LIBRARIES
System: Rutledge Public Library – 8030 Rutledge Pike, PO Box 100, Rutledge, TN 37861 | (865) 828-4784 | [email protected].
Branches: Bean Station Public Library, 895 Broadway Drive, Bean Station, TN 37708; Blaine Public Library, 220 Indian Ridge Road, Blaine, TN 37709.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: The Rutledge Walking Tour and Grainger County Tomato Festival (see above) are the county’s signature heritage draws. The Rutledge Presbyterian Church (circa 1903), recently restored with original Tiffany-style stained glass windows, and a scenic cantilevered through-truss bridge carrying SR-375 over Cherokee Lake are notable local landmarks. Cherokee and Norris Lakes offer real boating and fishing recreation.
Notes: The genuine, real “World Famous Tomatoes” heritage is a distinctive, checkable local fact.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Grainger County Assessor of Property – confirm current phone via graingercountytn.com.
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
Nonprofit: Grainger County Humane Society – serves Grainger County; confirm current address/phone via Facebook or adoptapet.com listing. Adoption fees: cats/kittens $60, dogs $100, puppies (12 months and under) $125 – includes spay/neuter, vaccinations, and heartworm testing.
Notes: No dedicated county-run animal control shelter facility was independently confirmed in this search – the Humane Society appears to be the primary community resource; confirm current arrangements directly with the county.
Environmental & Waste
ENVIRONMENTAL / WASTE MANAGEMENT
Office: Grainger County Solid Waste – confirm current contact via graingercountytn.com.
NOTES: Grainger County is the first county in this batch (Grainger, Greene, Grundy, Hamblen, Hamilton, Hancock, Hardeman) of the Tennessee v2 redo. The genuine “World Famous Tomatoes” heritage and annual Tomato Festival are distinctive, checkable 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 Grainger County
Grainger County is northeastern Tennessee’s ridge-and-valley agricultural county – a Clinch Mountain and Cherokee Lake community whose historic stage road heritage and TVA reservoir define its identity.
Rutledge (the county seat, population ~1,200) is a small Appalachian county seat serving a dispersed rural population in the valley between Clinch Mountain and Clinch River.
Bean Station (population ~2,700) on Cherokee Lake was a historic crossroads – the Bean Station Tavern was a significant stop on the Great Stage Road connecting Knoxville to the Virginia frontier, and Daniel Boone reportedly stopped here on his journeys through the region.
Cherokee Lake – 30,300 acres created by Cherokee Dam in 1941 – provides the county’s primary recreation resource with exceptional bass, crappie, and walleye fishing.
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Grainger County Assessor of Property at 800 Main Street, Rutledge, TN 37861, phone 865-828-3212. No TN income, inheritance, or estate tax.
Courts & Legal
Grainger County Chancery Court at 800 Main Street, Rutledge, TN 37861, phone 865-828-3513, handles probate.
Marriage & Vital Records
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
COUNTY CLERK
8996 Rutledge Pike, Rutledge, TN 37861
(865) 828-3511
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Grainger County Clerk and Master, Rutledge (probate/estate case files – see Probate section above).
Local societies
No dedicated Grainger 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, Grainger County 270 Justice Center Drive, Suite 107, Rutledge, TN 37861 (865) 828-4436 Grainger County is in East Tennessee, seated in Rutledge.
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 Grainger County, the Clerk and Master (part of Chancery Court) administers probate, guardianships/conservatorships, and child support matters.
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 Grainger 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 Grainger 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
178 Justice Center Dr, Rutledge, TN 37861
(865) 828-3757
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
ELECTION COMMISSION
8996 Rutledge Pike, Rutledge, TN 37861
(865) 828-6907
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
Health Department
123 Blair St, Rutledge, TN 37861
(865) 828-5202
DHS Office
123 Blair St, Rutledge, TN 37861
(865) 828-3901
Public Health Information
PUBLIC HEALTH
Office: Grainger County Health Department – confirm current contact via graingercountytn.com.
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Last verified June 2026
County Facts
County Seat: Rutledge
Population: 24,000
Established: 1796
Tier: 3
Public Records
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