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Office: Weakley County Emergency Management Agency – Director Ray Wiggington | 7951 Highway 22, Dresden, TN 38225 | (731) 364-2647 | Fax: (731) 364-6791 | 24/7 Contact: (731) 364-5454
Sheriff: Weakley County Sheriff’s Department – Sheriff Terry McDade | 7951 Highway 22, Dresden, TN 38225 | (731) 364-5454 | Fax: (731) 364-6840 | Hours: Mon-Fri 8 AM-4:30 PM (24/7 emergency contact same as above).
Notes: For an active emergency, call 911.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: US-45E and SH-22 serve Dresden, the county seat, in Northwest Tennessee
Transit: No dedicated county-wide public transit system was found in this search – confirm directly with the county or your city
Notes: Weakley County was established October 21, 1823 from land ceded by the Chickasaw in the Treaty of 1818, named for U.S. Congressman Robert Weakley. The county’s largest city is Martin, home to the University of Tennessee at Martin (UT Martin); Martin was founded by and named for Captain William Martin, a merchant who moved to Weakley County in 1832 and was the first to plant tobacco in the county in 1831, later envisioning a railroad through the region.
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: Weakley County Building/Permits – confirm current contact via weakleycountytn.gov.
Notes: Weakley County is genuinely home to the Ned R. McWherter Weakley County Library and Museum, 341 Linden Street, Dresden, TN 38225 – a combined public library and museum honoring Tennessee’s 46th Governor, Ned Ray McWherter, a Dresden native who served as Speaker of the Tennessee House of Representatives before two terms as governor. McWherter personally originated the idea for the library, located next door to his own home, and provided funding for the land purchase and building construction; it opened December 1, 1997, with the McWherter room dedicated November 19, 1999. The museum showcases his personal mementos and political memorabilia tracing his life from childhood through his governorship.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Weakley County Veterans Affairs – 116 W. Main St, Dresden, TN 38225 | (731) 364-5727 | Fax: (731) 364-0149 | Hours: Mon-Fri 8 AM-4:30 PM (closed 1 hour for lunch); confirm the current officer’s name via weakleycountytn.gov, as staffing has changed in recent years.
State: Tennessee Department of Veterans Services – tn.gov/veteran
Libraries
LIBRARIES
System: Ned R. McWherter Weakley County Library and Museum – 341 Linden Street, Dresden, TN 38225 | (731) 364-2678 | Fax: (731) 364-2599 | Hours: Mon-Fri 9 AM-5 PM, Sat 9 AM-2 PM. Additional community libraries: Sharon Public Library and the Paul Meek Library at UT Martin.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: The Ned R. McWherter Museum (see above) is the county’s signature heritage attraction; UT Martin in the city of Martin offers cultural and athletic events.
Notes: The genuine Ned Ray McWherter museum is a distinctive, checkable local fact – a former governor’s personal history preserved in the library he built for his home county.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Weakley County Assessor of Property – (731) 364-3677 | 116 W. Main St, Dresden, TN 38225.
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
Facility: Weakley County Animal Clinic – 110 Weldon Dr, Martin, TN 38237; a veterinary clinic, not a shelter – confirm whether it also handles animal control.
Nonprofit: Red Fern Animal Shelter – 1487 Miles Road, Dresden, TN; a primitive, outdoor, no-kill nonprofit shelter.
IMPORTANT: No clearly confirmed county-run animal control facility was found in this search – confirm current arrangements directly with the county before relying on this section for a stray or lost pet situation.
Environmental & Waste
ENVIRONMENTAL / WASTE MANAGEMENT
Office: Weakley County Solid Waste – Director Michelle Nichols | (731) 364-6798
NOTES: Weakley County is the first county in this final batch (Weakley, White, Williamson, Wilson) of the Tennessee v2 redo. The genuine Ned R. McWherter Governor’s Museum, housed in the library he personally funded, is a distinctive local fact. 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 Weakley County County
Weakley County is northwest Tennessee’s UT Martin university and dark-fired tobacco agricultural county – the regional university that anchors Martin’s economy and the county’s productive tobacco and grain farming define a community that balances its agricultural West Tennessee character with the educational energy of a mid-sized state university campus.
Dresden (the county seat, population ~3,100) is Weakley County’s governmental hub while Martin serves as the county’s largest city and commercial center anchored by the UT Martin campus along US 45W.
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Browse every category and topic available for this county.
Weakley County Assessor of Property at 116 W. Main Street, Dresden, TN 38225, phone 731-364-2285. TN assessed at a percentage of appraised value.
Courts & Legal
Weakley County Circuit Court at 116 W. Main Street, Dresden, TN 38225, phone 731-364-2285, handles probate.
Marriage & Vital Records
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
COUNTY CLERK
116 West Main St, Dresden, TN 38225
(731) 364-3643
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Weakley County Clerk and Master, Dresden (probate/estate case files – see Probate section above). The office has indexed many of its Chancery Court record books for faster customer access.
Local societies
No dedicated Weakley 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, Weakley County PO Box 197, Dresden, TN 38225 (731) 364-3454
Weakley County was founded October 21, 1823, named for Robert Weakley, in the northwest corner of Tennessee, seated in Dresden (largest city Martin, home of the University of Tennessee at Martin).
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 Weakley 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 Weakley 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 Weakley 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
116 Elm St, Dresden, TN 38225
(731) 364-2222
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
ELECTION COMMISSION
116 West Main St, Dresden, TN 38225
(731) 364-3643
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
Health Department
415 High St, Dresden, TN 38225
(731) 364-2233
DHS Office
415 High St, Dresden, TN 38225
(731) 364-9614
Public Health Information
PUBLIC HEALTH
Office: Weakley County Health Department – confirm current contact via weakleycountytn.gov.
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Last verified June 2026
County Facts
County Seat: Dresden
Population: 33,500
Public Records
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