Coahoma County
Mississippi Genealogy & History Network

Welcome to Coahoma County MSGHN

Welcome to the Coahoma County Mississippi Genealogy & History Network website providing free information to genealogical and historical researchers.

To share your Coahoma County, Mississippi genealogy or history information, send an email to msghn@outlook.com - we will be pleased to include it here. If you have information to share for other Mississippi Counties, visit the Mississippi Genealogy & History Network state website and choose the appropriate county.

About Coahoma County, Mississippi...

Coahoma County was established February 09, 1836, and is located in the northwestern part of the state in the fertile Yazoo Delta region. The county was an original county of the Choctaw Cession of 1830. The name "Coahoma" is a Choctaw word meaning "red panther." The act creating the county defined its limits as follows:

"Beginning at the point where the line between townships 24 and 25 of the surveys of the late Choctaw cession intersects the Mississippi River, and running thence up the said river to the point where the dividing line between the Choctaw and Chickasaw tribes of Indians intersects the same; thence with the dividing line to the point where the line between ranges two and three of the survey of the said Choctaw cession intersects the same; thence with said range line, to the line between townships 24 and 25 aforesaid, and thence with the said township line to the beginning."

Port Royal was once the county seat of Coahoma County. It was a rival of Friars Point, five miles up the Mississippi River. In the early days the county seats of the Mississippi River counties were always located on the banks of that stream. When Port Royal was cut off from the river in 1848, its fate was sealed and the county seat of justice was located at Friars Point, which still remained a river town. The latter place had a population of about 1,000 (census of 1920), and received its name in honor of Robert Friar, one of its earliest settlers. Clarksdale, one of the county seats, is now the largest and most important city in the county, and had a population of 7,500 in 1920. Clarksdale was named for John Clark, a brother-in-law of Governor James L. Alcorn, whose home, Eagle's Nest, was in this county.

The county has a total area of 583.14 square miles of which 554.15 square miles is land and 28.99 square miles (4.97%) is water. The population recorded in the 1840 Federal Census was 1,290. The 2010 census recorded 26,151 residents in the county.

Neighboring counties are Tunica County (north), Quitman County (east), Tallahatchie County (southeast), Bolivar County (southwest), and Phillips County, Arkansas (west). Communities in the county include Clarksdale, Coahoma, Friars Point, Jonestown, Lula, Lyon, Bobo, Claremont, Clover Hill, Dublin, Farrell, Hillhouse, Lu-Rand, Mattson, Moon Lake (community), Rena Lara, Rich, Roundaway, Rudyard, Sherard, and Stovall.

Coahoma County, Mississippi Records

Coahoma County MSGHN has many records here on our website. Marriage Records, Cemetery listings, tombstone photos, census records, and more. Look at the Coahoma County Data links for a list of available data.

Birth Records - The Mississippi Department of Health maintains records of births after November 1, 1912 on file. This was the year Mississippi began keeping official birth records. You can obtain official copies of birth certificates by mail by using this birth record application on their website. If you just have to order by internet or phone, or use a credit card, you can use VitalCheck, a third party records company recognized by the Mississippi Dept. of Health. Since there are no official birth records before November 1, 1912 for births prior to that date you will need to determine birth information from census records, bible records, baptismal records, cemetery tombstones, etc.

Death Records - The Mississippi Department of Health maintains births recorded after November 1, 1912 on file. This was the year Mississippi began keeping official death records. You can obtain official copies of death certificates by mail by using this death record application on their website. If you just have to order by internet or phone, or use a credit card, you can use VitalCheck, a third party records company recognized by the Mississippi Dept. of Health. Since there are no official death records before November 1, 1912 for deaths prior to that date you will need to determine death information from census records, bible records, funeral home records, cemetery tombstones, etc.

Marriage Records - We have thousands of Coahoma County marriage records here on our website. These dates will assist you greatly in obtaining a copy of the original marriage license. The Mississippi Department of Health can provide you with this for marriages that took place between January 1, 1926 to June 30, 1938, and for January 1, 1942 to present by mail by using this marriage record application on their website. If you just have to order by internet or phone, or use a credit card, you can use VitalCheck, a third party records company recognized by the Mississippi Dept. of Health.

All existing Coahoma County marriage records for any date not listed above (and for the dates listed above for that matter) may be obtained from the Coahoma County Circuit Clerk's office.

Divorce Records - Prior to 1859, divorce proceedings were introduced as private bills in the Mississippi State Legislature. References to these can be found in the books Index of Mississippi Session Acts 1817 - 1865 and Index to the Laws of the Mississippi Territory. These books can be found at the Mississippi Department of Archives and History as well as many other genealogy repositories and libraries across the state. After 1859, Coahoma County divorce proceedings were filed in the Coahoma County Chancery Clerk's office.