Holmes County Mississippi Genealogy & History Network

Welcome to Holmes County MSGHN

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

To share your Holmes 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 Holmes County, Mississippi...

Holmes County is located in the Mississippi Delta Region of Mississippi. Holmes County was created by an act of the Legislature on 19 February 1832. Since Governor Scott opposed the creation of the new county, a two-thirds vote of the Legislature was needed for approval.

Holmes County was origionally part of a vast area known as Hinds County, which was ceded to te United States by the Choctaw Indians in the Treaty of Doaks Stand on 18 October 1820 and the Dancing Rabbit Treaty ten years later.

The county seat, Lexington, began as a trading post in the 1820's and was incorporated in 1836. It was here that in 1849 Robert Morris, a Mason and schoolmaster, began the movement that resulted in the creation of the Order of the Eastern Star.

The county has a total area of 764.18 square miles of which 756.00 square miles is land and 8.18 square miles (1.07%) is water. The population recorded in the 1840 Federal Census was 9,452. The population peaked in 1940 with 39,710 souls counted. The 2010 census recorded 19,198 residents in the county.

Neighboring counties are Carroll County (north), Attala County (east), Madison County (southeast), Yazoo County (south), Humphreys County (west), and Leflore County (northwest). The town of Lexington is the county seat. Other communities in the county include Durant, Cruger, Goodman, Pickens, Tchula, West, Acona, Coxburg, Ebenezer, Egypt, Franklin, Good Hope, Howard, Ituma, Marcella, Montgomery, Owens Wells, Richland, Thornton, and Tolarville.

Holmes County, Mississippi Records

Holmes County MSGHN has many records here on our website. Marriage Records, Cemetery listings, tombstone photos, and more. Look at the Holmes 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  ...READ MORE