Our goal is to aid genealogical researchers with resources and materials related to Copiah County, Mississippi at no cost to the researcher. This site is FREE and will ALWAYS be FREE to all researchers! We are proud to be a part of the Mississippi Genealogy & History Network.

We are in the process of adding more Copiah County resources to this web-site as quickly as possible. If you have any questions, suggestions or comments, or have Copiah County history or genealogy information to share, please send an email to Gerald Westmoreland at geraldwestmoreland@gmail.com. Good luck in your pursuit of those elusive ancestors!

The following is only a part of what you will find here at Copiah County MSGHN.

• 1841 Mississippi State Census for Copiah County including heads of households and number of white males and number of white females living in household.
• Lily Mae Cemetery burial listing with photos of each tombstone. Located on Highway 27 south below Georgetown about 1/2 mile. 315054N, 0900946W.
• Ashley Cemetery burial listing with photos of each tombstone. Located on Ashley Rd near Poplar Springs ESE of Hazlehurst. 314807N, 0901542W.
• Gatesville Cemetery burial listing with photos of each tombstone. Located on Gatesville Road just northeast of Ruby Road. 315942N, 0901516W.
• Norman Historical Cemetery burial listing with photos of each tombstone. Southeast corner of the county on Sugar Farms Road north of Pearl Valley Road. 314600N, 0900810W.
• Pine Grove Cemetery burial listing with photos of each tombstone. Southwest of Georgetown on Union Road at White Road. 314842N, 0901658W.
• Saint Paul Cemetery burial listing with photos of each tombstone. Southeast of Crystal Springs on Old MS 27 Road 2 south of Hwy 27. 315822N, 0901547W.
• Bridges Cemetery burial listing with photos of each tombstone. East of Crystal Springs on Gatesville Rd just west of Beech Grove Community. 315936N, 0901538W.
• Pleasant Valley Cemetery burial listing with photos of each tombstone. West of Wesson on Pleasent Valley Road west of Sylvarena Road. 314538N, 0903314W.
• New Providence Cemetery burial listing with photos of each tombstone. Located on Highway 28 West just east of Highway 547. 314501N, 0903914W.
• New Hope Cemetery #2 burial listing with photos of each tombstone. This cemetery is located on Sylvarena Road near Montgomery Road.
• Over 10,000 Copiah County marriage records. That's a lot of marriage info. Be sure to check for your Copiah County ancestors.

On October 18, 1820, a large version of Hinds County was created from lands aquired from the Choctaw Indians. Copiah County, located in the East-central portion of Mississippi was formed on January 21, 1823 from the southern portion of this large Hinds County. Copiah County was the eighteenth county in Mississippi and at the time was ranked seventh in size. In the year of organization Walter Leake was Governor and James Monroe was President of the United States.

The original legislative act defined the area as;

"Beginning on the eastern boundary line of Claiborne County, where the southern boundary line of township three strikes the same; thence east along said line to the Choctaw boundary line; thence southwardly with the same to the northern boundary of Covington County; thence westwardly along the old Choctaw boundary line to the southwest corner of the same; thence northwardly with the old Choctaw boundary to the beginning."

In 1824, the portion of Copiah County that was east of the Pearl River was taken and formed into Simpson County. In 1870 a portion of land along the southern border was donated to land from four other counties and formed into Lincoln County. The name Copiah originates from an Indian word meaning "calling panther." The county is known as a tomato and cabbage producing area, and for many years was called the "Tomato Capital of the World." Albert Gallatin Brown, the fourteenth Governor of Mississippi was elected from Copiah County, serving from 1844 until 1848.

The county seat is Hazlehurst which had its beginning as the town of Gallatin when two lawyers by the names of Walker and Saunders who were also brothers-in-law came here from Gallatin, Tennessee in 1819 and built their homes on the banks of Bayou Pierre. In 1829, after other settlers joined the two men, the Legislature granted the town a charter.

The charter was repealed on January 18, 1862 and three years later on November 3, 1865, Hazlehurst was incorporated.  The movement from Gallatin to Hazlehurst began with the building of the New Orleans, Jackson & Great Northern Railroad.

As Hazlehurst grew, Gallatin declined until it became just a settlement at cross-roads.  In April, 1872 the legislators ordered the Board of Supervisors of the county to hold an election to decide if the county seat should be moved from Gallatin to Hazlehurst.  A majority voted for the change and the old brick courthouse in Gallatin was torn down and reassembled at Hazlehurst.  Several years later this structure was replaced by a new courthouse.

Other Copiah County communities include: Crystal Springs, Georgetown, Wesson, Beauregard, Carpenter, Dentville, Gallman, Hopewell, and Martinsville. In it's first census in 1830 there were 7,001 residents listed. In the last federal census in 2000 the population was 28,757.

Copiah County Population History
Year	Population	Growth	Year	Population	Growth
1830	7,001	—	1930	31,614	10.3%
1840	8,954	27.9%	1940	33,974	7.5%
1850	11,794	31.7%	1950	30,493	−10.2%
1860	15,398	30.6%	1960	27,051	−11.3%
1870	20,608	33.8%	1970	24,749	−8.5%
1880	27,552	33.7%	1980	26,503	7.1%
1890	30,233	9.7%	1990	27,592	4.1%
1900	34,395	13.8%	2000	28,757	4.2%
1910	35,914	4.4%	2010	29,449	2.4%
1920	28,672	−20.2%

Copiah County MSGHN has many records here on our website. Marriage Records, Tax lists, cemetery listings with many tombstone photos, and more. Look at the Copiah County Records links in the menu on the left 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 Copiah County marriage records here at Copiah County MSGHN. 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 Copiah County marriage records for any date not listed above (and for the dates listed above for that matter) may be obtained from the Copiah 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, Copiah County divorce proceedings were filed in the Copiah County Chancery Clerk's office.

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