Reviewed and updated October 9, 2026 by the SearchSystems.net editorial team. The arrest counts are the ones each agency reported to the FBI, as the FBI held them on October 8, 2026. Every office link was opened and checked against the office's own site on September 23, 2026.
Putnam County, Tennessee, has about 85,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). Its court cases are filed in the Putnam County Circuit and Chancery Courts and the General Sessions Court, and the file of each case, kept by the Circuit Court Clerk and the Clerk and Master, is the public record of it. This guide says which court hears what, where to look a case up and who keeps the files.
This guide covers the courts, the records page, criminal cases, kinds of files, directory links, cities and common questions.
Related guides: Putnam County public records, Putnam County arrest records, Putnam County warrants, Putnam County criminal records, Putnam County police reports, Tennessee arrest records and Tennessee inmate search.
The Courts That Hear Cases from Putnam County
Court cases from Putnam County are filed in the Putnam County Circuit and Chancery Courts, which hear felonies in the Circuit or Criminal Court, civil cases in either court, and divorces in either.
The General Sessions Court takes misdemeanors, traffic cases, small claims and preliminary hearings.
A city with a municipal court of its own tries the tickets written under its ordinances.
Divorces go to the Circuit Court or the Chancery Court, and the file stays with the Circuit Court Clerk or the Clerk and Master.
The Circuit Court Clerk and the Clerk and Master keep the files, and a copy of anything in a file comes from that office, under the court's own rules rather than the Tennessee Public Records Act.
Looking Up a Case from Putnam County
For Putnam County, SearchSystems opened and checked the court records page for the county at putnamcountytn.gov/clerk-and-master (page title: Clerk and Master | Putnam County TN), phone (931) 526-6321, 421 E. Spring St. Suite 1C38 Cookeville, TN 38501, which answered when SearchSystems opened it on September 23, 2026.
Tennessee has no single public index of every trial court case; each court's records are looked up through that court.
The appellate courts' case search is at tncourts.gov/courts/supreme-court/public-case-history.
What Reaches the Court from Putnam County
Together, the five agencies in Putnam County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 2,272 arrests to the FBI that year; the District Attorney General decides which of those arrests become cases in the Putnam County Circuit and Chancery Courts or the General Sessions Court.
The Kinds of Court Files
The court file is one record with several readers: a criminal case from the arrest to the sentence, a divorce from the petition to the judgment, a traffic ticket from the citation to the conviction the court reports to the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security, and an eviction or a lien on land.
The other Putnam County guides take the kinds of file one at a time: Putnam County criminal records, Putnam County divorce records, Putnam County traffic tickets and Putnam County property records.
More Official Court Pages for Putnam County
The SearchSystems directory, online since 1997, lists the official pages for Putnam County and Tennessee. These court pages from its Putnam County listing were opened again on October 2, 2026 and each one still answers:
- Jennifer Wilkerson (tncourts.gov)
Cities in Putnam County
Wherever in the county a case arises, it is filed in the Putnam County Circuit and Chancery Courts or the General Sessions Court; tickets under a city's own ordinances go to its municipal court where it has one.
SearchSystems has a guide to the offices of these cities in Putnam County, with the 2024 Census Bureau population; a city with its own court records guide opens there:
- Cookeville (37,102)
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I look up a court case in Putnam County?
The court records page SearchSystems verified for the county is at putnamcountytn.gov/clerk-and-master, phone (931) 526-6321.
Which court hears felonies in Putnam County?
The Putnam County Circuit and Chancery Courts, which hear felonies in the Circuit or Criminal Court, civil cases in either court, and divorces in either. The General Sessions Court takes misdemeanors, traffic cases, small claims and preliminary hearings.
Who keeps the court records in Putnam County?
The Circuit Court Clerk and the Clerk and Master. Copies come from that office under the court's own rules.
Is there a statewide court case search in Tennessee?
No. Each court's records are looked up through that court.
Is this the official Putnam County website?
No. SearchSystems.net is an independent public records guide, online since 1997. It links to the official county, court and state offices described above and does not hold records, charge for them or take requests.