Collections

The Gertrude B. Deakins Collection consists of records accumulated by Gertrude B. Deakins during her tenure as a member of the board of trustees of Tipton-Haynes Historical Association. The collection contains correspondence, brochures, financial records, minutes of meetings, photographs, maps and plats, newsletters, notes, and miscellaneous printed material. The documents in the collection are dated from 1857 to 1986, but the majority are dated from 1965 to 1986. The records document the restoration and operation of Tipton-Haynes State Historic Site by the Tipton-Haynes Historical Association, which operates the site for the state of Tennessee.

The Haynes Family Collection consists of descendant sheets completed by individual who can trace their lineage back to the Haynes family. Also included are genealogical research, articles, correspondence, and information on the Taylor family through which the Haynes family was connected by the marriage of David Haynes and Rhoda Taylor.

The Mary Hardin McCown Collection primarily consists of genealogical information on the Tipton family (and a few associated families) and records of the Tipton-Haynes Historical Association, which operates Tipton-Haynes State Historic Site for the state of Tennessee. The genealogical information was compiled by both Mrs. McCown and other Tipton family researchers. 

The collection includes correspondence, research notes, news clippings, photographs, publications, brochures, maps and plats, reports, minutes, and miscellaneous manuscript and printed material. The collection documents the history of the Tipton family, and individual members of the Tipton family, the history of families associated with the Tipton family, the restoration and operation of Tipton-Haynes State Historic Site, and the activities of the Tipton-Haynes Historical Association. The records in the collection are dated from 1862 to 1983.

The papers in the Charles D. Tipton Collection reflect his keen interest in genealogical research of his family. Tipton created the majority of the papers, but there are some papers created by other people that Tipton accumulated over the course of his genealogical research. The collection includes correspondence, articles, a play, excerpts from books (bound and unbound), maps, copies of wills, copies of court transcripts, family group sheets, family trees, Tipton Family Association of America newsletters, and photographs.

The Tipton Collection Consisted of Tipton family descendant sheets completed by individuals who can trace their ancestry to Colonel John Tipton and his descendants. Also included is research on families related to the Tipton family including the Dentons, the Henrys, the Pughs, the Snapps, the Muhlenbergs, and the Renau-Reno family. The collection also contains genealogical research, correspondence, legal documents, reunion information, articles, deed abstracts, information on the Ancestry World Tree Project, information on the Allied Families Heritage Tour, manuscripts, and information on specific members of the Tipton family.

The Tipton-Haynes Archeology Collection documents the archaeological explorations done at Tipton-Haynes State Historic Site. The collection contains archaeological reports, correspondence, newspaper clippings, photographs, and information about the Tennessee Governor’s School.

The Civil War Exhibit Collection was created during the implementation of two grants received by the Tipton-Haynes Historical Association.  In 2000, the Tennessean Wars Commission (an agency of the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation) awarded a grant to the Association “for the provision of researching and development of a design plan for a Civil War educational exhibit for schools and visitors” to Tipton-Haynes State Historic Site. Specifically, the association was required to “research and develop a plan for the exhibit entitled “The Haynes Family Divided,” a Civil War exhibit to be used “for educational programs for schools and for visitors to the Historic Site.”  

In 2002, Middle Tennessee State University awarded a grant to the Association as a partner in the Tennessee Civil War National Heritage Area. (The Heritage Area is federal, state, and local partnership that is administered by the Center for Historic Preservation at Middle Tennessee State University.) The Association was required to “complete the research and design phase of the proposed exhibit.” Nearly all the records in this collection were created during this grant project.  

The records in this collection document the work completed by the Association in conformity with both grant agreements.  The records include administrative records of both grant projects and a museum proposal provided by Southwest Museum Services (Houston, Texas, along with information about that company. Most of the records in the collection document the life and political activities of Landon Carter Haynes (1816 – 1875), an attorney, legislator, and Confederate Senator from Tennessee. The collection also contains information on the Haynes Family and various members of the Haynes, as well as information on the other families and persons associated with or related to Landon Carter Haynes. The collection includes some information on slavery in northeast Tennessee and the Civil War in Tennessee and East Tennessee. The information in this collection was used to prepare a final design for a museum in the new Visitor Center at Tipton-Haynes State Historic Site.

The Simerly Family Papers (1857-1954) focus on the Simerly Family of Johnson City, Tennessee. The collection is arranged in two series. 

Series I includes an updated name index list and correspondence between the Simerly brothers and outside sources dating from 1857 to 1959. This series also contains numerous court documents including wills, deeds, and estate inventories along with financial records and notes ranging from 1872 to 1963.  

Series II contains four folders. The first is composed of a 1991 finding aid which consists of the scope and content of the four boxes that are in the Tennessee State archives, including some of the documents in this collection. There is also a name index which lists all Simerly correspondences. The last three folders in series II are comprised of Leigh Ann Gardener’s report of the site as well as Simerly genealogy research and historical information about the Simerly family.

The Permanent Exhibit Project Records include the project manual, correspondence, and graphic specifications of Tipton-Haynes State Historic Site’s permanent exhibit. It is comprised of a single series, which is arranged in the order items were listed in the project manual followed by copies and samples of the exhibit specs.