County · code 47139
Polk CountyTennessee
Polk County, Tennessee is a county with its seat in Benton, formed on November 28, 1839. It was created from Bradley and McMinn counties and named after James K. Polk.
- Founded1839
- County seatBenton
- Named forJames K. Polk
- Land area435 sq mi + 7.7 sq mi water
- Population17,544 2020 Census
- Parcels mapped12,983 checked 14 October 2026
Where it is
Polk on the map of Tennessee
Tennessee has 95 counties and county equivalents, each with its own records office. Shapes with a page are links.
History
Formed in 1839 from Bradley County and McMinn County
An old deed may name a county that no longer exists, or a boundary that has since moved.
Polk County was created from Bradley and McMinn counties on November 28, 1839. Over the following decades, the county experienced numerous boundary adjustments, gaining and losing small parcels of land to and from Bradley and McMinn counties to accommodate local residents.
- 1839Polk County created Polk created from Bradley and McMinn. · Tenn. Acts 1839, 23d assy., ch. 10, secs. 1-2/p. 17
- 1853Gained territory Polk gained from McMinn to accommodate local resident. · Tenn. Acts 1853, 30th assy., ch. 177/p. 245
- 1856Lost territory Polk lost to Monroe to accommodate local resident. · Tenn. Acts 1855, 31st assy., ch. 122, secs. 23, 25/pp. 157-158
- 1858Lost territory Polk lost to Monroe to accommodate local residents. · Tenn. Acts 1857, 32d assy., priv., ch. 129/p. 324
- 1860Gained territory Polk gained from Bradley. · Tenn. Acts 1859, 33d assy., 1st sess., priv., ch. 135, secs. 1-13/pp. 438-440
Show all 13 changes
- 1839Polk County created Polk created from Bradley and McMinn. · Tenn. Acts 1839, 23d assy., ch. 10, secs. 1-2/p. 17
- 1853Gained territory Polk gained from McMinn to accommodate local resident. · Tenn. Acts 1853, 30th assy., ch. 177/p. 245
- 1856Lost territory Polk lost to Monroe to accommodate local resident. · Tenn. Acts 1855, 31st assy., ch. 122, secs. 23, 25/pp. 157-158
- 1858Gained territory Polk gained from Bradley to accommodate local resident. · Tenn. Acts 1857, 32d assy., pub., ch. 47, secs. 1-11/pp. 57-59 and ch. 83, sec. 3/p. 91
- 1858Lost territory Polk lost to Monroe to accommodate local residents. · Tenn. Acts 1857, 32d assy., priv., ch. 129/p. 324
- 1860Gained territory Polk gained from Bradley. · Tenn. Acts 1859, 33d assy., 1st sess., priv., ch. 135, secs. 1-13/pp. 438-440
- 1866Gained territory Polk gained from Bradley to accommodate local residents. · Tenn. Acts 1866, 34th assy., 2d adj. sess., pub., ch. 10/p. 9
- 1873Lost territory Polk lost to McMinn to accommodate local resident. · Tenn. Acts 1873, 38th assy., ch. 69/p. 103
- 1889Gained territory Polk gained from McMinn to accommodate local resident. · Tenn. Acts 1889, 46th assy., 1st sess., ch. 65/p. 94
- 1893Gained territory Polk gained from McMinn to accommodate local resident. · Tenn. Acts 1893, 48th assy., ch. 1/p. 3
- 1905Gained territory Polk gained from McMinn to accommodate local residents. · Tenn. Acts 1905, 54th assy., ch. 178/p. 379
- 1935Changed Legislature authorized McMinn to gain from Polk; gain did not take effect (no change). · Tenn. Acts 1935, 69th assy., priv., ch. 295/p. 655; repeated in ch. 239/p. 537
- 1937Lost territory Polk lost to McMinn to accommodate local resident.to McMinnto Polk-McMinn· Tenn. Acts 1937, 70th assy., priv., ch. 305/p. 923
Land and parcels
What the maps cover in Polk
Who publishes each layer, how good it is, and when we last checked.
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Parcels Good enough
Lot lines and tax-map numbers for 12,983 parcels from Polk County. Drawn for tax purposes: usually within a few feet of a survey, but not a survey.
edited 10 May 2024 · checked 14 October 2026 -
Address points Official
One point per address, 12,291 in all from TECB and local 911 districts via TNMap (tnmap_oir).
edited 6 October 2026 · checked 14 October 2026 -
Buildings Reference
Roof outlines traced from aerial imagery from FEMA Response Geospatial Office with Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). Good for seeing what is on a lot; not accurate enough to set a fence from.
checked 18 October 2026
- Official
- from the office that keeps the record
- Good enough
- a reliable statewide or national copy
- Fallback
- a guide only; check the official record
- Missing
- nothing public found yet
People and land
Polk by the Census
Source: US Census Bureau, 2020 Census; US Census Bureau, 2020 Gazetteer Files. Not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.
Rules and offices
Polk County's official site
We have found the county's site but not its offices yet; start there.
County government
- County government
The official website of Polk County.
See your own lot on these maps
Open Polk County on Parcel Chart's free map and click your parcel. Save it with a free account; the full record of your place (site map, projects, documents) is Pro, in early access.
Questions
Common questions about Polk County
- When was Polk County founded?
- Polk County was founded in 1839, formed from Bradley County and McMinn County, and named after James K. Polk.
- What is the county seat of Polk County?
- The county seat of Polk County is Benton.
- Is there an online parcel map for Polk County?
- Yes. Polk County publishes a parcel map of 12,983 parcels, rated good enough here. You can click any parcel on it in Parcel Chart's free map, no sign-in needed.
- Has Polk County's boundary or name changed?
- Polk County was created in 1839 from Bradley County and McMinn County. Since then the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries records 11 later changes, most of them small boundary adjustments, chiefly involving McMinn County, Bradley County and Monroe County.
- Is my lot in a flood zone?
- We do not have flood maps for Polk County yet. Look up the address on FEMA's Flood Map Service Center, which shows the effective flood map for any lot.
Nearby