Formed December 1, 1835 (64th county)
Lauderdale County (27,815), Ripley (8,445)
The yellow brick Art Deco courthouse was constructed in 1936. It is located on a square on Main, Washington, Jefferson, and Jackson streets. Tennessee State Highway 209 is one block west of the site. The courthouse designers are Joseph Holman and Thomas Marr. A county map is in the middle of the building on the floor. There was an 1870 courthouse earlier in Ripley, the only county seat. The county was created on December 1, 1835 from parts of Haywood, Tipton, and Dyer counties as the 64th county. It is named for War of 1812 Colonel James Lauderdale. Ripley was named for War of 1812 General Eleazor Wheelock Ripley.
Lauderdale County government consists of a sheriff, a County Mayor, and 24 Commissioners. Two Circuit Court Judges, Two Chancery Court Judges, One General Court Judge, and One Juvenile Court Judge serve Lauderdale, Fayette, Hardeman, McNairy, and Tipton counties. Lauderdale County is on the western border of Tennessee across the Mississippi River from Arkansas. Memphis, Tennessee is south and Nashville, Tennessee is northeast of the county. The county center is 3.5 miles Northwest of Ripley. The county is surrounded clockwise by Dyer, Crockett, Haywood, and Tipton counties and Arkansas.
The area of the county is 507 square miles. It is 39 out of 95 in the state. It ranks 53 out of 95 in population in the state. It has a density of 54.86 persons per square mile making it 60 out of 95 in the state. Lauderdale County has 44.2% of its population in its incorporated areas. United States Highway 51 crosses northeast to southwest through the county from Dyer County to Tipton County. The county is shaped like the State of Alaska with its panhandle shortened. Ripley is located in the southeast quarter of the county. Ripley is the county seat and the largest city. It is 30.4% of the county population.
Gates
Halls
Henning
Ripley
