Trousdale County was formed in 1870 from parts of Macon, Smith, Sumner, and Wilson counties. It was named for William Trousdale who lived from 1790 to 1872. Trousdale was a Brigadier General in the Mexican War, Governor of Tennessee from 1849 to 1851, and U.S. Minister to Brazil from 1853 to 1857. Hartsvillians had initially sought the creation of their own separate county in 1849, but the effort failed. The county has a total area of 117 square miles and a population count of 11,284 residents.