Publication notices of court actions may help to supplement what is in the actual court record. They can be especially helpful in counties where records are not extant due to fire, flood, or theft. Newspapers in the county seat usually published these notices but they may also appear in papers in the town where majority of the parties lived as well. 
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4 Responses
The courthouse records didn’t survive the Civil War, but the newspapers did! Finding the newspaper online showing the sale of my ancestor’s property after his death gave me the land description.
Newspapers are a good source in those Southern counties where the courthouse did not survive the war.
I’ve found several things (divorces, lawsuits) in historic newspapers that I’ve been able to find in official documents. Thank you for posting it.. I wanted to let you know that I have included this post in my current NoteWorthy Reads post: http://jahcmft.blogspot.com/2016/01/noteworthy-reads-25.html.
Thanks for the shoutout!