Washington County Sheriff’s Office—Since 1819
Washington County was created on 1800 June 4, as a county of the Mississippi Territory. Its original boundaries were the Chattahoochee River to the east, the Pearl River to the west, the 32nd parallel to the north and the 31st parallel to the south. It currently encompasses 1,081 square miles. Its area originally contained 26,400 square miles. The county was named for George Washington. The area of Washington County was later divided into 16 Mississippi counties and 29 Alabama counties.
Josiah D. Lister is first sheriff documented beginning in 1819. Since then, a total of 42 men have served as Sheriff.
| Sheriff | Period |
| Richard Stringer | 2007 – present |
| William J. Wheat | 1975 – 2006 |
| Clarence Judson Sullivan | 1963 – 1974 |
| Henry Clay Locke | 1959 – 1962 |
| Lee L. Armstrong | 1939 – 1958 |
| G.E. Alday | 1935– 1938 |
| L.L. Armstrong | 1931 – 1934 |
| J.W. Henson | 1927 – 1930 |
| Benjamin L. Onderdonk | 1923 – 1926 |
| W.H. Long | 1917 – 1922 |
| Benjamin L. Onderdonk | 1915 – 1916 |
| L. Frank Hill | 1913 – 1914 |
| H.H. Loper | 1911 – 1912 |
| Wirt W. Warren | 1907 – 1910 |
| R.L. Bowling | 1903 – 1906 |
| D.J. Long | 1896 – 1902 |
| A.J. Wood (also Tax Collector) | 1892 – 1895 |
| W.A. Mosley | 1888 – 1891 |
| F.W. Bassett | 1884 – 1887 |
| William H. Mosley | 1882 – 1883 |
| J.E. Pellam | 1880 – 1881 |
| W.A. Mosley (also Tax Collector) | 1877 – 1879 |
| Z.T. Clements | 12-15-1874 – 1876 |
| T.H. Bailey | 2-3-1874 – 12-14-1874 |
| WJ.D. Burke (Appointed) | 9-5-1873 – 2-2-1874 |
| B. Parks (Appointed) | 1-31-1873 – 9-4-1873 |
| R.L. Bowling | 1-8-1873 – 1-30-1873 |
| E.L. Collins | 1871 – 1-7-1873 |
| T.H. Bailey | 1863 – 1870 |
| Thomas B. Bowling | 1860 – 1862 |
| Elijah H. Gordy | 1857 – 1859 |
| James K. Blount | 1851 – 1856 |
| Abner Womack | 1848 – 1850 |
| Joseph Black | 1841 – 1847 |
| Samuel Mills | 1840 – 1840 |
| James G. Slator | 1839 – 1839 |
| William Smith | 1835 – 1838 |
| Fredrick Blount | 3-18-1831 – 8-12-1831 |
| Allen Moore | 1828 – 3-17-1831 |
| George W. Nufess | 1825 – 1827 |
| William Tinnon | 1822 – 1824 |
| Josiah D. Lister | 1819 – 1821 |
