Knoxville, Tennessee: Difference between revisions
m moving brackets on internal link |
|||
Line 244: | Line 244: | ||
* [[Knoxville Zoo]] |
* [[Knoxville Zoo]] |
||
* [[Knoxville Convention Center]] |
* [[Knoxville Convention Center]] |
||
* [[Mabry-Hazen House]] |
|||
* [[Neyland Stadium]] |
* [[Neyland Stadium]] |
||
* [[Tennessee Theatre]] |
* [[Tennessee Theatre]] |
Revision as of 19:39, 11 December 2006
Knoxville, Tennessee | |
---|---|
![]() | |
Nickname(s): The Marble City, K-Town, Big Orange Country, Knox Vegas | |
Location within the U.S. State of Tennessee | |
Cities in Tennessee | Tennessee |
Government | |
• Mayor | Bill Haslam (R) |
Population (2000) | |
• City | 173,890 (city proper) |
• Metro | 655,400 |
Time zone | UTC-5 (EST) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC-4 (EDT) |
Website | www.ci.knoxville.tn.us |
Knoxville is the third-largest city in the state of Tennessee behind Memphis and Nashville and is the county seat location of Knox County, TennesseeTemplate:GR, United States. It is the principal city of and is included in the "Knoxville, Tennessee Metropolitan Statistical Area" which is included in the "Knoxville-Sevierville-La Follette Combined Statistical Area". As of the 2005 census estimates, Knoxville had a total population of 180,130, with a metro population of 655,400.
Of all of Tennessee's four major cities, Knoxville is the oldest. It also was the state's first capital when Tennessee was admitted into the Union in 1796, in which capacity it served until 1819, when the capital was moved to Murfreesboro. It was named in honor of the first Secretary of War, Henry Knox.
One of Knoxville's nicknames is The Marble City. In the early 20th century, a number of quarries were active in the city, supplying Tennessee Pink marble (actually Ordovician limestone of the Holston Formation) to much of the country. Notable buildings such as the National Gallery in Washington are constructed of Knoxville marble. The National Gallery's fountains were turned by Candoro Marble Company, which once ran the largest marble lathes in the United States.
Knoxville was once also known as the Underwear Capital of the World. In the 1930s, no fewer than 20 textile and clothing mills operated in Knoxville, and the industry was the city's largest employer. In the 1950s, the mills began to close, causing an overall population loss of 10% by 1960.
Knoxville is also the home of the University of Tennessee's primary campus (UTK). The university's sports teams, called the "Volunteers" or "Vols," are extremely popular in the surrounding area. In recognition of this popularity, the telephone area code for Knox County and eight adjacent counties is 865 (VOL). Knoxville is also the home of the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame, almost entirely thanks to the popularity of Pat Summitt and the University of Tennessee women's basketball team.
As of 2006, the current mayor is Bill Haslam, who defeated Madeline Rogero in 2003. The previous mayor of sixteen years, Victor Ashe, was named United States Ambassador to Poland in June 2004. Ashe was term-limited and could not serve another term.
History
White's Fort was settled in 1786 by James White, a militia officer during the American Revolutionary War. When William Blount, the territorial governor of the Southwest Territory, moved the territorial capital to White's Fort in 1791, he renamed it Knoxville in honor of Henry Knox, the American Revolutionary War general and Washington's Secretary of War. Knoxville served as the territorial capital until 1796, when a constitutional convention was held in Knoxville to establish Tennessee as a state. When Tennessee entered the United States in 1796, Knoxville was the first capital of the state until 1815, when the capital was moved to Murfreesboro.
During the American Civil War, the Battle of Campbell's Station was outside Knoxville on November 16, 1863. In that battle Confederate troops led by General James Longstreet unsuccessfully attacked Union forces under General Ambrose Burnside. The next day, the two week long Siege of Knoxville began when Longstreet placed Knoxville under siege. The siege, which culminated in the Battle of Fort Sanders, failed and Longstreet returned with his men to General Robert E. Lee.
The Battle of Fort Sanders (precipitated by the Siege of Knoxville, which began on November 17, 1863) was an engagement of the American Civil War fought in Knoxville, Tennessee. The Confederacy had never had effective control of large areas of East Tennessee. There had been little slavery practiced in East Tennessee, partly due to moral opposition to the practice and partly due to the fact that little of the land was suitable to plantation agriculture; pro-Union and Republican sentiment ran high and most East Tennesseans had not been in favor of secession. Therefore, Union forces had little trouble occupying Knoxville early in the conflict.
In 1901, train robber Kid Curry (whose real name was Harvey Logan), a member of Butch Cassidy's Wild Bunch was captured after shooting two deputies on Knoxville's Central Avenue. He escaped from the Knoxville Jail and rode away on the sheriff's stolen horse.
In 1948, the soft drink Mountain Dew was first marketed in Knoxville, originally designed as a mixer for whiskey.[1]
In 1933 during the Great Depression, the Tennessee Valley Authority was founded and headquartered in Knoxville by the U.S. government to help create jobs and attract manufacturing dependent on cheap electricity.
Knoxville hosted the 1982 World's Fair, from which the Sunsphere remains.
In 1999, the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame opened in the city.
Geography
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/37/Knoxville-R.jpg/250px-Knoxville-R.jpg)
Knoxville is located at 35°58′22″N 83°56′32″W / 35.97278°N 83.94222°W (35.972882, -83.942161)Template:GR.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 254.1 km² (98.1 mi²). 240.0 km² (92.7 mi²) of it is land and 14.1 km² (5.4 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 5.54% water.
In the southeast part of the city, the French Broad River (flowing from Asheville, North Carolina) joins the Holston River (flowing from Kingsport) to form the headwaters of the Tennessee River.
Transportation is served by Interstate 40 to Asheville, North Carolina, and Nashville and Interstate 75 to Chattanooga and Lexington. Knoxville and the surrounding area is served by McGhee Tyson Airport. Public transportation is provided by KAT. Rail freight is offered by CSX and Norfolk Southern.
Nearby towns and cities
- Alcoa
- Corryton
- Concord (unincorporated)
- Farragut
- Halls Crossroads (unincorporated; annexation planned, often colloquially referred to as "Halls", which is the proper name of a small rural city in West Tennessee)
- Karns (unincorporated)
- Jefferson City
- Lovell (unincorporated)
- Lenoir City
- Maryville
- Newport
- Oak Ridge
- Powell (unincorporated, formerly called "Powell's Station")
- Sevierville
- Dandridge
- Morristown
Neighborhoods
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3e/Downtown-knoxville.jpg/340px-Downtown-knoxville.jpg)
- Arlington
- Bearden
- Burlington
- Cedar Bluff
- Chilhowee Park
- Colonial Village
- East Knoxville
- Edgewood
- Emory Place
- Fairmont-Emoriland
- Five Points
- Forest Hills
- Fort Sanders, also called "the Fort"
- Fountain City
- Fourth & Gill
- Holston Hills
- Island Home
- Mechanicsville
- Lonsdale
- Morningside
- North Hills
- North Knoxville
- Norwood/Inskip
- Oakwood-Lincoln Park
- Old City, formerly known as the Warehouse district, site of 1919 race rioting
- Old North Knoxville
- Old Sevier
- Parkridge (Park City)
- Sequoyah Hills
- South Knoxville
- Vestal
- West Hills
- West Knoxville
- Western Heights
- Westmoreland
Major streets
- Alcoa Highway (US 129; TN 115)
- Asheville Highway (US 11E/US 25W/US 70; TN 9)
- Broadway (US 441;TN 33/TN 71)
- Central Avenue Pike
- Chapman Highway (US 441;TN 33/TN 71)
- Clinton Highway (US 25W;TN 9)
- Cumberland Avenue, also known as "the Strip" (US 11/US 70;TN 1)
- Emory Road, formerly a wilderness trail for settlers, now part of TN 131
- Gay Street
- Gov. John Sevier Highway (TN 168)
- Henley Street (US 441;TN 33/TN 71)
- James White Parkway, formerly called the Business Loop or Downtown Loop (TN 158)
- Kingston Pike (US 11/US 70;TN 1)
- Magnolia Avenue (US 11/US 70;TN 1)
- Merchant Drive
- Middlebrook Pike (TN 169)
- Neyland Drive (TN 158)
- Northshore Drive
- Parkside Drive / North Peters Road
- Pellissippi Parkway
- Rutledge Pike (US 11W;TN 1)
- Seventeenth Street
- South Knoxville Connector
- Washington Pike (TN 61)
- Western Avenue, formerly Asylum Street (TN 62)
Demographics
As of the censusTemplate:GR of 2000, there were 177,661 people, 76,650 households, and 40,164 families residing in the city, and greater Knoxville (metro) has a population of 704,431. The population density was 724.6/km² (1,876.7/mi²). There were 84,981 housing units at an average density of 354.1/km² (917.1/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 79.7% White, 16.2% African American, 0.31% Native American, 1.45% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.72% from other races, and 1.57% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.58% of the population.
There were 76,650 households out of which 22.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 35.3% were married couples living together, 13.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 47.6% were non-families. 38.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.12 and the average family size was 2.84.
In the city the population was spread out with 19.7% under the age of 18, 16.8% from 18 to 24, 29.5% from 25 to 44, 19.6% from 45 to 64, and 14.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females there were 90.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.3 males.
The median income for a household in the city is $27,492, and the median income for a family is $37,708. Males had a median income of $29,070 versus $22,593 for females. The per capita income for the city is $18,171. About 14.4% of families and 20.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 26.1% of those under age 18 and 12.0% of those age 65 or over.
In 2005, ERI published that new college graduates would have the greatest effective income in Knoxville (expected income versus cost of living).
Economy
Knoxville's economy is largely fuelled by the regional location of the main campus of the University of Tennessee, the Oak Ridge National Laboratory, the National Transportation Research Center, and the Tennessee Valley Authority. These make Knoxville the heart of the high-tech Tennessee Valley Corridor, which extends from Blacksburg, Virginia to Huntsville, Alabama.
Because of its central location in the eastern half of the United States, many warehousing and distribution companies operate in and around Knoxville.
Major companies headquartered in Knoxville
- AC Entertainment, co-producers of the Bonnaroo Music Festival
- Bush Brothers and Company
- DeRoyal Industries
- EdFinancial Services
- Goody's Family Clothing
- Petro's Chili & Chips
- Pilot Corporation
- Regal Entertainment Group
- Scripps Networks, producer of the HGTV and DIY television networks; the Scripps Company also publishes Knoxville's daily paper, the News-Sentinel
- Jewelry Television, television network
- Sea Ray
- Tennessee Valley Authority (a government corporation)
Colleges and universities
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4f/UT-McClungPlaza.jpg/220px-UT-McClungPlaza.jpg)
Knoxville is home to the main campus of the University of Tennessee. It is also home to:
- Fountainhead College of Technology
- ITT-Technical Institute
- Johnson Bible College
- Knoxville College
- Pellissippi State Technical Community College
- South College (formerly Knoxville Business College)
Culture
Knoxville is home to a rich arts community and has many festivals throughout the year. BLENDER magazine, in its "20 Most Rock & Roll towns in the U.S." feature (May '03), ranked Knoxville the 17th best music scene in the United States. In the ’90s, noted alternative-music critic Ann Powers, author of Weird Like Us: My Bohemian America, referred to the city as “Austin without the hype".
The city also hosts numerous art festivals, including the 17-day Dogwood Arts Festival in April, which features art shows, crafts fairs, food and live music. Also in April is the Rossini Festival, which celebrates opera and Italian culture. June’s Kuumba (meaning creativity in Swahili) Festival commemorates the region’s African American heritage and showcases visual arts, folk arts, dance, games, music, storytelling, theater, and food. Autumn on the Square showcases national and local artists in outdoor concert series at historic Market Square, which has been revitalized with specialty shops and residences. Every Labor Day brings Boomsday, the largest Labor Day fireworks display in the United States.
Events
- Boomsday
- Knoxville Marathon
- Dogwood Arts Festival
- Eskimo Escapades
- Great Knoxville Rubber Duck Race
- GreekFest
- Honda Hoot
- Knoxville Brewers' Jam
- Kuumba Festival
- Market Square Farmers' Market
- Rossini Festival
- Ska Weekend
- Sundown in the City
- Knoxville Symphony Orchestra
Media
Local television stations are as follows:
- WATE 6 - ABC affiliate, owned by Young Broadcasting.
- WMAK 7 - Digital independent station, owned by Knoxville Ch 7, LLC (also seen on low-power analog WEZK-LP 28)
- WVLT 8 - CBS affiliate, owned by Gray Television.
- WVLT-DT2 - My Network TV affiliate, digital subchannel of WVLT.
- WBIR 10 - NBC affiliate, owned by Gannett Corporation.
- WKOP 15 - PBS member station
- WBXX 20 - CW affiliate, owned by ACME Television
- WTNZ 43 - FOX affiliate, owned by Raycom Media.
- WPXK 54 - i affiliate, owned by Paxson Communications
Knoxville's daily newspaper is the Knoxville News-Sentinel
Nearby attractions
Sites of interest
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/32/Sunsphere.jpg/100px-Sunsphere.jpg)
- Blount Mansion
- Frank H. McClung Museum
- Governor John Sevier Historic Site - Marble Springs
- Haley Heritage Square
- James White's Fort
- Knoxville Museum of Art
- Knoxville Zoo
- Knoxville Convention Center
- Mabry-Hazen House
- Neyland Stadium
- Tennessee Theatre
- Knoxville Bijou Theatre
- Volunteer Landing
- Women's Basketball Hall of Fame
- World's Fair Park
Sports
- Knoxville Noise (American Basketball Association)
- United Wrestling Association
- Knoxville Ice Bears (Southern Professional Hockey League)
Famous Knoxvillians
- For a longer list of notable Knoxvillians, see Category:People from Knoxville, Tennessee
- 10 Years, alternative rock band
- Robert H. Adams, United States Senator from Mississippi[1]
- James Agee, author of A Death in the Family
- The Aldridge Sisters, country musicians
- Victor Ashe, former mayor, US ambassador to Poland
- Ava Barber, country music artist, featured performer from The Lawrence Welk Show
- Dr. William M. Bass (Bill), founder of the University of Tennessee's Body Farm and author of Death's Acre
- Brian Bell, guitarist for the band Weezer
- Polly Bergen, actress
- Ben Bolt, guitarist, composer
- Kenny Chesney, country music artist
- Mary Costa, opera singer, voice of Disney's Sleeping Beauty
- John Cullum, Tony Award winning actor and singer
- Lowell Cunningham, Men in Black creator
- David Farragut, Civil War admiral
- Nikki Giovanni, poet
- James Haslam Jr., founder of Pilot Corp.
- William H. Hastie, U.S. Virgin Islands governor, first African American federal appellate court judge
- Todd Helton, baseball player
- Homer and Jethro, country musicians
- Dennis Hwang, graphic artist for Google
- Glen Jacobs, professional wrestler
- Jeff Jarrett, professional wrestler
- David Keith, actor
- Johnny Knoxville, actor
- Joseph Wood Krutch, writer, naturalist
- Brownie McGhee, blues musician
- Patricia Neal, actress
- Adolph_Ochs, newspaper publisher
- Randy Orton, professional wrestler
- Chad Pennington, American football player (quarterback for the New York Jets)
- Dr. Jerry Punch, ESPN Analyst
- Brad Renfro, actor
- Glenn Reynolds, legal academic and blogger
- Quentin Tarantino, film director
- Jake Thomas, actor
- Bob Thomas, actor, radio announcer, writer
- Chris Woodruff, former professional tennis player
Famous non-native residents include:
- George Franklin Barber, architect
- William Blount, statesman
- "Parson" William Gannaway Brownlow, governor, newspaper publisher
- Frances Hodgson Burnett, author of The Secret Garden
- Jake Butcher, Banker; organized 1982 World's Fair, later plead guilty to fraud.
- Phillip Fulmer, Head Coach, Tennessee Vols Football Team
- Alex Haley, author of Roots
- Cormac McCarthy, author
- John Sevier, statesman
- Pat Summitt, Head Coach, Tennessee Lady Vols Basketball Team
- Dave Thomas, founder of Wendy's
Sister cities
Knoxville has seven sister cities as designated by Sister Cities International:
Chelm, Poland
Chengdu, China
Kaohsiung, Taiwan (Sister Cities International officially recognizes Taiwan as a division of China[2])
Larissa, Greece
Muroran, Japan
Neuquen, Argentina
Yesan County, South Korea
References
- Carey, Ruth. "Change Comes to Knoxville." in These Are Our Voices: The Story of Oak Ridge 1942-1970, edited by James Overholt, Oak Ridge, Tennessee, 1987.
- Deaderick, Lucile, ed. Heart of the Valley--A History of Knoxville, Tennessee Knoxville: East Tennessee Historical Society, 1976.
- Jennifer Long; "Government Job Creation Programs-Lessons from the 1930s and 1940s" Journal of Economic Issues . Volume: 33. Issue: 4. 1999. pp 903+, a case study of Knoxville.
- McDonald, Michael, and Bruce Wheeler. Knoxville, Tennessee: Continuity and Change in an Appalachian City University of Tennessee Press, 1983. the standard academic history
- "Knoxville". The Tennessee Encyclopedia of History and Culture. Retrieved 2006-03-14.
External links
- City of Knoxville (official web site)
- Knoxville Tourism and Sports Corporation
- Knoxville, TN Local Guide and Search
- Knoxville520 - Entertainment and Nightlife
- Knoxville News Sentinel
- The South Knox•Seymour Times
- Metropulse (alternative weekly)
- KnoxViews
- City View Magazine
- Knoxville Magazine
- ConcertWire
- KnoxShows
- Template:Wikitravelpar