The Flag of Tennessee
Tennessee ( TEN -iss-EE , TEN -iss-ee ), officially the State of Tennessee , is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States . It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina to the east, Georgia , Alabama , and Mississippi to the south, Arkansas to the southwest, and Missouri to the northwest. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. Tennessee is geographically, culturally, and legally divided into three Grand Divisions of East , Middle , and West Tennessee . Nashville is the state's capital and largest city, and anchors its largest metropolitan area. Other major cities include Memphis , Knoxville , Chattanooga , and Clarksville . Tennessee's population as of the 2020 United States census is approximately 6.9 million.
Tennessee is rooted in the Watauga Association , a 1772 frontier pact generally regarded as the first constitutional government west of the Appalachian Mountains . Its name derives from Tanasi (ᏔᎾᏏ ), a Cherokee town in the eastern part of the state that existed before the first European American settlement. Tennessee was initially part of North Carolina, and later the Southwest Territory , before its admission to the Union as the 16th state on June 1, 1796. It earned the nickname "The Volunteer State" early in its history due to a strong tradition of military service. A slave state until the American Civil War , Tennessee was politically divided, with its western and middle parts supporting the Confederacy and the eastern region harboring pro -Union sentiment. As a result, Tennessee was the last state to secede and the first readmitted to the Union after the war.
During the 20th century, Tennessee transitioned from a predominantly agrarian society to a more diversified economy. This was aided in part by massive federal investment in the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) and the city of Oak Ridge , which was established during World War II to house the Manhattan Project 's uranium enrichment facilities for the construction of the world's first atomic bombs . After the war, the Oak Ridge National Laboratory became a key center of scientific research. In 2016, the element tennessine was named for the state, largely in recognition of the roles played by Oak Ridge, Vanderbilt University , and the University of Tennessee in its discovery. Tennessee has also played a major role in the development of many forms of popular music , including country , blues , rock and roll , soul , and gospel . (Full article... )
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James Knox Polk (; November 2, 1795 – June 15, 1849) was the 11th president of the United States , serving from 1845 to 1849. He also served as the 13th speaker of the House of Representatives from 1835 to 1839 and the ninth governor of Tennessee from 1839 to 1841. A protégé of Andrew Jackson , he was a member of the Democratic Party and an advocate of Jacksonian democracy . Polk is known for extending the territory of the United States through the Mexican–American War during his presidency, annexing the Republic of Texas , the Oregon Territory , and the Mexican Cession after winning the Mexican–American War.
After building a successful law practice in
Tennessee , Polk was elected to
its state legislature in 1823 and then to the
United States House of Representatives in 1825, becoming a strong supporter of Jackson. After serving as chairman of the
Ways and Means Committee , he became Speaker of the House in 1835, the only person to serve both as Speaker and U.S. president. Polk left Congress to run for governor of Tennessee, winning in 1839 but losing in 1841 and 1843. He was a
dark-horse candidate in the
1844 presidential election as the
Democratic Party nominee; he entered his party's convention as a potential nominee for vice president but emerged as a compromise to head the ticket when no presidential candidate could gain the necessary two-thirds majority. In the general election, Polk defeated
Henry Clay of the
Whig Party . (
Full article... )
List of recognized articles
East Tennessee is one of the three Grand Divisions of Tennessee defined in state law. Geographically and socioculturally distinct, it comprises approximately the eastern third of the U.S. state of Tennessee . East Tennessee consists of 33 counties , 30 located within the Eastern Time Zone and three counties in the Central Time Zone , namely Bledsoe , Cumberland , and Marion . East Tennessee is entirely located within the Appalachian Mountains , although the landforms range from densely forested 6,000-foot (1,800 m) mountains to broad river valleys. The region contains the major cities of Knoxville and Chattanooga , Tennessee's third and fourth largest cities, respectively, and the Tri-Cities , the state's sixth largest population center.
During the
American Civil War , many East Tennesseans remained loyal to the
Union even as the state seceded and joined the
Confederacy . Early in the war,
Unionist delegates unsuccessfully
attempted to split East Tennessee into a separate state that would remain as part of the Union. After the war, a number of industrial operations were established in cities in the region. The
Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), created by Congress during the
Great Depression in the 1930s, spurred economic development and helped to modernize the region's economy and society. The TVA would become the nation's largest
public utility provider. Today, the TVA's administrative operations are headquartered in Knoxville, and its power operations are based in Chattanooga.
Oak Ridge was the site of the world's first successful
uranium enrichment operations, which were used to construct the world's first atomic bombs, two of which were
dropped on Imperial Japan at the end of
World War II . The
Appalachian Regional Commission further transformed the region in the late 20th century. (
Full article... )
List of selected articles
History of Tennessee List of Tennessee state symbols Nashville, Tennessee List of governors of Tennessee Governor of Tennessee Middle Tennessee West Tennessee Knoxville, Tennessee Tennessee River Memphis, Tennessee Chattanooga, Tennessee Clarksville, Tennessee Assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. Cleveland, Tennessee Dolly Parton Tennessee State Guard University of Memphis Toqua (Tennessee) Great Smoky Mountains Great Smoky Mountains Interstate 40 in Tennessee Old Crow Medicine Show Swaggerty Blockhouse Unicoi Mountains Old City, Knoxville Nashville Americans Valerie June Battle of Fort Donelson Battle of Fort Henry Collierville, Tennessee Vanderbilt University Tennessee whiskey Jack Daniel's Grand Ole Opry Battle of Nashville Nashville Superspeedway Johnny Cash Carl Perkins Tennessee Waltz Morristown, Tennessee Fainting goat Bessie Smith Cookeville, Tennessee Murfreesboro, Tennessee Bob Corker Edgar Evins State Park Graceland Bledsoe Creek State Park Dollywood Tennessee Valley Authority Black Patch Tobacco Wars Great Smoky Mountains National Park
The following are images from various Tennessee-related articles on Wikipedia.
Image 1 Howard Baker served as
Senate Minority and Majority Leader from 1977 to 1985, and was known as "The Great Conciliator" (from
Tennessee )
Image 4 1861 Bank of Tennessee 1 dollar banknote (from
History of Tennessee )
Image 5 The
1982 World's Fair in Knoxville (from
Tennessee )
Image 6 The
Ryman Auditorium , home of the "Grand Ole Opry" in Nashville (from
History of Tennessee )
Image 8 Köppen climate types of Tennessee, using 1991-2020
climate normals . (from
Tennessee )
Image 9 Memphis International Airport , the hub of
FedEx Corporation , is the busiest cargo airport in the world (from
Tennessee )
Image 10 The
Grand Ole Opry , which was recorded in
Nashville 's
Ryman Auditorium from 1943 to 1974, is the longest-running
radio broadcast in US history. (from
Tennessee )
Image 11 Fall Creek Falls , the tallest waterfall in the eastern United States, is located on the Cumberland Plateau (from
Tennessee )
Image 13 A
Nissan Leaf , one of six models manufactured at the
Nissan Smyrna Assembly Plant , the largest automotive assembly plant in North America (from
Tennessee )
Image 14 The
Ocoee River was home to the
1996 Summer Olympics whitewater slalom events, the only Olympic sporting event ever held in the state. (from
Tennessee )
Image 16 Howard Baker served as
Senate Minority and Majority Leader from 1977 to 1985, and was known as "The Great Conciliator" (from
Tennessee )
Image 17 in 1946 the U.S. Post Office issued a
commemorative stamp celebrating the 150th anniversary of Tennessee statehood. (from
Tennessee )
Image 18 Al Gore served as a
United States Senator from Tennessee (1985–1993) and as
Vice President of the United States (1993–2001) (from
Tennessee )
Image 19 John Bell (from
History of Tennessee )
Image 20 The Southwest Territory in 1790 (from
Tennessee )
Image 21 Established in 1942,
Oak Ridge National Laboratory is the largest national laboratory in the Department of Energy system (from
Tennessee )
Image 22 The
Battle of Franklin , November 30, 1864 (from
Tennessee )
Image 23 The Hermitage , plantation home of President
Andrew Jackson in Nashville (from
Tennessee )
Image 26 A geomap showing the counties of Tennessee colored by the relative range of that county's median income. (from
Tennessee )
Image 27 Mount Le Conte in the
Great Smoky Mountains is the tallest mountain in eastern North America, measured from base to summit (from
Tennessee )
Image 29 Köppen climate types of Tennessee, using 1991-2020
climate normals . (from
Tennessee )
Image 30 Calutron operators at the
Y-12 Plant in Oak Ridge during the
Manhattan Project (from
Tennessee )
Image 31 The
resort city of
Gatlinburg borders the
Great Smoky Mountains National Park , which is the most visited national park in the United States. (from
Tennessee )
Image 32 Interstate 40 traverses Tennessee from east to west, and serves the state's three largest cities. (from
Tennessee )
Image 33 Workers at the
Norris Dam construction camp site in 1933 (from
Tennessee )
Image 34 Reconstruction of
Fort Loudoun , the first British settlement in Tennessee (from
Tennessee )
Image 35 A View of Memphis, Tennessee , 1871 (from
History of Tennessee )
Image 36 The
Grand Ole Opry , which was recorded in
Nashville 's
Ryman Auditorium from 1943 to 1974, is the longest-running
radio broadcast in US history. (from
Tennessee )
Image 37 Offices of
The Tennessean in Nashville (from
Tennessee )
Image 38 Cedar glades are an ecosystem that is found in regions of Middle Tennessee where limestone bedrock is close to the surface (from
Tennessee )
Image 39 in 1946 the U.S. Post Office issued a
commemorative stamp celebrating the 150th anniversary of Tennessee statehood. (from
Tennessee )
Image 40 The
Battle of Franklin , November 30, 1864 (from
Tennessee )
Image 42 Map of counties in Tennessee by racial plurality, per the 2020 U.S. census
Non-Hispanic White 50–60%
60–70%
70–80%
80–90%
90%+
Black or African American 50–60%
(from
Tennessee )
Image 44 Conquistador Hernando de Soto , first European to visit Tennessee (from
History of Tennessee )
Image 45 Nashville's replica of the
Parthenon (built 1897) (from
History of Tennessee )
Image 47 Surveyor
Daniel Smith's "Map of the Tennassee State" (1796) (from
Tennessee )
Image 48 Memphis became known as the "Cotton Capital of the World" in the years following the Civil War (from
Tennessee )
Image 49 Offices of
The Tennessean in Nashville (from
Tennessee )
Image 50 The Hermitage , plantation home of President
Andrew Jackson , now a museum in
Davidson County (from
History of Tennessee )
Image 51 The Hermitage , plantation home of President
Andrew Jackson in Nashville (from
Tennessee )
Image 52 The Southwest Territory in 1790 (from
Tennessee )
Image 53 Cedar glades are an ecosystem that is found in regions of Middle Tennessee where limestone bedrock is close to the surface (from
Tennessee )
Image 54 Map of counties in Tennessee by racial plurality, per the 2020 U.S. census
Non-Hispanic White 50–60%
60–70%
70–80%
80–90%
90%+
Black or African American 50–60%
(from
Tennessee )
Image 55 Interstate 40 traverses Tennessee from east to west, and serves the state's three largest cities. (from
Tennessee )
Image 56 Mount Le Conte in the
Great Smoky Mountains is the tallest mountain in eastern North America, measured from base to summit (from
Tennessee )
Image 58 The
1982 World's Fair in Knoxville (from
Tennessee )
Image 59 Reconstruction of
Fort Loudoun , the first British settlement in Tennessee (from
Tennessee )
Image 60 The Tennessee at Chattanooga , 1872, by
Harry Fenn (from
History of Tennessee )
Image 61 Chart showing poverty in Tennessee, by age and gender (red = female) (from
Tennessee )
Image 64 Workers at the
Norris Dam construction camp site in 1933 (from
Tennessee )
Image 66 Chart showing poverty in Tennessee, by age and gender (red = female) (from
Tennessee )
Image 67 The
resort city of
Gatlinburg borders the
Great Smoky Mountains National Park , which is the most visited national park in the United States. (from
Tennessee )
Image 68 Vanderbilt University in Nashville is consistently ranked as one of the top research institutions in the nation (from
Tennessee )
Image 69 Vanderbilt University in Nashville is consistently ranked as one of the top research institutions in the nation (from
Tennessee )
Image 70 Fall Creek Falls , the tallest waterfall in the eastern United States, is located on the Cumberland Plateau (from
Tennessee )
Image 71 Calutron operators at the
Y-12 Plant in Oak Ridge during the
Manhattan Project (from
Tennessee )
Image 72 A geomap showing the counties of Tennessee colored by the relative range of that county's median income. (from
Tennessee )
Image 73 A
Nissan Leaf , one of six models manufactured at the
Nissan Smyrna Assembly Plant , the largest automotive assembly plant in North America (from
Tennessee )
Image 74 Al Gore served as a
United States Senator from Tennessee (1985–1993) and as
Vice President of the United States (1993–2001) (from
Tennessee )
Image 75 Memphis became known as the "Cotton Capital of the World" in the years following the Civil War (from
Tennessee )
Image 76 Surveyor
Daniel Smith's "Map of the Tennassee State" (1796) (from
Tennessee )
Image 77 Established in 1942,
Oak Ridge National Laboratory is the largest national laboratory in the Department of Energy system (from
Tennessee )
Image 78 Memphis International Airport , the hub of
FedEx Corporation , is the busiest cargo airport in the world (from
Tennessee )
Image 79 The
Ocoee River was home to the
1996 Summer Olympics whitewater slalom events, the only Olympic sporting event ever held in the state. (from
Tennessee )
... that Bicentennial Capitol Mall State Park , modeled on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. , was created to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the statehood of Tennessee in 1996?
... that the Pellissippi Parkway in East Tennessee takes its name from a Native American name that was applied to both the Clinch and Ohio Rivers ?
... that in 2015, GracePointe Church , Nashville, Tennessee , became one of the first evangelical megachurches to openly support full equality for LGBTQ people?
... that the 75/24 Split in Chattanooga, Tennessee , has been one of the worst bottlenecks for trucks in the United States?
... that TV stations in Nashville and in Memphis, Tennessee , both on channel 30, lost their Fox affiliations in 1990?
... that in Jackson, Tennessee , there was a 50–50 chance a reference to Dixie was about a radio station ?
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