Tennessee Theme
State of Tennessee
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| Nickname | The Volunteer State |
|---|---|
| Motto | Agriculture and Commerce |
| Demonym | Tennessean |
| Capital | Nashville |
| Largest city | Memphis |
| Largest metro area | Nashville Metropolitan Area |
| Area | Ranked: 36th in the US
Total: 42,143 sq miWidth: 440 miles Length: 120 miles Water: 2.2% |
| Population | Ranked: 17th in the US
Total: 6,214,888 (2008)Density: 138.0/sq mi |
| Elevation | Highest Point: Clingmans Dome 6,643 ft Mean: 900 ft Lowest Point: Mississippi River 178 ft |
| Before statehood | Southwest Territory |
| Admission to Union | June 1, 1796 (16th) |
State Symbols
| Amphibian | Salamander |
|---|---|
| Bird | Mockingbird |
| Fish | Channel Catfish Bass |
| Flower | Iris |
| Insect | Honeybee |
| Reptile | Eastern Box Turtle |
| Tree | Tulip Poplar |
| Gemstone | Tennessee River Pearl |
| Rock | Limestone |
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,214,888, making it the nation’s 17th-largest state by population, and covers 42,169 square miles (109,220 km2), making it the 36th-largest by total land area. Tennessee is bordered by Kentucky and Virginia to the north, North Carolina to the east, Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi to the south, and Arkansas and Missouri to the west. The Appalachian Mountains dominate the eastern part of the state, and the Mississippi River forms the state’s western border. Tennessee’s capital and second largest city is Nashville, which has a population of 626,144. Memphis is the state’s largest city, with a population of 670,902. Nashville has the state’s largest metropolitan area, at 1,521,437 people.
The State of Tennessee is rooted in the Watauga Association, a 1772 frontier pact generally regarded as the first constitutional government west of the Appalachians. What is now Tennessee was initially part of North Carolina, and later part of the Southwest Territory. Tennessee was admitted to the Union as the 16th state on June 1, 1796. In the early 19th-century, Tennessee was home to some of American history’s most colorful political figures, among them Davy Crockett, Andrew Jackson, and Sam Houston. Tennessee was the last state to leave the Union and join the Confederacy at the outbreak of the U.S. Civil War in 1861, and the first state to be readmitted to the Union at the end of the war. Tennessee furnished more soldiers for the Confederate Army than any other state, and more soldiers for the Union Army than any other Southern state. Tennessee has seen some of the nation’s worst racial strife, from the formation of the Ku Klux Klan in Pulaski in 1866 to the assassination of Martin Luther King in Memphis in 1968. In the 20th century, Tennessee transitioned from an agrarian economy to a more diversified economy, aided at times by federal entities such as the Tennessee Valley Authority. In the early 1940s, Oak Ridge, Tennessee was established to house the Manhattan Project’s uranium enrichment facilities, helping to build the world’s first atomic bomb.
Tennessee has played a critical role in the development of rock and roll and early blues music. Beale Street in Memphis is considered by many to be the birthplace of the blues, with musicians such as W.C. Handy performing in its clubs as early as 1909. Memphis was also home to Sun Records, where musicians such as Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Carl Perkins, Jerry Lee Lewis, Roy Orbison, and Charlie Rich began their recording careers, and where rock and roll took shape in the 1950s. The 1927 Victor recording sessions in Bristol generally mark the beginning of the country music genre, and the rise of the Grand Ole Opry in the 1930s helped make Nashville the center of the country music recording industry.
Tennessee’s major industries include agriculture, manufacturing, and tourism. Poultry, soybeans, and cattle are the state’s primary agricultural products, and major manufacturing exports include chemicals, transportation equipment, and electrical equipment. The Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the nation’s most visited national park, is headquartered in the eastern part of the state, and a section of the Appalachian Trail roughly follows the Tennessee-North Carolina border. Other major tourist attractions include Elvis Presley’s Graceland in Memphis and the Tennessee Aquarium in Chattanooga.
Silly Joke
In a tiny town in Tennessee, an old-timer was sitting with a length of rope in his hand.
“What’s that?” someone asked.
“It’s a weather gauge,” the old-timer answered.
“How can you tell the weather with a piece of rope?”
“Easy. If it swings back and forth, it’s windy. If it gets wet, it’s raining! If it turns white, it’s snowing. And if it goes missing, there’s a tornado!”
Theme Elements
The photo that makes up the titlebar was taken from the Great Smokey Mountains by scouttrekkie.
Depending on the width of your browser, you might see anywhere from 1 to 3 photos across the bottom of the page. The first photo is Rainbow Falls, also taken by scouttrekkie. The last photo in the lineup (if you see 2 or 3 of them) is of the Tennessee State Capitol in Nashville and was taken by Road Junkies. And middle photo (if you see 3 of them) was taken by Ele and features Twin Falls at Rock Island State Park..
Members
Now, time for a quick shout out to everyone on Atlas Quest from this state!
Letterboxing Cities
And, here are all of the cities in Tennessee we’ve hit with letterboxes!