The area around Clarksville was first surveyed byThomas Hutchins in 1768. He identified Red Paint Hill, a rock bluff at the confluence of theCumberland andRed Rivers, as a navigational landmark.[17]
In 1772, surveyors placed the land officially within the domain of the Cherokee tribe, who required negotiation of a lease with the settlers. As the lease was being celebrated, aCherokee warrior was murdered by a white man. Through diplomacy, Robertson made peace with the Cherokee, who had threatened to expel the settlers by force.[18]
In March 1775, land speculator and North Carolina judgeRichard Henderson met with more than 1,200 Cherokees at Sycamore Shoals, including Cherokee leaders such asAttakullakulla,Oconostota, andDragging Canoe. In theTreaty of Sycamore Shoals (also known as the Treaty of Watauga), Henderson purchased all the land lying between the Cumberland River, theCumberland Mountains, and theKentucky River, and situated south of theOhio River in what is known as theTransylvania Purchase from the Cherokee Indians. The land thus delineated, 20 million acres (81,000 km2), encompassed an area half as large as the present state of Kentucky. Henderson's purchase was in violation of North Carolina and Virginia law, as well as theRoyal Proclamation of 1763, which prohibited private purchase of American Indian land. Henderson may have mistakenly believed that a newer British legal opinion had made such land purchases legal.[19]
All of present-day Tennessee was once recognized asWashington County, North Carolina. Created in 1777 from the western areas of Burke and Wilkes Counties, Washington County had as a precursor a Washington District of 1775–76, which was the first political entity named for the Commander-in-Chief of American forces in the Revolution.[18][20]
In 1779, Hadley W. and Hannah W. brought a group of settlers from upperEast Tennessee viaDaniel Boone'sWilderness Road. Hadley and Hannah later built aniron plantation inCumberland Furnace.[citation needed] A year later,John Donelson led a group of flat boats up the Cumberland River bound for the French trading settlement, French Lick (or Big Lick), that later becameNashville. When the boats reached Red Paint Hill,Moses Renfroe, Joseph Renfroe, and Solomon Turpin, along with their families, branched off onto the Red River. They traveled to the mouth of Parson's Creek, nearPort Royal, and went ashore to settle down. Clarksville was designated as a town to be settled in part by soldiers from the disbanded Continental Army that served under GeneralGeorge Washington during theAmerican Revolutionary War.[21]
At the end of the war, the federal government lacked sufficient funds to repay the soldiers, so the Legislature of North Carolina, in 1790, designated the lands to the west of the state line as federal lands that could be used in the land grant program. Since the area of Clarksville had been surveyed and sectioned into plots, it was identified as a territory deemed ready for settlement. The land was available to be settled by the families of eligible soldiers as repayment of service to their country. On January 16, 1784,John Armstrong filed notice with theLegislature ofNorth Carolina to create the town of Clarksville, named after GeneralGeorge Rogers Clark.
Even before it was officially designated a town, lots had been sold. In October 1785, Col. Robert Weakley laid off the town of Clarksville forMartin Armstrong and Col. Montgomery, and Weakley had the choice of lots for his services. He selected Lot #20 at the northeast corner of Spring and Main Streets. The town consisted of 20 'squares' of 140 lots and 44 out lots. The original Court House was on Lot #93, on the north side of Franklin Street between Front and Second Street. The Public Spring was on Lot #74, on the northeast corner of Spring and Commerce Streets. Weakley built the first cabin there in January 1786, and about February or March, Col. Montgomery came there and had a cabin built, which was the second house in Clarksville.
After an official survey by James Sanders, Clarksville was founded by theNorth Carolina Legislature on December 29, 1785. It was the second town to be founded in the area. Armstrong's layout for the town consisted of 12 four-acre (16,000 m2) squares built on the hill overlooking the Cumberland as to protect against floods.[citation needed] The primary streets (from north to south) that went east–west were named Jefferson, Washington (now College Street), Franklin, Main, and Commerce Streets. North–south streets (from the river eastward) were named Water (now Riverside Drive), Spring, First, Second, and Third Streets.
Thetobacco trade in the area was growing larger every year and in 1789, Montgomery andMartin Armstrong persuaded lawmakers to designate Clarksville as an inspection point for tobacco.
WhenTennessee was founded as a state on June 1, 1796, the area around Clarksville and to the east was named Tennessee County. (This county was established in 1788, by North Carolina.) Later, Tennessee County was broken up into modern dayMontgomery andRobertson counties, named to honor the men who first opened up the region for settlement.
Clarksville grew at a rapid pace. By 1806, the town realized the need for an educational institution, and it established the Rural Academy that year. It was later replaced by the Mount Pleasant Academy. By 1819, the newly established town had 22 stores, including a bakery and silversmith. In 1820,steamboats begin to navigate the Cumberland, bringing hardware, coffee, sugar, fabric, and glass. The city exported flour, tobacco, cotton, and corn to ports such asNew Orleans andPittsburgh along the Ohio andMississippi rivers.
By the start of theCivil War, the combined population of the city and the county was 20,000. Planters in the area depended onenslaved African Americans as workers in the labor-intensivetobacco industry, one of the major commodity crops.
In 1861, both Clarksville and Montgomery counties voted unanimously for the state to secede and join theConfederate States of America. The birthplace of Confederate PresidentJefferson Davis was about 20 miles across the border in Fairview,Christian County, Kentucky. Both sides considered Clarksville to be of strategic importance.
Fort Defiance, Tennessee, a Civil War outpost that overlooks theCumberland River andRed River, and was occupied by both Confederate and Union soldiers. In 2012 the City of Clarksville, Tennessee completed construction of an interpretive/ museum center here to chronicle the local chapter in the Civil War.[22][23][24]
TheUnion sent troops and gunboats down the Cumberland River, and in 1862 capturedFort Donelson, andFort Henry. On February 17, 1862, theUSS Cairo, along with another Unionironclad, came to Clarksville and its troops captured the city. There were no Confederate soldiers to contend with because they had left prior to the arrival of the ships. White flags flew over Ft. Defiance and over Ft. Clark. Those town citizens who could get away, left as well. Before leaving,Confederate soldiers tried to burn the railroad bridge that crossed the Cumberland River, so that the Union could not use it. But the fire did not take hold and was put out before it could destroy the bridge. This railroad bridge made Clarksville very important to the Union. TheUSS Cairo tied up in Clarksville for a couple of days before moving to participate in the capture ofNashville.
Between 1862 and 1865, the city shifted hands, but the Union retained control. It also controlled the city's newspaper,The Leaf Chronicle, for three years. Many slaves who had been freed or escaped gathered in Clarksville and joined theUnion Army lines. The army set upcontraband camps in mid-Tennessee cities, to provide shelter for the freedmen families. Other freed slaves lived along the side of the river in shanties. In 1865, theOgburn Chapel Missionary Baptist Church was founded. The Army enlisted freedmen in all-blackregiments, in some cases putting them to work in building defenses. The16th United States Colored Infantry regiment was mustered in at Clarksville in 1863.[citation needed]
Clarksville Museum and Cultural Center, built 1898
After the war, the city beganReconstruction, and in 1872, the existing railroad was purchased by theLouisville & Nashville Railroad. The city was flourishing until the Great Fire of 1878, which destroyed 15 acres (60,000 m2) of downtown Clarksville's business district, including the courthouse and many other historic buildings. It was believed to have started in a Franklin Street store.[25] After the fire, the city rebuilt.[26] The firstautomobile rolled into town, drawing much excitement.[27]
Mural painted on the only remaining wall of a building destroyed by the '99 tornado.
In 1913, the Lillian Theater was opened on Franklin Street and owned byJoseph Goldberg. In 1914, it was severely damaged in a fire, but reopened later in 1915. It was later renamed the Roxy after renovations in 1941.[28]
AsWorld War I raged inEurope, many locals volunteered to go, reaffirming Tennessee as the Volunteer State, a nickname earned during theWar of 1812, theMexican–American War and other earlier conflicts. Also during this time, women's suffrage was becoming a major issue. Clarksville women saw a need for banking independent of their husbands and fathers who were fighting. In response, the First Women's Bank of Tennessee was established in 1919 by Mrs. Frank J. Runyon.
The 1920s brought additional growth to the city. A bus line between Clarksville andHopkinsville was established in 1922. In 1927 the Austin Peay Normal School was founded, later to develop asAustin Peay State University. In 1928 two more theaters were added, the Majestic (with 600 seats) and the Capitol (with 900 seats). John Outlaw, a local aviator, established Outlaw Field in 1929.
With the entry of the United States into World War II, defense investments were made in the area. In 1942 construction started on Camp Campbell (now known asFort Campbell), the new army base ten miles (16 km) northwest of the city. It was capable of holding 23,000 troops, and as staffing built up, the base gave a huge boost to the population and economy of Clarksville.
Since 1980, the population of Clarksville has more than doubled. This increase was due in part to annexation, as the city acquired communities such asNew Providence andSaint Bethlehem. The construction ofInterstate 24 north of Saint Bethlehem added to its development potential and in the early 21st century, much of the growth alongU.S. Highway 79 is commercial retail. Clarksville is currently one of the fastest-growing large cities in Tennessee. At its present rate of growth, the city was expected to displace Chattanooga by 2020 as the fourth-largest city in Tennessee.
In February 2018, the east side of Clarksville was struck by an EF-2 tornado.[31]
In December 2023, North Clarksville was struck by an EF-3 tornado that resulted in four fatalities and left multiple homes and businesses damaged or destroyed and over 20,000 people without power.[32]
In early May 2024, the city of Clarksville was affected by asevere weather and tornado outbreak, which resulted in some instances of flash-flooding and golf-ball sized hail. An EF-1 tornado touched down just east of Clarksville and did minor damage to nearbySpringfield, TN.[33]
According to theUnited States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 95.5 square miles (247 km2), of which 94.9 square miles (246 km2) is land and 0.7 square miles (1.8 km2) (0.71%) is covered by water.
Clarksville is located on the northwest edge of theHighland Rim, which surrounds theNashville Basin, and is 45 miles (72 km) northwest ofNashville.
The climate ishumid subtropical (Köppen:Cfa) with hot summers and cold winters but interspersed with milder times due to its location between the warmer climates of theGulf of Mexico and the colder ones of theMidwest. Freezing temperatures are not uncommon but usually the averages are above zero in January (around 2 °C) and in July can often pass through 25 °C. Snow in winter is common, but large accumulated amounts are more sporadic; usually the soil is covered by a thin layer during some time of winter. Precipitation is abundant year-round without any major difference, but May tends to have the highest cumulative amount of 142 mm in the form of rain. The wet season runs from February through July, while the dry season runs from August through January with a September nadir of 85 mm and secondary December peak of 125 mm.[34][35]
Climate data for Clarksville WWTP, Tennessee (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1890–present)
Clarksville city, Tennessee – Racial and ethnic composition Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos may be of any race.
In 1907, Clarksville was among several cities in Tennessee that gained legislative approval to adopt a board of commission form of government, with commissioners elected byat-large voting.[46] Its population was 9,000. Other cities adopting a board of commission wereChattanooga andKnoxville in 1911, Nashville in 1913, andJackson, Tennessee in 1915. The result of this change favored the election of candidates favored by the majority in each city. It closed out minorities from being able to elect candidates of their choice to represent them in local government.[46]
Clarksville changed its government system, and in the 21st century, has a 12-member city council elected fromsingle-member districts, which has increased the range of representation. In 2015, four of the members were African American, and eight were white.[47] The mayor is elected at large. MayorJoe Pitts was firstelected in 2018, when he defeated former MayorKim McMillan who was the first woman mayor of any Tennessee city with more than 100,000 population.[48]
The city consolidated its school system with that of the county, forming theClarksville-Montgomery County School System. It operates a total of 39public schools to serve about 37,666 students, including eight high schools, seven middle schools, 24 elementary schools, and one magnet school for K–5, in addition to Middle College on the campus ofAustin Peay State University.
Public high schools (grades 9–12) in Clarksville-Montgomery County:
Most of the city is in the Clarksville-Montgomery system. Portions in Fort Campbell are instead use theDepartment of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA) as their school district.[61]
Clarksville is served commercially byNashville International Airport but also has a small airport,Outlaw Field, located 10 miles (16 km) north of downtown. Outlaw Field accommodates an average of slightly over 32,000 private and corporate flight operations per year (average for 12-month period ending 2014), and is also home to a pilot training school and a few small aircraft companies. It has two asphalt runways, one 6,000 by 100 ft (1,829 by 30 m) and the other 4,004 by 100 ft (1,220 by 30 m). Outlaw Field has received a $35,000 grant. A new terminal building was built in 2011–2012.
Cobb Field was a small private airfield. It was 3 miles (4.8 km) west of the Dover Crossings area, just across the street fromLiberty Elementary. It had one grass/sod runway that measured 1,752 ft (534 m). This airfield was not open to the public and is no longer suitable for landing aircraft due to runway encroachment by nearby trees and brush, as well as fencing across the former runway. Cobb Field is no longer displayed on VFR sectional charts available from theFAA.
TheMonkees 1966 #1 song "Last Train to Clarksville" is sometimes said to reference the city's train depot and a soldier from Fort Campbell during the Vietnam War era, but Clarksville was actually picked just for itseuphonious sound.[64]
The music video for the 1986 song "Twenty Years Ago" by country singerKenny Rogers was filmed on Franklin Street in Clarksville, Tennessee.
Home of Gary the Guardrail. Gary resides just off of exit 1, onTylertown Rd, in front of O'Connor's. He has been taken out by many semi trucks over the years and balloons in honor of his demise are usually left on location.
The video for Sheryl Crow's 1994 Grammy winning "All I wanna Do" was filmed in front of the Roxy Theater, on the corner of Franklin Street and North 1st Street.
The home of Rhonda The Roundabout, the famous traffic circle that is home to the Rhonda 500. A very popular race that tests the endurance of many notable drivers and is soon to be a state sanctioned event.
Nicole Kidman's 2025 thriller,Holland, was partially filmed in downtown Clarksville.
Clarksville's nicknames have includedThe Queen City,Queen of the Cumberland, andGateway to the New South.[2] In April 2008, the city adopted "Tennessee's Top Spot!" as its new brand nickname.[65]
^"Terrific Fire".The Clarksville Weekly Chronicle. Clarksville, Tennessee:Ancestry.com#Newspapers.com. April 15, 1878. p. 5.a fire broke out in a frame building at the rear of Kincannon's tin and Queensware store on Franklin Street
^"Clarksville, Her Schools, Her Churches, Her Residences. Her Live Business Men and Manufacturing Enterprises".Leaf-Chronicle Weekly. Clarksville, Tennessee:Ancestry.com#Newspapers.com. December 22, 1882. p. 1.
^"Mr Hume's "Auto" breaks down".Leaf-Chronicle Weekly. Clarksville, Tennessee:Ancestry.com#Newspapers.com. May 21, 1902. p. 1.
^"Last Train to Clarksville by The Monkees".SongFacts. RetrievedDecember 14, 2014.There's a little town in Northern Arizona I used to go through in the summer on the way to Oak Creek Canyon called Clarksdale. We were throwing out names, and when we got to Clarksdale, we thought Clarksville sounded even better.We didn't know it at the time, [but] there is an Air Force base near the town of Clarksville, Tennessee – whichwould have fit the bill fine for the story line. - Bobby Hart (emphasis added).
Federal News Service (May 21, 2009),Opinion No. 09-94: Tennessee Attorney General Issues Opinion on Charter of the City of Clarksville, Washington, D.C.{{citation}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
