Cumberland County, Tennessee | |
|---|---|
 Cumberland County Courthouse in Crossville | |
 Flag  Seal | |
 Location within the U.S. state ofTennessee | |
| Coordinates:35°57′N85°00′W / 35.95°N 85°W /35.95; -85 | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |  Tennessee |
| Founded | November 16, 1855[1] |
| Named after | Cumberland Mountains[2] |
| Seat | Crossville |
| Largest city | Crossville |
| Area | |
• Total | 685 sq mi (1,770 km2) |
| • Land | 681 sq mi (1,760 km2) |
| • Water | 3.8 sq mi (9.8 km2) 0.6% |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | 61,145 |
| • Density | 82/sq mi (32/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−6 (Central) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−5 (CDT) |
| Congressional district | 6th |
| Website | cumberlandcountytn |
Cumberland County is acounty located in theU.S. state ofTennessee. As of the2020 census, the population was 61,145.[3] Itscounty seat isCrossville.[4] Cumberland County comprises the Crossville, TNmicropolitan statistical area.[5]
Cumberland County was formed in 1856 from parts ofBledsoe,Roane,Morgan,Fentress,Rhea,Putnam,Overton, andWhite.[6] During the Civil War, the county was nearly evenly split between those supporting theUnion and those supporting theConfederacy.[6]
In 1787, theNorth Carolina legislature ordered widening and improvements toAvery's Trace, the trail that ran from North Carolina throughKnoxville and what is now Cumberland County toNashville. They raised funds by a lottery and completed a project that built a wagon road. This slightly improved travel, but still required a bone jarring trip. The road was often muddy and crossed stone slabs so that it was only passable in some places on foot. Reportedly wagons could not get down the steep grade at Spencer's Mountain without locking brakes on all wheels and dragging a tree behind to slow the descent. The mountain top was described as "quite denuded of trees."
Cumberland County was the site of an importantsaltpeter mine. Saltpeter is the main ingredient of gunpowder and was obtained by leaching the earth from Grassy Cove Saltpeter Cave. Richard Green Waterhouse settled in this area in 1800. In his "Diary, Journal, and Memoirs" he states that he went with William Kelly into Grassy cove and explored his (Kelly's) saltpeter cave on October 7, 1812.[7]
According to Barr (1961), Dicky Mathews began the manufacture of gunpowder at the cave in 1859. His son was killed by an explosion at Powder House Spring below the cave. This is an exceptionally large cave and evidence of mining extends far from the entrance. The leaching vats were located in a large room near the entrance, but this room is damp and the wooden vats have deteriorated to the point that they are difficult to recognize.[8]
During the 1930s, as part of theNew Deal, the federal government'sSubsistence Homesteads Division established theCumberland Homesteads outside of Crossville. The program provided land and houses for 250 impoverished families. Cumberland Mountain State Park was built as part of this project.[6]
According to theU.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 685 square miles (1,770 km2), of which 681 square miles (1,760 km2) is land and 3.8 square miles (9.8 km2) (0.6%) is water.[9] It is the fourth-largest county in Tennessee by area. The county is located atop theCumberland Plateau. The southernmost of theCumberland Mountains, known locally as theCrab Orchard Mountains, rise in the northeastern part of the county.
The county is home to a number ofkarst formations, most notably atGrassy Cove, a large, closed depression located southeast of Crossville. It is 3 miles wide, 5 miles long, and over 1,000 feet deep. All of the water draining into Grassy Cove flows underground through a large cave system and emerges 4 miles southwest at the head of theSequatchie Valley to form theSequatchie River.
The Tennessee Divide, where the watersheds of theCumberland River and theTennessee River meet, passes through the county. The source of theCaney Fork is located west of the divide, while the source of theObed River is located east of the divide.
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1860 | 3,460 | — | |
| 1870 | 3,461 | 0.0% | |
| 1880 | 4,538 | 31.1% | |
| 1890 | 5,376 | 18.5% | |
| 1900 | 8,311 | 54.6% | |
| 1910 | 9,327 | 12.2% | |
| 1920 | 10,094 | 8.2% | |
| 1930 | 11,440 | 13.3% | |
| 1940 | 15,592 | 36.3% | |
| 1950 | 18,877 | 21.1% | |
| 1960 | 19,135 | 1.4% | |
| 1970 | 20,733 | 8.4% | |
| 1980 | 28,676 | 38.3% | |
| 1990 | 34,736 | 21.1% | |
| 2000 | 46,802 | 34.7% | |
| 2010 | 56,053 | 19.8% | |
| 2020 | 61,145 | 9.1% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census[10] 1790-1960[11] 1900-1990[12] 1990-2000[13] 2010-2014[14] | |||
| Race | Number | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| White (non-Hispanic) | 56,313 | 92.1% |
| Black or African American (non-Hispanic) | 299 | 0.49% |
| Native American | 130 | 0.21% |
| Asian | 366 | 0.6% |
| Pacific Islander | 12 | 0.02% |
| Other/Mixed | 2,089 | 3.42% |
| Hispanic orLatino | 1,936 | 3.17% |
As of the2020 census, there were 61,145 people, 25,801 households, and 17,692 families residing in the county. The median age was 53.6 years, 17.3% of residents were under the age of 18, and 32.9% were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 94.7 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 92.5 males.[16]
The racial makeup of the county was 93.0%White, 0.5%Black or African American, 0.3%American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%Asian, <0.1%Native Hawaiian andPacific Islander, 1.3% from some other race, and 4.3% fromtwo or more races.Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 3.2% of the population.[17]
46.1% of residents lived in urban areas, while 53.9% lived in rural areas.[18]
There were 26,933 households in the county, of which 20.6% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 53.5% were married-couple households, 16.2% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 24.9% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 28.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.[16]
There were 30,479 housing units, of which 11.6% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 77.6% were owner-occupied and 22.4% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.8% and the rental vacancy rate was 8.8%.[16]
As of thecensus[19] of 2010, there were 56,053 people, 23,791 households, and 16,954 families residing in the county. Thepopulation density was 82.3 people per square mile (31.8 people/km2).
There were 28,151 housing units at an average density of 41.3 units per square mile (15.9/km2).[20] The racial makeup of the county was 96.08%White, 0.3%Black orAfrican American, 0.3%Native American, 0.4%Asian, 0.1%Pacific Islander, 1.1% fromother races, and 1% from two or more races. 2.3% of the population wereHispanic orLatino of any race.
According to the2014 American Community Survey the largest ancestry groups in Cumberland County wereGerman (15%),American (14.8%),Irish (12.9%), andEnglish (11.8%).
There were 23,791 households, out of which 24.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.4% weremarried couples living together, 9.7% had a female householder with no husband present, 4.2% had a male householder with no wife present, and 28.7% were non-families. 24.4% of all households were one-person, and 11.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.33 and the average family size was 2.72.
The population was distributed by age as follows, with 19.1% under the age of 18, 6.6% from 18 to 24, 20% from 25 to 44, 28.4% from 45 to 64, and 26% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 48.3 years. For every 100 females there were 95.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.9 males.
According to the2000 census, the median income for a household in the county was $30,901, and the median income for a family was $35,928. Males had a median income of $26,559 versus $20,644 for females. Theper capita income for the county was $16,808. About 11.10% of families and 14.70% of the population were below thepoverty line, including 21.80% of those under age 18 and 9.30% of those age 65 or over.
TheCumberland County School District oversees two high schools, nine elementary schools, and one charter school. Schools includeCumberland County & Stone Memorial High Schools.
Like all ofEast Tennessee, Cumberland County is powerfully Republican, and has generally been favorable to the party sincethe Civil War. Five Democratic presidential candidates have won the county since then, but none have reached 52 percent of the county's vote. For example,Franklin Roosevelt andLyndon Johnson only won the county by fewer than 100 votes even as they won over 40 states and 400 electoral votes. The Democrats have only managed 40 percent of the county's vote five other times.
| Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 1912 | 372 | 28.48% | 489 | 37.44% | 445 | 34.07% |
| 1916 | 924 | 68.19% | 428 | 31.59% | 3 | 0.22% |
| 1920 | 1,485 | 72.69% | 557 | 27.26% | 1 | 0.05% |
| 1924 | 885 | 58.61% | 538 | 35.63% | 87 | 5.76% |
| 1928 | 1,186 | 70.14% | 505 | 29.86% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1932 | 957 | 48.73% | 996 | 50.71% | 11 | 0.56% |
| 1936 | 1,409 | 49.46% | 1,426 | 50.05% | 14 | 0.49% |
| 1940 | 1,492 | 50.32% | 1,443 | 48.67% | 30 | 1.01% |
| 1944 | 1,786 | 59.93% | 1,174 | 39.40% | 20 | 0.67% |
| 1948 | 1,988 | 53.43% | 1,607 | 43.19% | 126 | 3.39% |
| 1952 | 3,282 | 61.45% | 2,059 | 38.55% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1956 | 3,200 | 62.00% | 1,925 | 37.30% | 36 | 0.70% |
| 1960 | 3,523 | 60.70% | 2,189 | 37.72% | 92 | 1.59% |
| 1964 | 2,975 | 49.19% | 3,073 | 50.81% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1968 | 3,115 | 51.81% | 1,428 | 23.75% | 1,469 | 24.43% |
| 1972 | 4,593 | 73.78% | 1,482 | 23.81% | 150 | 2.41% |
| 1976 | 4,119 | 47.00% | 4,543 | 51.84% | 101 | 1.15% |
| 1980 | 6,354 | 60.89% | 3,775 | 36.17% | 307 | 2.94% |
| 1984 | 7,083 | 65.85% | 3,605 | 33.52% | 68 | 0.63% |
| 1988 | 7,557 | 65.18% | 3,964 | 34.19% | 73 | 0.63% |
| 1992 | 7,116 | 45.06% | 6,393 | 40.48% | 2,283 | 14.46% |
| 1996 | 8,096 | 49.53% | 6,676 | 40.84% | 1,575 | 9.63% |
| 2000 | 10,994 | 57.81% | 7,644 | 40.20% | 379 | 1.99% |
| 2004 | 15,144 | 64.07% | 8,327 | 35.23% | 166 | 0.70% |
| 2008 | 17,436 | 67.81% | 7,889 | 30.68% | 387 | 1.51% |
| 2012 | 18,653 | 73.73% | 6,261 | 24.75% | 384 | 1.52% |
| 2016 | 20,413 | 77.44% | 5,202 | 19.73% | 745 | 2.83% |
| 2020 | 25,168 | 77.97% | 6,728 | 20.84% | 383 | 1.19% |
| 2024 | 27,399 | 79.09% | 6,996 | 20.20% | 247 | 0.71% |
Places adjacent to Cumberland County, Tennessee | ||||||||||||||||
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Municipalities and communities ofCumberland County, Tennessee,United States | ||
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35°57′N85°00′W / 35.95°N 85.00°W /35.95; -85.00
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