Tennessee is a landlocked state in the USA and is bordered by the following states.
- Kentucky to the North
- Virginia to the North-East
- Arkansas to the West
- Missouri to the North-West
- Mississippi, Alabama and Georgia to the South
- North Carolina to the East
It ties with Missouri in having the most neighbouring states.
The main cities are Nashville in the centre, Memphis in the South-West corner, Chattanooga in the South-East and Knoxville in the East.
Geographical Features
The state is geographically split into 3 main areas of roughly equal size.
- West Tennessee: This part of the state is mostly flat sandwiched between the Mississippi and Tennessee rivers. It's more prone to floods and earthquakes than the rest of the state.
- Middle Tennessee: This is mostly within geographical features called the Highland Rim and Central Basin where a dome shaped landscape is formed with Nashville and Murfreesboro sitting atop it.
- East Tennessee: This is mostly mountainous and is all part of the Appalachian Mountain Range, which runs from Alabama to the South, all the way up to Canada.
The 3 stars on the state flag symbolise these three areas, with the blue showing how they're unified and will never be unbroken.
Landmarks
Tennessee's top tourist attractions include:
- Graceland's. Located in Memphis this was the home of Elvis Presley and now serves as a museum to his life and career. Prior to covid, Gracelands was getting around half a million visitors every year.
- Nashville. This is the state capitol and also home to Country Music, which is very popular in the United States. A lot of the bars will have live country singers playing, and the the city is also home to the Country Music Hall of Fame which celebrates the musicians, both old and new. Taylor Swift sponsored the creation of a new education centre within the museum.
Grand Ole Opry. This is a music venue located just outside Nashville and is deemed "Country Music's Biggest Stage". Getting to play at this venue typically springboards musicians' careers into the big time. As well as the venue, the Grand Ole Opry also hosted a popular radio show, which would promote the music around the country.
Dollywood is an amusement park located in the Smoky Mountains. It's famous because it is owned by music star Dolly Parton. It's also one of the best amusement parks in the country.
The Parthenon: Located in the Vanderbilt University area of Nashville, this is an actual sized reconstruction of the famous one in Athens built in 1897.
Sizes
Tennessee is the 15th largest state by population (roughly 7 million), and the 34th largest state by size (roughly 42,000 sq. miles).
History
- 12,000 years ago: Paleo Indians
- 15th Century: Arrival of the Spanish
- 16th Century: Arrival of British from the North and French from the West.
- 17th Century: Cherokee, likely fleeing the settlers in Virginia, move into the state. They push Creek, Yuchi and Shawnee tribes out. The Chickasaw tribe holds onto the west. Some fights between the French and the Chickasaw, and the British and the Cherokee.
- 1760s: First permanent settlers start to arrive from Europe, mostly British including Scottish and Irish. Growth of cotton farming in the west and centre.
- 1779: Fort Nashborough is built, this'll become what we call Nashville today.
- 1796: Tennessee joins the Union, becoming the 16th state to do so.
- 1838&9: Trail of Tears, US Military forcibly remove Cherokees and their slaves and make them walk to Oklahoma. 4,000 die along the way.
- 1861-1865: American Civil War. Tennessee provide more confederate troops than any other state.
- 1864: All slaves are declared free.
- 1865: Tennessee becomes the only southern state to abolish slavery
- 1873: Cholera epidemic hits the Nashville area.
- 1878: Yellow fever epidemic hits the Memphis area.
- 1907-1917: Prohibition rules lead to the rise of moonshine in the Apalaichan mountains.
- 1929: The Great Depression hits the state hard. Rise of hydroelectric dams along the rivers making the state a valuable source of electricity.
- 1939-45: World War 2. The Appalachians are mined for Uranium as part of the Manhattan Project (the first atomic bomb)
- 1955: Oak Ridge High School becomes the first integrated school to open
- 1968: Martin Luther King, a famous civil rights activist, was assassinated in Memphis
- 1982: World's Fair takes place in Knoxville. It is themed around energy.
- 2006: State writes the banning of same-sex marriages into law.
- 2015: State writes the permission of same-sex marriages into law following a court decision.
Food
Bourbon Whisky: The history of this industry goes back to the earlier Scottish and Irish settlers bringing the knowledge over from Europe and a few labels (Jack Daniels and George Dickel) surviving the prohibition era.
Pulled Pork Sandwich: Barbecue food is popular in a lot of the southern states. Memphis is home to the BBQ Pulled Pork Sandwich. The pork is smoked from hickory wood and the sauce is a tangy tomato base. It's usually served with coleslaw.
Nashville Hot Chicken: Marinated chicken friend in a crispy cayenne pepper coating, served on a bun with pickles. This can be pretty hot if you're not used to spicy food. Hattie B's in Nashville is the most famous hot chicken restaurant in the city.
Moon Pies: These were invented in Chattanooga in 1917 and are a mixture of marshmallow, graham cracker and a chocolate coating.
Stack Cake: This is an Appalachian dish that would be made at weddings. Each guest would be asked to bring a layer, and the larger the cake the more popular the people getting married were seen to be. It's made from cookie layers sandwiched with a soft apple filling.
Wildlife
Due to the varying terrains across the state, many different species can be found. The official state animal is the Raccoon, but it's also possible to spot bears, deer, wild turkey, woodchucks. The Great Smoky National Park is the best place to go if you want to see them.
Sports Teams
American Football: Tennessee Titans, based in Nashville.
Basketball: Memphis Grizzlies.
Baseball: Chattanooga Lookouts, Memphis Redbirds, Nashville Sounds, Tennessee Smokies (based in Kodak)
Ice Hockey: Nashville Predators
Bridgestone Arena is the Ice Hockey Stadium in the centre of Nashville.
Famous People
- Dolly Parton: Singer, songwriter, record producer, actress, author and business woman. Founder of the Imagination Library, a charity scheme that ensures young children get to read books by giving them away for free.
- Justin Timberlake: Actor, singer, songwriter, and record producer. A pop icon!
- Quentin Tarantino: Actor, director. Started his career in a video store but has now made some of the best films in Hollywood.
- Miley Cyrus: Actress, singer. Daughter of country music star Billy Ray Cyrus, Miley has carved her own career in the world of pop.
Although a big part of her career took place in Tennessee, as happens with a lot of country stars, Taylor Swift was actually born in Pennsylvania.
