Bedford County is a county located in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 census, the population was 50,237. Its county seat is Shelbyville. Bedford County comprises the Shelbyville, TN Micropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included in the

Nashville Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and the ...

- Davidson-

Murfreesboro Murfreesboro is a city in and county seat of Rutherford County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 152,769 according to the 2020 census, up from 108,755 residents certified in 2010. Murfreesboro is located in the Nashville metrop ...

, TN Combined Statistical Area.

History

The county was created in 1807 when the citizens of Rutherford County living south of the Duck River and the Stones River successfully petitioned the governor to split Rutherford County in two. The new county was named after American Revolutionary War officer and large landowner in the area, Thomas Bedford. Once the state's largest and most populous county, Bedford County's size (in terms of area) has been steadily reduced since 1809 to form Coffee County, Moore County, Lincoln County, and Marshall County. The county was pro-Confederate during the Civil War, but Shelbyville was mostly loyal to the Union. Confederate general

Nathan Bedford Forrest Nathan Bedford Forrest (July 13, 1821October 29, 1877) was a prominent Confederate Army general during the American Civil War and the first Grand Wizard of the Ku Klux Klan from 1867 to 1869. Before the war, Forrest amassed substantial wealt ...

was born in 1821 in

Chapel Hill Chapel Hill or Chapelhill may refer to: Places Antarctica *Chapel Hill (Antarctica) Australia * Chapel Hill, Queensland, a suburb of Brisbane * Chapel Hill, South Australia, in the Mount Barker council area Canada *Chapel Hill, Ottawa, a neighbo ...

(now in Marshall County) and has no connection to naming of Bedford County. It was named after the Revolutionary War officer Thomas Bedford. Texas pioneer

William Whitaker Reed William is a masculine given name of Norman French origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conqu ...

was born in Bedford County in 1816.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.2%) is water.

Adjacent counties

* Rutherford County (north) * Coffee County (east) * Moore County (southeast) * Lincoln County (south) * Marshall County (west)

State protected areas

*Normandy Wildlife Management Area (part)

Demographics

2020 census

As of the

2020 United States census The United States census of 2020 was the twenty-fourth decennial United States census. Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2020. Other than a pilot study during the 2000 census, this was the first U.S. census to of ...

, there were 50,237 people, 17,029 households, and 12,704 families residing in the county.

2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 37,586 people, 13,905 households, and 10,345 families residing in the county. The population density was 79 people per square mile (31/km²). There were 14,990 housing units at an average density of 32 per square mile (12/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 86.84% White, 11.48% Black or African American, 0.28% Native American, 0.45% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 2.73% from other races, and 1.16% from two or more races. 7.48% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. There were 13,905 households, out of which 34.00% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.30% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between t ...

living together, 11.90% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.60% were non-families. 21.50% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.20% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.67 and the average family size was 3.06. In the county, the population was spread out, with 25.80% under the age of 18, 9.90% from 18 to 24, 29.70% from 25 to 44, 22.00% from 45 to 64, and 12.70% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 98.40 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.00 males. The median income for a household in the county was $36,729, and the median income for a family was $33,691. Males had a median income of $25,485 versus $15,673 for females. The per capita income for the county was $13,698. About 12.70% of families and 25.10% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.90% of those under age 18 and 17.80% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

City

* Shelbyville (county seat)

Towns

Bell Buckle Bell Buckle is a town in Bedford County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 500 at the 2010 census. The downtown area is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as the Bell Buckle Historic District. Geography Bell Buckle is ...

* Normandy * Wartrace

Census-designated place

* Unionville

Unincorporated communities

* Branchville * Bugscuffe * Center Grove * Cortner's Station * Fairfield * Fall Creek * Flat Creek * Haley's Station * Hawthorne * Mount Harmond *

Palmetto Palmetto (meaning "little palm") may refer to: Palms Several small palms in the Arecaceae (palm tree) family: *in the genus '' Sabal'': **Bermuda palmetto, ''Sabal bermudana'' **Birmingham palmetto, ''Sabal'' 'Birmingham' **Dwarf, or bush palm ...

* Pleasant Grove * Poplin's Crossroads * Raus * Richmond *

Roseville Roseville may refer to: Australia *Roseville, New South Wales Canada * Roseville, Ontario Malta * RoseVille (aka Villa Roseville), a house in Attard, Malta South Africa *Roseville, Pretoria, a suburb United Kingdom *Roseville, Dudley United S ...

* Rover *

Wheel A wheel is a circular component that is intended to rotate on an axle Bearing (mechanical), bearing. The wheel is one of the key components of the wheel and axle which is one of the Simple machine, six simple machines. Wheels, in conjunction wi ...

Major highways

* Interstate 24 *

U.S. Route 41A Several special routes of U.S. Route 41 exist, including three in Wisconsin. In order from south to north they are as follows. Existing Fort Myers business loop U.S. Route 41 Business is a former segment of U.S. Route 41 in Downtown Fort Myer ...

U.S. Route 231 U.S. Route 231 (US 231) is a north-south United States Numbered Highway System, U.S highway that is a parallel route of U.S. Route 31, US 31. It runs for from St. John, Indiana, St. John, Indiana, at U.S. Route 41 in Indiana, US 41 ...

* State Route 16 * State Route 64 * State Route 82 * State Route 130 * State Route 269 * State Route 270 * State Route 276 * State Route 437

Politics

Bedford County is a Republican stronghold. The last Democrat to carry this county was

Al Gore Albert Arnold Gore Jr. (born March 31, 1948) is an American politician, businessman, and environmentalist who served as the 45th vice president of the United States from 1993 to 2001 under President Bill Clinton. Gore was the Democratic Part ...

in 2000.

Education

Bedford County School District operates nine elementary schools, four middle schools, and three high schools, in Shelbyville (Shelbyville Central High School), Bell Buckle (Cascade High School), and Unionville (Community High School).

References

External links

* * *
Bedford County, TNGenWeb
- free genealogy resources for the county
Shelbyville Mainstreet
{{authority control 1807 establishments in Tennessee Populated places established in 1807 Middle Tennessee