Camden is a city in and the
county seat
A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...
of
Benton County, Tennessee. The population was 3,674 at the 2020 census.
History
Native Americans were living in the Camden area as early as the
Archaic period (8000-1000 BC). A significant
archaeological site
An archaeological site is a place (or group of physical sites) in which evidence of past activity is preserved (either prehistoric or recorded history, historic or contemporary), and which has been, or may be, investigated using the discipline ...
has been excavated at nearby
Eva (the actual site is now submerged under
Kentucky Lake
Kentucky Lake is a major navigable river, navigable reservoir along the Tennessee River in Kentucky and Tennessee. It was created in 1944 by the Tennessee Valley Authority's impounding of the Tennessee River via Kentucky Dam for flood control a ...
), uncovering evidence of semi-permanent habitation dating back 7000 years.
The first European settlers arrived in the Benton County area around 1818, shortly after (and probably before) the county was purchased from the
Chickasaw
The Chickasaw ( ) are an Indigenous people of the Southeastern Woodlands, United States. Their traditional territory was in northern Mississippi, northwestern and northern Alabama, western Tennessee and southwestern Kentucky. Their language is ...
. Camden has its roots as a stopover along the stage coach route between
Nashville
Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...
and
Memphis. Initially known as "Tranquility", the community had attained the name "Camden" by the 1830s, a name influenced by the
Revolutionary War-era
Battle of Camden
The Battle of Camden (August 16, 1780), also known as the Battle of Camden Court House, was a major victory for the Kingdom of Great Britain, British in the Southern theater of the American Revolutionary War. On August 16, 1780, British forces ...
. When Benton County was created in 1835, Camden was chosen as the county seat. The City of Camden was officially incorporated in 1838.
[Jonathan Kennon Smith, ''A History of Benton County, Tennessee to 1900'' (Memphis, Tenn.: J. Edge Co., 1970), 32, 100-101.]
On October 20, 1922,
George and Ed Hartley were lynched by a large mob outside Camden County Jail after being convicted of manslaughter.
Geography
Camden is situated along Cypress Creek, near the creek's modern confluence with the
Kentucky Lake
Kentucky Lake is a major navigable river, navigable reservoir along the Tennessee River in Kentucky and Tennessee. It was created in 1944 by the Tennessee Valley Authority's impounding of the Tennessee River via Kentucky Dam for flood control a ...
impoundment of the
Tennessee River
The Tennessee River is a long river located in the Southern United States, southeastern United States in the Tennessee Valley. Flowing through the states of Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, and Kentucky, it begins at the confluence of Fren ...
(the original lower of the creek were entirely engulfed by the lake with the completion of
Kentucky Dam
Kentucky Dam is a hydroelectric dam on the Tennessee River on the county line between Livingston County, Kentucky, Livingston and Marshall County, Kentucky, Marshall counties in the U.S. state of Kentucky. The dam is the lowermost of nine dams on ...
in 1944). The area is characterized by low hills to the north and west and wetlands to the east, the latter of which are largely protected by the Camden Wildlife Management Area.
According to the
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...
, the city has a total area of , all of it land.
Climate
Demographics
2020 census
As of the
2020 United States census, there were 3,674 people, 1,516 households, and 759 families residing in the city.
2000 census
As of the
census
A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...
of 2000, there were 3,828 people, 1,631 households, and 1,014 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 1,840 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 93.08%
White
White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...
, 5.33%
African American
African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...
, 0.26%
Native American, 0.24%
Asian, 0.31% from
other races, and 0.78% from two or more races.
Hispanic
The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...
or
Latino of any race were 1.33% of the population.
There were 1,631 households, out of which 24.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.5% were
married couples
Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...
living together, 13.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.8% were non-families. 35.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 19.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.19 and the average family size was 2.81.
In the city, the population was spread out, with 20.1% under the age of 18, 6.9% from 18 to 24, 24.5% from 25 to 44, 22.5% from 45 to 64, and 26.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females, there were 81.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 77.4 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $26,348, and the median income for a family was $31,667. Males had a median income of $27,413 versus $20,142 for females. The
per capita income
Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year.
In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...
for the city was $15,271. About 11.6% of families and 16.6% of the population were below the
poverty line
The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...
, including 26.1% of those under age 18 and 12.9% of those age 65 or over.
Economy
Agriculture is important to the economy of Camden and Benton County.
Sorghum
''Sorghum bicolor'', commonly called sorghum () and also known as great millet, broomcorn, guinea corn, durra, imphee, jowar, or milo, is a species in the Poaceae, grass genus ''Sorghum (genus), Sorghum'' cultivated for its grain. The grain i ...
was once a key crop; the last sorghum processing facility closed in 2001.
Jones Plastic and Engineering operates a facility in Camden.
Camden is a
bedroom community
A commuter town is a populated area that is primarily residential rather than commercial or industrial. Routine travel from home to work and back is called commuting, which is where the term comes from. A commuter town may be called by many o ...
for employees of the
Tennessee Valley Authority
The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) is a federally owned electric utility corporation in the United States. TVA's service area covers all of Tennessee, portions of Alabama, Mississippi, and Kentucky, and small areas of Georgia, North Carolin ...
, and the
DuPont
Dupont, DuPont, Du Pont, duPont, or du Pont may refer to:
People
* Dupont (surname) Dupont, also spelled as DuPont, duPont, Du Pont, or du Pont is a French surname meaning "of the bridge", historically indicating that the holder of the surname re ...
titanium dioxide production plant in nearby
New Johnsonville.
Parks and recreation
* Birdsong Trail Ride
*
Camden Speedway
Education
Camden is served by the Benton County School System. Schools include:
* Camden Elementary
* Camden Junior High School
*
Camden Central High School
Media
Radio stations
*
WRJB-FM 95.9 "Magic 95.9 the Valley"
Newspapers
* ''The Camden Chronicle''
* ''The Marketplace''
* ''Tennessee Magnet Publications''
Infrastructure
Transportation
*
U.S. Route 70 connects Camden to Nashville to the east and Memphis to the west. It has a business route (US 70 Business) that runs through the center of town while the mainline bypasses Camden to the south.
*
Tennessee State Route 191 connects Camden to Eva and to
Nathan Bedford Forrest State Park to the northeast and
Interstate 40
Interstate 40 (I-40) is a major east–west transcontinental Interstate Highway System, Interstate Highway in the Southeastern United States, southeastern and Southwestern United States, southwestern portions of the United States. At a leng ...
to the southeast.
*
U.S. Route 641, which intersects US 70 Business in the western half of Camden and US 70 south of Camden, connects the area with
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
and Kentucky to the north and with
I-40 and
Parsons to the south.
*
Tennessee State Route 69A begins in Camden at the intersection of US 70 Business and TN 191 and runs north to Big Sandy.
Notable people
*
Nyman Furr, musician known as "The Tennessee Fiddler"
*
Tanner Hudson, NFL tight end for the
Cincinnati Bengals
The Cincinnati Bengals are a professional American football team based in Cincinnati. The Bengals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team plays its h ...
*
Frank P. Lashlee, member of
Tennessee General Assembly
The Tennessee General Assembly (TNGA) is the state legislature (United States), state legislature of the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is a part-time bicameral legislature consisting of a Tennessee Senate, Senate and a Tennessee House of Representa ...
*
Col. Littleton, fashion designer
*
Charles F. Pendleton, awarded a
Medal of Honor
The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest Awards and decorations of the United States Armed Forces, military decoration and is awarded to recognize American United States Army, soldiers, United States Navy, sailors, Un ...
for his actions in the Korean War
References
*
External links
City of Camden official websiteBenton County/Camden Chamber of Commerce
{{authority control
Cities in Tennessee
Cities in Benton County, Tennessee
County seats in Tennessee
Tennessee populated places on the Tennessee River