Claiborne County is a

county A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...

located in the U.S. state of

Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...

. As of the 2020 census, the population was 32,043. Its

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 ...

is Tazewell and its largest city is

Harrogate Harrogate ( ) is a spa town and civil parish in the North Yorkshire District, district and North Yorkshire, county of North Yorkshire, England. Historic counties of England, Historically in the West Riding of Yorkshire, the town is a tourist de ...

History

Claiborne County was established on October 29, 1801, created from Grainger and Hawkins counties and extended the southern boundary to Anderson County. It was named for

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

tidewater aristocrat William C. C. Claiborne, one of the first judges of the Tennessee Superior Court and one of the first representatives in

U.S. Congress The United States Congress is the legislative branch of the federal government of the United States. It is a bicameral legislature, including a lower body, the U.S. House of Representatives, and an upper body, the U.S. Senate. They both ...

from Tennessee.Origins Of Tennessee County Names
'' Tennessee Blue Book'' 2005-2006, page 509 Like a few other East Tennessee counties, Claiborne County was largely opposed to secession on the eve of the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

. In Tennessee's Ordinance of Secession referendum on June 8, 1861, the county's residents voted against secession by a margin of 1,243 to 250. The Four Seasons Hotel was built on the location of present-day

Lincoln Memorial University Lincoln Memorial University (LMU) is a private university in Harrogate, Tennessee and Knoxville, Tennessee. Its Harrogate main campus borders on Cumberland Gap National Historical Park. , it had 1,605 undergraduate and 4,200 graduate and profe ...

in 1892 by an English land company, the American Association Limited, which was led locally by flamboyant businessman Alexander Arthur. At the time, it was reported by its promoters to be the largest hotel in the United States. The main building was four stories high with a lobby 75 feet square and a dining room 50 feet by 160 feet. It was reported to contain 700 rooms. Also included in the complex were a hospital, an inn, a sanitarium, and other smaller buildings. The hotel was not a success and was demolished in 1895. During its operation, the Four Seasons Hotel offered buggy rides to nearby English Cave, which had been improved with wooden stairways, walkways, and bridges. The rotting remains of these wooden structures can still be seen in the cave.

Notable people

from Claiborne County include State Representative Boyd C. Fugate (1884–1967) and Tennessee's first female sheriff Della Riley. Claiborne County's musical heritage includes musicians Rodney Atkins, Cindy Morgan and Michael McMeel as well as bluegrass musicians Steve Gulley, Milton Estes, CF Bailey and Shadow Ridge, Vic Graves, Scott and Alan Powers, The Honeycutt Brothers, Buster Turner and the Turner Brothers, Bryan Turner, Patrick Beeler, Larry Carter, Randall Massengill, and Jerry Cole. Notable Old-Time musicians from Claiborne County include Fiddling Bob Rogers, as well as ballad singers Mae Ray, Alice Parsons, Chester Lewis, and Kinley Brooks, whose repertoires are included in

Cecil Sharp Cecil James Sharp (22 November 1859 – 23 June 1924) was an English collector of folk songs, folk dances and instrumental music, as well as a lecturer, teacher, composer and musician. He was a key figure in the folk-song revival in England dur ...

's ''English Folk Songs from the Southern Appalachians''. Other ballad collectors in Claiborne County include Artus Moser, C P Cambiaire, and Tillman Cadle. Local African American musicians include gospel singers Ralph Ford and Rick Gregory.

's literary heritage includes authors Silas House, James Still, and Jesse Stuart.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (1.6%) is water. Major Waterways include the Powell River and Clinch River, which forms part of Norris Lake. Major high points are Bryson Mountain, Powell Mountain, Lone Mountain, Raven Hill, and Wallen Ridge.

Adjacent counties

* Bell County, Kentucky (north) * Lee County, Virginia (northeast) * Hancock County (east) * Grainger County (south) * Union County (southwest) * Campbell County (west) * Whitley County, Kentucky (northwest)

National protected area

Cumberland Gap National Historical Park The Cumberland Gap National Historical Park is a United States National Historical Park located at the border between Kentucky, Tennessee, and Virginia, centered on the Cumberland Gap, a natural break in the Appalachian Mountains. The park lies ...

(part)

State protected areas

* Cumberland Trail (part) *Powell River Preserve State Natural Area

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 32,043 people, 13,281 households, and 8,683 families residing in the county.

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 29,862 people, 11,799 households, and 8,684 families residing in the county. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...

was . There were 13,262 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 97.79%

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 ...

, 0.75%

Black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...

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 ...

, 0.24% Native American, 0.28% Asian, 0.01%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 0.19% from other races, and 0.74% from two or more races. 0.64% of the population were

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. There were 11,799 households, out of which 32.00% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.80% 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, 11.00% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.40% were non-families. 23.40% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.48 and the average family size was 2.91. In the county, the population was spread out, with 23.60% under the age of 18, 8.90% from 18 to 24, 28.70% from 25 to 44, 25.40% from 45 to 64, and 13.40% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 93.30 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.40 males. The median income for a household in the county was $25,782, and the median income for a family was $31,234. Males had a median income of $26,280 versus $19,951 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 county was $13,032. About 18.40% of families and 22.60% 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 27.70% of those under age 18 and 19.90% of those age 65 or over. Education *

* Lincoln Memorial University - DeBusk College of Osteopathic Medicine * Walters State Community College * http://www.claibornecountyschools.com/

Tourism

Recent Awards and Recognition * Received Chuck Davis award in 2013 for “Best Practices” in Tourism development. * The Claiborne County Fair Association was awarded the 2014 “Most Improved Fair in Tennessee” by the TN State Fair Association. * Cumberland Gap Genealogy Jamboree and Pioneer Days was named one of the top 20 events in the Southeast for June in: 2015 and 2017 by the Southeast Tourism Society. * The White Lightning Trail Festival was named one of the top 20 events in the Southeast for June in: 2013, 2014, and 2015 by the Southeast Tourism Society. * The Claiborne County Fair Association was awarded the 2016 “Merit Award” by the Tennessee Department of Agriculture. * Cumberland Gap National Historic Park received the 2017 “Keeper of the Light Award” as part of the National Park Service Centennial celebration. * The Powell River Blueway Trail received the 2018 “Excellence Award” from the East Tennessee Development District. * The Powell River Blueway Trail received the 2018 “Excellence in Communication and Outreach Award” from the Tennessee River Basin Network.

Communities

Cities

* New Tazewell

Towns

Cumberland Gap The Cumberland Gap is a Mountain pass, pass in the Eastern United States, eastern United States through the long ridge of the Cumberland Mountains, within the Appalachian Mountains and near the tripoint of Kentucky, Virginia, and Tennessee. At&n ...

* Tazewell (county seat)

Unincorporated communities

Arthur Arthur is a masculine given name of uncertain etymology. Its popularity derives from it being the name of the legendary hero King Arthur. A common spelling variant used in many Slavic, Romance, and Germanic languages is Artur. In Spanish and Ital ...

* Clairfield *

Clouds In meteorology, a cloud is an aerosol consisting of a visible mass of miniature liquid droplets, frozen crystals, or other particles, suspended in the atmosphere of a planetary body or similar space. Water or various other chemicals may c ...

* Eagan * Goin * Hopewell * Little Sycamore * Lone Mountain * Pruden * Reliance * Shawanee * Speedwell

Infrastructure

Transportation

U.S. Routes 25E, and State Route 63 are the major arterial roadways in the county. US 25E, established as the East Tennessee Crossing Byway and Appalachian Development Corridor S, provides four-lane expressway north-south access to Grainger County and the Kentucky-Tennessee state-line. SR 63, provides two-lane access from the city of Harrogate to Campbell County.

Politics

Claiborne County is a Republican stronghold. The last Democrat to carry this county was Bill Clinton in 1992.

References

External links

Claiborne County Chamber of Commerce
*https://claibornecountytn.gov/
Claiborne County SchoolsTNGenWeb Project: Claiborne County
– genealogical resources {{coord, 36.48, -83.66, display=title, type:adm2nd_region:US-TN_source:UScensus1990 1801 establishments in Tennessee Populated places established in 1801 Second Amendment sanctuaries in Tennessee Tourist attractions in Claiborne County, Tennessee East Tennessee