Cocke County, Tennessee
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Cocke 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 ...
on the eastern border of the
U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...
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 35,999. 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 Newport. Cocke County comprises the Newport, TN Micropolitan Statistical Area, which is part of the
Knoxville Knoxville is a city in Knox County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. It is located on the Tennessee River and had a population of 190,740 at the 2020 United States census. It is the largest city in the East Tennessee Grand Division ...
- Morristown- Sevierville, Tennessee Combined Statistical Area.


History

Before the arrival of European settlers, the area that is now Cocke County probably was inhabited by the
Cherokee The Cherokee (; , or ) people are one of the Indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands of the United States. Prior to the 18th century, they were concentrated in their homelands, in towns along river valleys of what is now southwestern ...
. They were the most recent of a series of indigenous cultures who had occupied this country for thousands of years. The first recorded European settlement in the county was in 1783 when land near the fork of the French Broad and the Pigeon Rivers was cleared and cultivated. The earliest European settlers were primarily Scots-Irish, Dutch, and Germans who came to the area over the
mountains A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is usually higher ...
from the Carolinas or through
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 ...
from
Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...
and other northern states. The county was established by an Act of the
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 ...
on October 9, 1797, from a part of
Greene County, Tennessee Greene County is a county located on the eastern border of the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 census, the population was 70,152. Its county seat is Greeneville. Greene County comprises the Greeneville, TN Micropolitan Statistical Ar ...
. It was named after William Cocke, one of the state's first Senators. Located within the Appalachian and Great Smoky Mountains, it had difficult conditions for early settlers. Like many East Tennessee counties, settled by yeomen farmers, Cocke County was largely pro-Union on the eve of the Civil War. In Tennessee's Ordinance of Secession referendum on June 8, 1861, the county's residents voted 1,185 to 518 against secession.


Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which are land and (1.9%) are covered by water. The southern part of the county is located within the
Great Smoky Mountains The Great Smoky Mountains (, ''Equa Dutsusdu Dodalv'') are a mountain range rising along the Tennessee–North Carolina border in the southeastern United States. They are a subrange of the Appalachian Mountains and form part of the Blue Ridg ...
, and the lands are protected by the
Great Smoky Mountains National Park Great Smoky Mountains National Park is a List of national parks of the United States, national park of the United States in the southeastern United States, southeast, with parts in North Carolina and Tennessee. The park straddles the ridgeline o ...
. The northern part of the county is situated within the
Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians The Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians, also called the Ridge and Valley Province or the Valley and Ridge Appalachians, are a physiographic province of the larger Appalachian Highlands division. The physiographic province is divided into three se ...
. The county's highest point is Old Black, which rises to in the Smokies along the county's border with North Carolina.Tennessee County Highpoints
Tennessee Landforms. Retrieved: June 24, 2013. English Mountain, a large ridge that peaks at , dominates the western part of the county. Cocke County is drained by the
French Broad River The French Broad River is a river in the U.S. states of North Carolina and Tennessee. It flows from near the town of Rosman, North Carolina, Rosman in Transylvania County, North Carolina, into Tennessee, where its confluence with the Holston R ...
, which traverses the northern part of the county and forms much of its boundary with Jefferson County. A portion of this river is part of Douglas Lake, an artificial reservoir created by Douglas Dam further downstream. The Pigeon River flows northward across the county and empties into the French Broad north of Newport at Irish Bottoms.


Adjacent counties

* Hamblen County (north) * Greene County (northeast) *
Madison County, North Carolina Madison County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 21,193. Its county seat is Marshall. Madison County is part of the Asheville, NC Metropolitan Statistical Area. History ...
(southeast) *
Haywood County, North Carolina Haywood County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 62,089. The county seat and its largest community is Waynesville, North Carolina, Waynesville. Haywood ...
(south) * Sevier County (southwest) * Jefferson County (northwest)


National protected areas

*
Appalachian Trail The Appalachian Trail, also called the A.T., is a hiking trail in the Eastern United States, extending almost between Springer Mountain in Georgia and Mount Katahdin in Maine, and passing through 14 states.Gailey, Chris (2006)"Appalachian Tra ...
(part) * Cherokee National Forest (part) * Foothills Parkway (part) *
Great Smoky Mountains National Park Great Smoky Mountains National Park is a List of national parks of the United States, national park of the United States in the southeastern United States, southeast, with parts in North Carolina and Tennessee. The park straddles the ridgeline o ...
(part)


State protected areas

*Rankin Wildlife Management Area (part) * Martha Sundquist State Forest


Major highways

* * * * * * * * * SR 73


Demographics


2020 census

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 35,999 people, 14,060 households, and 9,196 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, 33,565 people, 13,762 households, and 9,715 families were 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 . The 15,844 housing units averaged . The racial makeup of the county was 96.16% White, 1.99% African American, 0.40% Native American, 0.15% Asian, 0.33% from other races, and 0.96% from two or more races. About 1.05% of the population was Hispanic or Latino of any race. Of the 13,762 households, 29.50% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.10% were married couples living together, 13.00% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.40% were not families. About 25.70% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.10% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.41 and the average family size was 2.87. In the county, the population was distributed as 22.80% under the age of 18, 8.30% from 18 to 24, 28.80% from 25 to 44, 26.40% from 45 to 64, and 13.60% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.60 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.80 males. The median income for a household in the county was $25,553, and for a family was $30,418. Males had a median income of $26,062 versus $18,826 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 $13,881. About 18.70% of families and 22.50% 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 31.80% of those under age 18 and 18.70% of those age 65 or over.


Communities


City

* Newport, county seat


Town

* Parrottsville


Census-designated Place

* Cosby


Unincorporated communities

* Allen Grove *
Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...
* Boomer * Briar Thicket *
Bridgeport Bridgeport is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Connecticut and the fifth-most populous city in New England, with a population of 148,654 in 2020. Located in eastern Fairfield County at the mouth of the Pequonnock River on Long Is ...
* Bybee * Del Rio *
Hartford Hartford is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The city, located in Hartford County, Connecticut, Hartford County, had a population of 121,054 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 ce ...
* Liberty Hill * Midway * Tom Town *
Wasp A wasp is any insect of the narrow-waisted suborder Apocrita of the order Hymenoptera which is neither a bee nor an ant; this excludes the broad-waisted sawflies (Symphyta), which look somewhat like wasps, but are in a separate suborder ...


Notable residents

* Ben W. Hooper,
governor of Tennessee The governor of Tennessee is the head of government of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the commander-in-chief of the U.S. state, state's Tennessee Military Department, military forces. The governor is the only official in the Government of Tenne ...
from 1911 to 1915 * J. E. Rankin, banker and mayor of
Asheville, North Carolina Asheville ( ) is a city in Buncombe County, North Carolina, United States. Located at the confluence of the French Broad River, French Broad and Swannanoa River, Swannanoa rivers, it is the county seat of Buncombe County. It is the most populou ...
*
Popcorn Sutton Marvin "Popcorn" Sutton (October 5, 1946March 16, 2009) was an American Appalachian moonshiner and Rum-running, bootlegger. Born in Maggie Valley, North Carolina, he grew up, lived and died in the rural areas around Maggie Valley and nearby Cocke ...
, moonshiner * Marshall Teague, actor


In popular culture

The novel '' Christy'' and the television series of the same name are based on historical events, people, and localities of Cocke County. The fictional small town of El Pano, where the novel begins, is based on the existing village of
Del Rio, Tennessee Del Rio is an Unincorporated area#United States, unincorporated community in Cocke County, Tennessee, Cocke County, Tennessee, United States. Although it is not a census-designated place, the ZIP Code Tabulation Area for the ZIP Code (37727) that ...
. The fictional Cutter Gap, where most of the plot unfolds, represents the locale now known as Chapel Hollow. Several area landmarks associated with the story are marked for visitors, including the site of the Ebenezer Mission in Chapel Hollow, which is located off the Old Fifteenth Rd., about from Del Rio.


Politics

Like all of Unionist East Tennessee, Cocke County has been overwhelmingly Republican ever since the Civil War. Since the first postwar election in 1868, Cocke County has voted for every Republican presidential candidate, even supporting
William Howard Taft William Howard Taft (September 15, 1857March 8, 1930) served as the 27th president of the United States from 1909 to 1913 and the tenth chief justice of the United States from 1921 to 1930. He is the only person to have held both offices. ...
during the divided 1912 election. No Democratic presidential candidate has managed to receive forty percent of the county's vote in this time, although
Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), also known as FDR, was the 32nd president of the United States, serving from 1933 until his death in 1945. He is the longest-serving U.S. president, and the only one to have served ...
in his 1932 landslide got within 0.23 percent of this figure.


See also

*
National Register of Historic Places listings in Cocke County, Tennessee National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ...
* Weaver family (North Carolina)


References


Further reading

* Goodspeed Publishing Company
"History of Cocke County"
pages 864–867 in ''History of Tennessee'', 1887. Retrieved November 26, 2006. * Walker, E.R. III. ''Cocke County, Tennessee: Pages from the Past''. Charleston: The History Press (2007).


External links


Official site

Cocke County Partnership
– Chamber of Commerce
Cocke County Schools

Cocke County, TNGenWeb
– genealogy resources {{Coord, 35.93, -83.12, display=title, type:adm2nd_region:US-TN_source:UScensus1990 1797 establishments in Tennessee Populated places established in 1797 Second Amendment sanctuaries in Tennessee East Tennessee