Dickson, Tennessee
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Dickson is a city in 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 ...
. Located in Dickson County. It is part of the
Nashville metropolitan area The Nashville metropolitan area (officially the Nashville-Davidson–Murfreesboro–Franklin, TN Metropolitan Statistical Area) is a metropolitan statistical area in north-central Tennessee. Its principal city is Nashville, the capital of and l ...
. As of the 2020 census, Dickson's population was 16,058.


History

Dickson was named for Congressman William Dickson, as was Dickson County. The City started as a stop on the railroad line 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 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 ...
. When Union Troops had finished the supply line during 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 ...
, the area was known as Mile 42 post. It is disputed on what the community was known as prior to being named Dickson. Dr. Robert Corlew's book ''A History of Dickson County'' makes the claim that the community was named Sneedsville in honor of a railroad engineer named Sneed who helped complete the tracks under the orders of General Ulysses S. Grant. Various other sources also state that the city was at one point named Sneedsville. Other sources claim that the community was named Smeedsville rather than Sneedsville. One claim comes from a series of writings for the Dickson Free Press by former mayor Robert S. Clement ''From Mile Post 42… To City of Dickson 1980.'' In article 7 "Was it called Sneedsville or Smeedsville?" Clement writes about a 1867 Chancery Court decree that was brought to his attention by historian Henry Ragan that refers to the land as "Smeedsville, Dickson County, Tennessee.", and that Ragan interviewed various locals who remembered the town being named Smeedsville. Corlew claimed that he had found Chancery Court documents from the same year that incorporated the area as Sneedsville or Smeedsville, and that it's hard to interpret it being an "n" or an "m" due to the handwriting.


Geography

Dickson is located in south-central Dickson County at (36.071485, -87.374539). It is bordered to the east by the town of Burns. U.S. Route 70 passes through the north side of the city as Henslee Drive; it leads east to
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 west to
Huntingdon Huntingdon is a market town in the Huntingdonshire district of Cambridgeshire, England. The town was given its town charter by John, King of England, King John in 1205. It was the county town of the historic county of Huntingdonshire. Oliver C ...
.
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 ...
passes through the Dickson city limits south of the center of town, with access from Exit 172 (
Tennessee State Route 46 State Route 46 (SR 46) is a north–south state highway located in Middle Tennessee. It mainly goes on a northwest to southeast course while passing through towns and cities such as Cumberland City, Dickson, Leipers Fork, along with mainly ...
). I-40 leads east to Nashville from Exit 172 and west to Jackson. 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 ...
, Dickson has a total area of , of which is land and , or 0.41%, is water. The city center sits on the Tennessee Valley Divide, with the southwest side of the city draining via the East Piney River to the Piney River, then to the Duck River, and then to 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 ...
, while the northeast side drains via Turnbull Creek or Jones Creek to the Harpeth River and thence to the
Cumberland River The Cumberland River is a major waterway of the Southern United States. The U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed June 8, 2011 river drains almost of southern Kentucky and ...
.


Climate


Demographics


2020 census

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 16,058 people, 5,842 households, and 3,690 families residing in the city.


2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 12,244 people, 4,934 households, and 3,300 families residing in the city. There were 24,325 people in the 37055 zip code. The population density was . There were 5,280 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 87.86%
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 ...
, 8.83%
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 ...
, 0.46% Native American, 0.56% Asian, 0.77% from other races, and 1.54% 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 1.94% of the population. There were 4,934 households, out of which 34.2% 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, 16.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.1% were non-families. 29.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.42 and the average family size was 2.97. In the city the population was spread out, with 27.2% under the age of 18, 9.0% from 18 to 24, 28.9% from 25 to 44, 20.6% from 45 to 64, and 14.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 86.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 79.8 males. The median income for a household in the city was $34,549, and the median income for a family was $42,632. Males had a median income of $32,733 versus $23,138 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 $17,654. About 12.6% of families and 15.3% 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 19.3% of those under age 18 and 14.2% of those age 65 or over.


Government


Mayor

The City of Dickson is governed by a mayor and City Council. Mayor Don Weiss, Jr., has served in office since 1993, making him the longest-serving mayor of Dickson.


City Council

The City of Dickson is divided into four wards, each of which elects two members to the City Council. Councillors are elected to staggered four-year terms, with one councillor from each ward being elected every two years.


City Administrator

As the Mayor of Dickson is only a part-time job, a City Administrator is also appointed to oversee the day-to-day operations of the city government and its budget.


Parks and Recreation

The City of Dickson Parks and Recreation Department maintains and operates various green spaces in Dickson, including sports areas, playgrounds, lake areas, and community centers.


Media


Television

* WDHC-LD Channel 6 ( The Family Channel)


Radio


AM

* WDKN 1260 AM, Country, Gospel, Talk


FM

* WLTD-LP 103.9 FM 3ABN Radio, Religious * WNRZ 91.5 FM Bott Radio Network


Notable people

* Frank G. Clement, Governor of Tennessee * Francis Craig, songwriter, bandleader * Trevor Daniel, American Football punter for the
Tennessee Titans The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The Titans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. They play the ...
of the
National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...
* Walter S. Davis, educator. * John Mitchell, baseball player * Craig Morgan, country singer * Anson Mount, actor * Sunita Mani, Indian-American actress * Anthony Wayne Van Leer, entrepreneur


See also

* List of cities in Tennessee


References


External links

*
City charter
(Archived on March 4, 2016, at the
Wayback Machine The Wayback Machine is a digital archive of the World Wide Web founded by Internet Archive, an American nonprofit organization based in San Francisco, California. Launched for public access in 2001, the service allows users to go "back in ...
) {{authority control Cities in Tennessee Cities in Dickson County, Tennessee Cities in Nashville metropolitan area