Dickson County, Tennessee
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Dickson 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 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 54,315. 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 Charlotte. Dickson County is part of the Nashville-Davidson–Murfreesboro–Franklin, TN Metropolitan Statistical Area. Dickson County is home to Tennessee's oldest courthouse in continuous use, built in 1835. This is the second courthouse in Charlotte as the first one, a log building, was destroyed in the Tornado of 1833, which destroyed all but one building on the courthouse square.


History

Charlotte, Dickson County's capital, was built on 50 acres of land purchased from Charles Stewart. Charlotte was nearly entirely destroyed after a tornado occurred within its city limits, decimating its jail, courthouse, & roughly 80% of the county's records. On October 25, 1803, 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 ...
passed a bill creating Dickson County, the 25th of Tennessee's 95 counties. It was formed from parts of Montgomery and Robertson counties, and was named for William Dickson, a Nashville physician then serving in the
United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature, legislative branch of the federal government of the United States. It is a Bicameralism, bicameral legislature, including a Lower house, lower body, the United States House of Representatives, ...
. The first court justices included Montgomery Bell, William Doak, William Russell, Sterling Brewer, Gabriel Allen, Lemuel Harvey, Jesse Craft, Richard C. Napier, and William Teas. The county was organized on March 19, 1804, at the home of Robert Nesbitt, and later sessions of the court were held at various county officials' homes until a courthouse was constructed in 1810. Dickson County was part of the Military Reserve and was widely settled among the Piney and
Cumberland Cumberland ( ) is an area of North West England which was historically a county. The county was bordered by Northumberland to the north-east, County Durham to the east, Westmorland to the south-east, Lancashire to the south, and the Scottish ...
rivers. Initially,
cotton Cotton (), first recorded in ancient India, is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective case, around the seeds of the cotton plants of the genus '' Gossypium'' in the mallow family Malvaceae. The fiber is almost pure ...
was among the county's predominant industries before
rye Rye (''Secale cereale'') is a grass grown extensively as a grain, a cover crop and a forage crop. It is grown principally in an area from Eastern and Northern Europe into Russia. It is much more tolerant of cold weather and poor soil than o ...
, oats,
corn Maize (; ''Zea mays''), also known as corn in North American English, is a tall stout Poaceae, grass that produces cereal grain. It was domesticated by indigenous peoples of Mexico, indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 9,000 years ago ...
and
tobacco Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus '' Nicotiana'' of the family Solanaceae, and the general term for any product prepared from the cured leaves of these plants. More than 70 species of tobacco are known, but the ...
had overtaken it. A
cotton gin A cotton gin—meaning "cotton engine"—is a machine that quickly and easily separates cotton fibers from their seeds, enabling much greater productivity than manual cotton separation.. Reprinted by McGraw-Hill, New York and London, 1926 (); ...
was constructed by Robert Jarman in 1807. General James Robertson built the first ironworks in west Tennessee in Dickson County. Robertson sold his furnace in 1804 to Montgomery Bell who later sold it to Anthony Wayne Van Leer(1769–1855), who the town Vanleer, TN is named after. Van Leer's family was noted in the anti-slavery cause. Other important iron manufacturers included Anthony and Bernard Van Leer and George F. and Richard C. Napier. Iron production was chiefly accomplished through
slave labor Slavery is the ownership of a person as property, especially in regards to their labour. Slavery typically involves compulsory work, with the slave's location of work and residence dictated by the party that holds them in bondage. Enslavemen ...
. Although iron production declined in importance in the post-Civil War period, the furnace was still in production in the early 1940s. Though a county school board was established in 1807, public education received little government support during the nineteenth century. Among the county's early schools were Tracy Academy, Charlotte Female School, Alexander Campbell School, Edgewood Academy and Normal College, Dickson Academy, Dickson Normal School, Glenwylde Academy, and Ruskin Cave College. The county voted by a wide margin to join the Confederacy on June 8, 1861. Six
infantry Infantry, or infantryman are a type of soldier who specialize in ground combat, typically fighting dismounted. Historically the term was used to describe foot soldiers, i.e. those who march and fight on foot. In modern usage, the term broadl ...
companies and a battery of
artillery Artillery consists of ranged weapons that launch Ammunition, munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during sieges, and l ...
were sent to the south by Dickson County. For the guerrilla forces, Yellow Creek and what is now Cumberland Furnace were favorite rendezvous points. No major confrontations had occurred, but the railroad laid by the Union were subject to frequent attacks. The Nashville and Northwestern Railroads which were constructed through the county's southern portion became a magnet for migrants from the
Great Lakes The Great Lakes, also called the Great Lakes of North America, are a series of large interconnected freshwater lakes spanning the Canada–United States border. The five lakes are Lake Superior, Superior, Lake Michigan, Michigan, Lake Huron, H ...
&
Great Plains The Great Plains is a broad expanse of plain, flatland in North America. The region stretches east of the Rocky Mountains, much of it covered in prairie, steppe, and grassland. They are the western part of the Interior Plains, which include th ...
, who settled in the new railroad towns of Dickson (originally called Sneedville), Tennessee City, White Bluff, and
Burns Burns may refer to: Astronomy * 2708 Burns, an asteroid * Burns (crater), on Mercury People * Burns (surname), list of people and characters named Burns ** Burns (musician), Scottish record producer Places in the United States * Burns, ...
. After two railroad lines were further constructed through Dickson, it became the county's hub for the vast majority of railroad travel, and, by the early 1900s was the commercial and cultural center of Dickson County. The growth of Dickson soon overtook that of Charlotte & produced infighting and debate amongst the county's government as to which town was a better county seat. In July 1917, a mass meeting was held in the Alamo Theatre in Dickson to raise $760 (equivalent to $25,000 in 2016) to pay for the surveying of the Bristol to Memphis Highway through Dickson County. The money was raised in less than 15 minutes by donations from those present at the meeting. State highway surveyors began surveying the route on August 14, 1917. The building of this highway put the county along the route known as the “Broadway of America,” Highway 70. The county's most prominent recreational area, Montgomery Bell State Park, was constructed by the
National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an List of federal agencies in the United States, agency of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government, within the US Department of the Interior. The service manages all List ...
and the
Civilian Conservation Corps The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was a voluntary government unemployment, work relief program that ran from 1933 to 1942 in the United States for unemployed, unmarried men ages 18–25 and eventually expanded to ages 17–28. The CCC was ...
in 1942. After World War 2, administration of the park was transferred to the state.


The Ruskin Colony and ''The Coming Nation''

The Ruskin Colony (or Ruskin Commonwealth Association) was a 250-member, utopian socialist
cooperative A cooperative (also known as co-operative, coöperative, co-op, or coop) is "an autonomy, autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social and cultural needs and aspirations through a jointly owned a ...
established in Dickson County in 1894. Initially located near Tennessee City, it relocated to what is now Ruskin. Internal conflict had brought about the dissolution of the colony by 1899. '' The Coming Nation'', a socialist communalist paper established by Julius Augustus Wayland in Greensburg,
Indiana Indiana ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the s ...
, was relocated to the Ruskin Colony. It was the forerunner of the '' Appeal to Reason'', which later became a weekly political newspaper published in the
American Midwest The Midwestern United States (also referred to as the Midwest, the Heartland or the American Midwest) is one of the four List of regions of the United States, census regions defined by the United States Census Bureau. It occupies the northern c ...
from 1895 until 1922. The ''Appeal to Reason'' was known for its politics, giving support to the Farmers' Alliance and People's Party, before becoming a mainstay of the
Socialist Party of America The Socialist Party of America (SPA) was a socialist political party in the United States formed in 1901 by a merger between the three-year-old Social Democratic Party of America and disaffected elements of the Socialist Labor Party of America ...
following its establishment in 1901. Using a network of highly motivated volunteers known as the "Appeal Army" to increase its subscription sales, the ''Appeal'' paid circulation climbed to over a quarter million by 1906, and half a million by 1910, making it the largest-circulation
socialist Socialism is an economic ideology, economic and political philosophy encompassing diverse Economic system, economic and social systems characterised by social ownership of the means of production, as opposed to private ownership. It describes ...
newspaper in American history.


Governor Frank G. Clement

On November 4, 1952, Frank G. Clement (1920–1969) of Dickson was elected Governor of Tennessee. He served as governor from 1953 to 1959, and again from 1963 to 1967. Known for his energetic speaking ability, he delivered the keynote address at the
1956 Democratic National Convention The 1956 Democratic National Convention nominated former Governor Adlai Stevenson II, Adlai Stevenson of Illinois for president and United States Senate, Senator Estes Kefauver of Tennessee for vice president. It was held in the Internation ...
. The Hotel Halbrook, where Clement was born, still stands in Dickson, and has been listed on the
National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...
. Today the Hotel operates as the Clement Railroad Hotel Museum.


Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.3%) is water. Dickson County is bordered on the northeast by 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 ...
. The Harpeth River passes along the county's eastern border. Ruskin Cave, site of the former socialist colony, is located northwest of Dickson.


Adjacent counties

* Montgomery County (north) * Cheatham County (east) * Williamson County (southeast) * Hickman County (south) * Humphreys County (southwest) * Houston County (northwest)


State protected areas

*Cheatham Lake Wildlife Management Area (part) * Hotel Halbrook Railroad and Local History Museum (state historic site) *Montgomery Bell State Natural Area * Montgomery Bell State Park


Demographics


2020 census

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 54,315 people, 19,198 households, and 13,030 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 43,156 people, 16,473 households, and 12,173 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 17,614 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 93.25%
European American European Americans are Americans of European ancestry. This term includes both people who descend from the first European settlers in the area of the present-day United States and people who descend from more recent European arrivals. Since th ...
, 4.58%
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 ...
or
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 ...
, 0.40% Native American, 0.27% 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 ...
, 0.47% from other races, and 1.01% from two or more races. 1.12% 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 16,473 households, out of which 35.60% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.30% 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, 11.50% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.10% were non-families. 22.30% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.90% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.59 and the average family size was 3.02. In the county, the population was spread out, with 26.60% under the age of 18, 8.10% from 18 to 24, 30.70% from 25 to 44, 22.90% from 45 to 64, and 11.70% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.20 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.90 males. The median income for a household in the county was $39,056, and the median income for a family was $45,575. Males had a median income of $32,252 versus $23,686 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 $18,043. About 8.10% of families and 10.20% 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 12.90% of those under age 18 and 11.80% of those age 65 or over. By 2005 the county had a population that was 92.0% non-Hispanic white, 4.4% African-American and 1.7% Latino.


Government

Historically, Dickson County has been a Democratic stronghold;
Ulysses Grant Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant; April 27, 1822July 23, 1885) was the 18th president of the United States, serving from 1869 to 1877. In 1865, as commanding general, Grant led the Union Army to victory in the American Civil War ...
carried it in 1868, but after that, it did not vote Republican again until
Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 until his resignation in 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as the 36th vice president under P ...
's
1972 Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using Solar time, ...
landslide. It has trended powerfully Republican starting in the beginning of the 21st century. An early sign of this could be seen in its back-to-back votes for Reagan in
1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeas ...
and
George H. W. Bush George Herbert Walker BushBefore the outcome of the 2000 United States presidential election, he was usually referred to simply as "George Bush" but became more commonly known as "George H. W. Bush", "Bush Senior," "Bush 41," and even "Bush th ...
in 1988, even though it had generally voted Democratic in elections in which the Democratic nominee was losing substantially worse nationally than Dukakis was in 1988 (for example, giving
Adlai Stevenson Adlai Stevenson may refer to: * Adlai Stevenson I Adlai Ewing Stevenson (October 23, 1835 – June 14, 1914) was an American politician and diplomat who served as the 23rd vice president of the United States from 1893 to 1897 under President Gr ...
over 70% of its vote in both of his runs). Not only this, but George H. W. Bush was even able to slightly ''improve'' on Reagan's vote share, despite the small national swing towards the Democrats in 1988. However, in the subsequent three elections,
Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician and lawyer who was the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, ...
recaptured the county by double digit margins, and Tennessee native
Al Gore Albert Arnold Gore Jr. (born March 31, 1948) is an American former politician, businessman, and environmentalist who served as the 45th vice president of the United States from 1993 to 2001 under President Bill Clinton. He previously served as ...
carried it by over 8%. In
2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and Its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...
, it switched to giving
George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...
a 10.2% margin, however, and, as of
2024 The year saw the list of ongoing armed conflicts, continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Myanmar civil war (2021–present), Myanmar civil war, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudane ...
, has voted Republican in every subsequent election, giving the Republican nominee an increased vote share every time. Neither
Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, lawyer and diplomat. She was the 67th United States secretary of state in the administration of Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, a U.S. senator represent ...
in
2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...
nor
Delaware Delaware ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic and South Atlantic states, South Atlantic regions of the United States. It borders Maryland to its south and west, Pennsylvania to its north, New Jersey ...
native
Joe Biden Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...
in
2020 The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...
was able to reach so much as a third of the county's vote.


County Commission

The 12-member county commission is the legislative body of Dickson County. One commissioner is elected from each of the county's 12 commission districts. The county mayor chairs the commission.


Responsibilities

Commissioners are charged with appropriating funds for the county departments, setting the property tax rate and creating personnel policies for county employees.


Terms

The commissioners are chosen in the August general elections and serve four-year terms. These elections coincide with the state's gubernatorial primaries and begin September 1 of each non-presidential even-numbered year.


Commission meetings

The county commission meets for a work session the first Monday evening of each month. Regular sessions are held the third Monday evening of each month. At this meeting, matters are brought before the commission for action. When meeting dates fall on holidays, the meeting is generally held the next evening.


Current Commissioners


County Officials

Dickson County has various elected officials to carry out the necessary duties of the county government. County Officials are chosen in the August general elections, along with the County Commissioners, and serve four-year terms. These elections are on the first Thursday in August and coincide with the state's gubernatorial primaries. The terms begin September 1 of each non-presidential even-numbered year. The exception to this is the Assessor of Property whose election occurs on the same schedule but in the presidential election years.


Department Heads

The Mayor makes the appointments for non elected county government departments.


Judicial Branch Officials

The judicial officials are chosen in the August general elections, along with other elected officials and county commissioners, and serve four-year terms (with the exception of the General Sessions and the Juvenile Court Judges, who serve an eight-year term, with elections coinciding with every other gubernatorial primary). These elections coincide with the state's gubernatorial primaries and they assume office on September 1 of each non-presidential even-numbered year.


Education

The Dickson County School District serves the entirety of the county.
Text list
/ref> Since 2024, the current Director of Schools is Dr. Christie Southerland. Serving around 8,500 students, the Dickson County School System ranks 23rd in student population among 142 school districts in Tennessee. The District employs around 1,200 people.


Board of education

The Dickson County Board of Education is a committee of six elected officials responsible for governing the counties' educational system. Each member represents one of the six districts that make up Dickson County. The Board was created and empowered by State Law with authority to oversee the operation of Dickson County Schools. The Board meets every 4th Thursday of the month unless otherwise noted. The Board chooses the Director of Schools. Dr. Christie Southerland is the Director of Schools and has been in that position since 2024.


History

Prior to the 1920s, numerous private high schools and colleges existed in Dickson County. These included the Tracy Academy, Charlotte Female School, Alexander Campbell School, Edgewood Academy and Normal College, the Dickson Academy, Dickson Normal School (where Hattie Carraway, the first woman elected to the U.S. Senate, was educated), Glenwylde Academy, and Ruskin Cave College. Most of these closed before or during the
Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...
. As is typical of most Tennessee counties, all public schools of the county are currently operated by a single county-wide
school district A school district is a special-purpose district that operates local public Primary school, primary or Secondary school, secondary schools or both in various countries. It is not to be confused with an attendance zone, which is within a school dis ...
.


Schools

The Dickson County Board of Education operates 16 schools. Elementary Schools * Centennial * Charlotte * Dickson * Oakmont * The Discovery School * Sullivan * Stuart-Burns * Vanleer * White Bluff Middle Schools * Charlotte * Burns * Dickson * William James High Schools * Creek Wood * Dickson County Alternative School * New Directions Academy


Higher Education

Dickson County is home to two campuses for higher education. The Tennessee College of Applied Technology – Dickson, under the Tennessee Board of Regents, provides career and technical education programs. Some programs include administrative office technology, automotive technology, computer information technology, cosmetology, various health programs (dental, nursing, etc.), digital graphic design, HVAC/refrigeration,
mechatronics Mechatronics engineering, also called mechatronics, is the synergistic integration of mechanical, electrical, and computer systems employing mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, electronic engineering and computer engineering, and also ...
, and welding, among many others.
Nashville State Community College Nashville State Community College is a Public college, public community college in Nashville, Tennessee. It is operated by the Tennessee Board of Regents and shares a campus with the Tennessee College of Applied Technology at Nashville. The Nas ...
maintains a satellite campus in Dickson, offering associate degrees to prepare students to transfer to four-year universities or enter the workforce.


Communities


City

* Dickson


Towns

*
Burns Burns may refer to: Astronomy * 2708 Burns, an asteroid * Burns (crater), on Mercury People * Burns (surname), list of people and characters named Burns ** Burns (musician), Scottish record producer Places in the United States * Burns, ...
* Charlotte (county seat) * Slayden * Vanleer * White Bluff


Unincorporated communities

* Abiff * Bellsburg * Cumberland Furnace * Promise Land * Tennessee City


See also

*
National Register of Historic Places listings in Dickson County, Tennessee __NOTOC__ This is a list of the National Register of Historic Places listings in Dickson County, Tennessee. This is intended to be a complete list of the properties and districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Dickson County, ...


References


External links


Dickson County Government

Dickson County Chamber of Commerce

Dickson County Schools

Dickson County, TNGenWeb
– genealogy resources {{authority control 1803 establishments in Tennessee Populated places established in 1803 Nashville metropolitan area Middle Tennessee