Erin 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 Houston County,

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 ...

. The population was 1,224 at the time of the 2020 census and 1,324 at the time of the 2010 census.

History

The city was perhaps named for Erin, a poetic name for

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

. Each year in March, beginning in 1962 the town has held a weeklong Irish festival, one of the top ten celebrations in the U.S., with a parade, banquets, pageants, arts and crafts, and other events celebrating Erin's Irish heritage and honoring the sacrifice of Irish railroad workers who helped link Erin to the rest of the world. An F3 tornado struck Erin on May 27, 2000, tearing roofs and walls from many homes, destroying a pavilion, and leaving 50 people in need of overnight shelter.

Geography

Erin is located at (36.316998, -87.697946). The elevation is 480 feet above sea level. 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 land.

Major roads and highways

* State Route 13 * State Route 49 (Main Street) * State Route 149

ZIP code

The ZIP code used in the Erin area is 37061.

Area code

Erin uses the

area code A telephone numbering plan is a type of numbering scheme used in telecommunication to assign telephone numbers to subscriber telephones or other telephony endpoints. Telephone numbers are the addresses of participants in a telephone network, rea ...

931.

Government

*Board of Aldermen & Mayor meets first Tuesday of the month at 6:00 p.m. at Erin City Hall. *Planning Commission meets on the fourth Monday of the month at 6:00 p.m. at Erin City Hall.

Elected officials

*City Mayor: Paul Bailey *City Recorder: Angela Neilson *City Bookkeeper: Cheryl Hollis *City Clerks: Betty Beard and Farrah Dennis

Aldermen

*Ward 1: Lou Anne Pollard and Wanda Lockhart *Ward 2: Betsy Ligon (Vice Mayor) and Cecil Baggett *Ward 3: Linda Owens and Nethla Shires *Ward 4: Loraine Beechum and Paul J. Gooden

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 1,224 people, 514 households, and 251 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 1,490 people, 588 households, and 355 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 653 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 86.38%

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 ...

, 10.40%

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 ...

, 0.27% Native American, 0.67% from other races, and 2.28% 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 0.94% of the population. There were 588 households, out of which 28.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.1% 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, 16.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.5% were non-families. 37.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 21.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.23 and the average family size was 2.92. In the city the population was spread out, with 22.3% under the age of 18, 7.6% from 18 to 24, 22.4% from 25 to 44, 22.3% from 45 to 64, and 25.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43 years. For every 100 females, there were 81.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 74.5 males. The median income for a household in the city was $23,107, and the median income for a family was $30,833. Males had a median income of $26,484 versus $18,333 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 $15,281. About 19.2% of families and 23.7% 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 30.4% of those under age 18 and 25.1% of those age 65 or over.

Schools

Public high schools

*Houston County Adult High School (Students: 2; Location: 3573 West Main Street; Grades: 11–12) *Houston County High School (Location: Hwy 149 Street; Grades: 09 - 12)

Public primary/middle schools

*Erin Elementary School (Students: 456; Location: 6500 State Route 13; Grades: K–5) *Houston County Middle School (Students: 338; Location: 1241 West Main Street; Grades: 6–8)

References

External links

Official siteCity charter
{{authority control Cities in Tennessee Cities in Houston County, Tennessee County seats in Tennessee