Moore 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 south central part 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 6,461, making it the third-least populous county in Tennessee.
It forms a
consolidated city-county
In local government in the United States, United States local government, a consolidated city-county (#Terminology, see below for alternative terms) is formed when one or more city, cities and their surrounding County (United States), county (Lis ...
government with 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 ...
of
Lynchburg.
At , it is the second-smallest county in Tennessee, behind only
Trousdale. The county was created in 1871, during the
Reconstruction era
The Reconstruction era was a period in History of the United States, US history that followed the American Civil War (1861-65) and was dominated by the legal, social, and political challenges of the Abolitionism in the United States, abol ...
.
Moore County is part of the
Tullahoma-
Manchester
Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...
, TN
Micropolitan Statistical Area.
History
Moore County was established in 1871 from parts of
Lincoln,
Bedford
Bedford is a market town in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 Census, the population was 106,940. Bedford is the county town of Bedfordshire and seat of the Borough of Bedford local government district.
Bedford was founded at a ford (crossin ...
and
Franklin counties, and named in honor of General William Moore, an early settler and long-time member of the state legislature.
The new county originally contained about 300 square miles, but Lincoln County sued and successfully reclaimed a portion of its land, reducing the new county's size.
Beginning in the 1820s, whiskey distilleries were developed in what is now Moore County. By 1875, fifteen distilleries were operating in the county. At the end of the 20th century, the
Jack Daniel Distillery in Lynchburg was a major employer and the county's primary source of revenue.
Because of the small size of this county, in the late 20th century city and county officials began to discuss creating a consolidated government in order to lower costs and improve services. In 1988, the Metropolitan Government of Lynchburg, Moore County, Tennessee was voted into law as the governing body of Moore County, including Lynchburg.
Geography
According to the
U.S. Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The U.S. Census Bureau is part of the U ...
, the county has a total area of , of which are land and (0.9%) are water.
It is the second-smallest county in Tennessee by area. The county is located partially on the rugged
Highland Rim
The Highland Rim is a geographic term for the area in Tennessee, North Alabama, and Kentucky which surrounds the Central Basin. The Central Basin is a geological dome which has subsequently fractured and eroded to produce a basin. The Highland R ...
and partially in the flatter
Nashville Basin
The Nashville Basin, also known as the Central Basin, is a term often used to describe the area surrounding Murfreesboro, Tennessee, in which Nashville is located. The Central Basin was caused by an uplifting which produced a dome known as the ...
.
Adjacent counties
*
Coffee County (northeast)
*
Franklin County (southeast)
*
Lincoln County (southwest)
*
Bedford County (northwest)
Protected area
*
Tims Ford Lake
Demographics
2020 census
As of the
2020 United States census, there were 6,461 people, 2,592 households, and 1,862 families residing in the county.
2010 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 2010, there were 6,362 people, 2,492 households, and 1,841 families residing in the county. There were 2,492 occupied housing units. The racial makeup of the county was 95.4%
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 ...
, 2.3%
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 ...
, 0.3%
Native American, 0.4%
Asian, 0.5% from
other races, and 1.1% from two or more races. 1.1% 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 2,492 households, out of which 27% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.8% 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, 8.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.1% were non-families. 22.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older, male or female. The average household size was 2.51, and the average family size was 2.93.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 24.2% under the age of 20, 14.8% from 20 to 34, 20.5% from 35 to 49, 22.1% from 50 to 64, and 18.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43.3 years.
Per 2000 Census data, the median income for a household in the county was $36,591, and the median income for a family was $41,484. Males had a median income of $31,559 versus $20,987 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 $19,040. 9.6% of the population, and 7.8% of families were below the poverty line. 11.7% were under the age of 18, and 12.1% were 65 or older.
Economy
Moore County is the location of the
Jack Daniel Distillery, whose famous brand of
Tennessee whiskey
Tennessee Whiskey is straight whiskey produced in the U.S. state of Tennessee. Although it has been legally defined as a bourbon whiskey in some international trade agreements, most current producers of Tennessee Whiskey disclaim references to ...
is marketed worldwide. Despite the distillery, Moore is a
dry county
In the United States, a dry county is a county whose local government forbids the sale of any kind of alcoholic beverages. Some prohibit off-premises sale, some prohibit on-premises sale, and some prohibit both. The vast majority of counties n ...
. This status dates to the passage of state prohibition laws in the early 20th century.
While federal prohibition ended in 1933 with the repeal of the
Eighteenth Amendment, state prohibition laws remain in effect. All Tennessee counties are dry by default, though any county can become "wet" by passing a county-wide "local option" referendum. Moore County has yet to pass such a referendum.
Education
Schools in Moore County are a part of Moore County Schools, overseen by The Moore County Department of Education:
* Lynchburg Elementary School - grades PreK–6
*
Moore County High School - grades 7–12
Motlow State Community College is located in northern part of Moore County.
Politics
Community
*
Lynchburg
See also
*
National Register of Historic Places listings in Moore County, Tennessee
References
External links
Moore County, TNGenWeb- free genealogy resources for the county
{{authority control
1871 establishments in Tennessee
Populated places established in 1871
Tullahoma, Tennessee micropolitan area
Middle Tennessee
Consolidated city-counties