Sweet Lips (or "Sweetlips") is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...

Chester County Chester County may refer to: * Chester County, Pennsylvania, United States ** Chester County Council, boy scout council in Pennsylvania. * Chester County, South Carolina, United States * Chester County, Tennessee, United States * Cheshire ...

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 ...

, United States.Boothby, Karen J. (February 18, 2009)
Sweet Lips with a sense of humor
''

The Jackson Sun ''The Jackson Sun'' is a daily newspaper published in Jackson, Tennessee, and is one of western Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeast ...

'' (article on this "Chester County community" notes that "when your community's named Sweet Lips, you learn to have a sense of humor.")

History

The first settlers arrived in the 1820s. Residents have claimed that the name comes from "settlers (or wandering hobos or thirsty Civil War soldiers, depending on whom you ask) who declared water from a creek to be 'sweet to the lips.'"(July 14, 1991)
Toad Suck, 10 miles, Stop laughing - that's the town's name
''

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution ''The Atlanta Journal-Constitution'' (''AJC'') is an American daily newspaper based in metropolitan area of Atlanta, Georgia. It is the flagship publication of Cox Enterprises. The ''Atlanta Journal-Constitution'' is the result of the merger ...

'' ("The village, settled about 170 years ago, once bustled. Now the community's lone business is Sweet Lips Store.") Boyd, L.M. (July 20, 1995)
Greater Singers
''

Daily Record (Washington) ''The Daily Record'' is an American daily newspaper published in Ellensburg, Washington. The ''Record'' is published four days a week with an afternoon edition each Tuesday through Thursday and a weekend edition is delivered on Saturday mornings ...

'' Alternatively, It may be named after Sweet Lips, the gun that a Tennessean soldier used to kill

Patrick Ferguson Major Patrick Ferguson (1744 – 7 October 1780) was a British Army officer who designed the Ferguson rifle. He is best known for his service in the 1780 military campaign of Charles Cornwallis during the American Revolutionary War in the ...

who was leading an army of

Loyalists Loyalism, in the United Kingdom, its overseas territories and its former colonies, refers to the allegiance to the British crown or the United Kingdom. In North America, the most common usage of the term refers to loyalty to the British Cr ...

to invade Tennessee on October 7, 1780. It may also be named after George Washington's dog with the same name. Sweet Lips has frequently been noted on lists of

unusual place names Place names considered unusual can include those which are also offensive words, inadvertently humorous (especially if mispronounced) or highly charged words, as well as place names of unorthodox spelling and pronunciation, including especiall ...

.Rose, Allen (June 12, 1993)
LIZARD LICK IS ODD NAME FOR TOWN, BUT MAP IS FULL OF OFF-BEAT NAMES
''

Orlando Sentinel The ''Orlando Sentinel'' is the primary newspaper of Orlando, Florida, and the Central Florida region, in the United States. It was founded in 1876 and is currently owned by Tribune Publishing Company. The ''Orlando Sentinel'' is owned by pare ...

''(August 28, 1886)
A Nation of Humorists
''

The Atlanta Constitution ''The Atlanta Journal-Constitution'' (''AJC'') is an American daily newspaper based in metropolitan area of Atlanta, Georgia. It is the flagship publication of Cox Enterprises. The ''Atlanta Journal-Constitution'' is the result of the merge ...

'' (1886 article notes name -- "In Tennessee we find Sweet Lips,

Defeated Defeated may refer to: * "Defeated" (Breaking Benjamin song) * "Defeated" (Anastacia song) *"Defeated", a song by Snoop Dogg from the album ''Bible of Love'' *Defeated, Tennessee Defeated is an unincorporated community in Smith County, Tennessee ...

, Regret, Peanut, Quiz and Tut.") A 1986 profile on the community reported a population of 85, no stop signs or street lights, no post office, and that the former two-room school house was now the "Sweet Lips Grocery" store.(June 25, 1986)
A Sweet Lips, Tennessee Homecoming
''

Tri-City Herald The ''Tri-City Herald'' is a twice-weekly newspaper based in Kennewick, Washington, United States. Owned by The McClatchy Company, the newspaper serves southeastern Washington state, including the three cities of Kennewick, Pasco and Richland ...

'' (reprint from the ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...

'' The school closed in 1960.Chester Co. Historical Society
Chester Co, TN - Vol II - Pictorial
p. 135 (2001) Some scenes from the 1973 movie '' Walking Tall'' were filmed in Sweet Lips.Pusser, Dwana
Walking on: A Daughter's Journey With Legendary Sheriff Buford Pusser
p. 159 (2009)

References

External links

* {{authority control Unincorporated communities in Chester County, Tennessee Unincorporated communities in Tennessee