Charleston, Tennessee
Encyclopedia
Charleston is a city in Bradley County, Tennessee
, United States
. The population was 651 at the 2010 census. It is included in the Cleveland, Tennessee
Metropolitan Statistical Area
.
, which flows down out of the Appalachian Mountains
several miles to the east and empties into the Chickamauga Lake
impoundment of the Tennessee River
several miles to the west. The river forms the boundary between Bradley County and McMinn County. Calhoun
, Charleston's sister city, is situated on the north bank of the Hiwassee, on the McMinn County side.
Charleston is traversed by U.S. Route 11
, which enters the city from Calhoun to the north and exits the city en route to Cleveland to the south. Interstate 75
, which roughly parallels US-11 in the area, runs along Charleston's western boundary.
According to the United States Census Bureau
, the city has a total area of 1 square miles (2.6 km²), of which 0.1 square mile (0.258998811 km²), or 5.77%, is water.
of 2000, there were 630 people, 265 households, and 182 families residing in the city. The population density
was 639.9 people per square mile (248.2/km²). There were 280 housing units at an average density of 284.4 per square mile (110.3/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 72.54% White, 23.49% African American, 0.48% Asian, 0.79% from other races
, and 2.70% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.90% of the population.
There were 265 households out of which 24.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.2% were married couples
living together, 9.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.3% were non-families. 29.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.38 and the average family size was 2.92.
In the city the population was spread out with 22.5% under the age of 18, 8.3% from 18 to 24, 26.7% from 25 to 44, 26.8% from 45 to 64, and 15.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 91.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.4 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $33,750, and the median income for a family was $40,781. Males had a median income of $31,389 versus $18,333 for females. The per capita income
for the city was $18,586. About 5.7% of families and 8.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 14.0% of those under age 18 and 12.9% of those age 65 or over.
operation of Bowater
Corporation in Calhoun
, which is a major local employer. Logging trucks and rail
traffic to and from this plant frequently traverse Charleston.
Charleston is the postal address
of the international headquarters of the Christian denomination
The Church of God, commonly called "The Church of God (Charleston, Tennessee)" to distinguish it from other similarly named denominations. However, the denomination's headquarters are actually located in Cleveland.
Agency as well as Fort Cass
, the headquarters of the Cherokee Removal of 1838, known as the Trail of Tears
. The valley between Charleston and Cleveland, Tennessee
was filled for 12 miles (19.3 km) with internment camps in which thousands of Cherokee from various towns waited during the summer of 1838 for the start of the main trek west (Duncan 2003:261).
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The population was 651 at the 2010 census. It is included in the Cleveland, Tennessee
Cleveland, Tennessee
Cleveland is a city in Bradley County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 41,285 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Bradley County...
Metropolitan Statistical Area
Cleveland, Tennessee metropolitan area
The Cleveland, Tennessee Metropolitan Statistical Area, as defined by the United States Census Bureau, is an area consisting of two counties in southeast Tennessee – Bradley and Polk – anchored by the city of Cleveland...
.
Geography
Charleston is situated along the south bank of the Hiwassee RiverHiwassee River
The Hiwassee River has its headwaters on the north slope of Rocky Mountain in Towns County in northern Georgia and flows northward into North Carolina before turning westward into Tennessee, flowing into the Tennessee River a few miles west of State Route 58 in Meigs County, Tennessee...
, which flows down out of the Appalachian Mountains
Appalachian Mountains
The Appalachian Mountains #Whether the stressed vowel is or ,#Whether the "ch" is pronounced as a fricative or an affricate , and#Whether the final vowel is the monophthong or the diphthong .), often called the Appalachians, are a system of mountains in eastern North America. The Appalachians...
several miles to the east and empties into the Chickamauga Lake
Chickamauga Lake
Chickamauga Lake is a United States reservoir along the Tennessee River created when the Chickamauga Dam, as part of the Tennessee Valley Authority, was completed in 1940. The lake stretches from Watts Bar Dam at mile 529.9 to Chickamauga Dam at mile 471.0 making the lake 58.9 miles long...
impoundment of the Tennessee River
Tennessee River
The Tennessee River is the largest tributary of the Ohio River. It is approximately 652 miles long and is located in the southeastern United States in the Tennessee Valley. The river was once popularly known as the Cherokee River, among other names...
several miles to the west. The river forms the boundary between Bradley County and McMinn County. Calhoun
Calhoun, Tennessee
Calhoun is a town in McMinn County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 496 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Calhoun is situated along the north bank of the Hiwassee River, which flows down from the Appalachian Mountains to the east and empties into the Chickamauga Lake impoundment of the...
, Charleston's sister city, is situated on the north bank of the Hiwassee, on the McMinn County side.
Charleston is traversed by U.S. Route 11
U.S. Route 11
U.S. Route 11 is a north–south United States highway extending 1,645 miles across the eastern United States. The southern terminus of the route is at U.S. Route 90 in the Bayou Sauvage National Wildlife Refuge in eastern New Orleans, Louisiana. The northern terminus is at the United...
, which enters the city from Calhoun to the north and exits the city en route to Cleveland to the south. Interstate 75
Interstate 75
Interstate 75 is a major north–south Interstate Highway in the Great Lakes and Southeastern regions of the United States. It travels from State Road 826 and State Road 924 in Hialeah, Florida to Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, at the Ontario, Canada, border...
, which roughly parallels US-11 in the area, runs along Charleston's western boundary.
According to the United States Census Bureau
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the city has a total area of 1 square miles (2.6 km²), of which 0.1 square mile (0.258998811 km²), or 5.77%, is water.
Demographics
As of the censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 630 people, 265 households, and 182 families residing in the city. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 639.9 people per square mile (248.2/km²). There were 280 housing units at an average density of 284.4 per square mile (110.3/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 72.54% White, 23.49% African American, 0.48% Asian, 0.79% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 2.70% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.90% of the population.
There were 265 households out of which 24.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.2% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 9.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.3% were non-families. 29.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.38 and the average family size was 2.92.
In the city the population was spread out with 22.5% under the age of 18, 8.3% from 18 to 24, 26.7% from 25 to 44, 26.8% from 45 to 64, and 15.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 91.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.4 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $33,750, and the median income for a family was $40,781. Males had a median income of $31,389 versus $18,333 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the city was $18,586. About 5.7% of families and 8.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 14.0% of those under age 18 and 12.9% of those age 65 or over.
Economy
The city is across the Hiwassee River from a large paper millPaper mill
A paper mill is a factory devoted to making paper from vegetable fibres such as wood pulp, old rags and other ingredients using a Fourdrinier machine or other type of paper machine.- History :...
operation of Bowater
Bowater
Bowater was an American pulp and paper company based in Greenville, South Carolina. Bowater had 12 pulp and paper mills in the United States, Canada and South Korea and 13 North American sawmills. It had approximately 10,000 employees...
Corporation in Calhoun
Calhoun, Tennessee
Calhoun is a town in McMinn County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 496 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Calhoun is situated along the north bank of the Hiwassee River, which flows down from the Appalachian Mountains to the east and empties into the Chickamauga Lake impoundment of the...
, which is a major local employer. Logging trucks and rail
Rail transport
Rail transport is a means of conveyance of passengers and goods by way of wheeled vehicles running on rail tracks. In contrast to road transport, where vehicles merely run on a prepared surface, rail vehicles are also directionally guided by the tracks they run on...
traffic to and from this plant frequently traverse Charleston.
Charleston is the postal address
Address (geography)
An address is a collection of information, presented in a mostly fixed format, used for describing the location of a building, apartment, or other structure or a plot of land, generally using political boundaries and street names as references, along with other identifiers such as house or...
of the international headquarters of the Christian denomination
Christian denomination
A Christian denomination is an identifiable religious body under a common name, structure, and doctrine within Christianity. In the Orthodox tradition, Churches are divided often along ethnic and linguistic lines, into separate churches and traditions. Technically, divisions between one group and...
The Church of God, commonly called "The Church of God (Charleston, Tennessee)" to distinguish it from other similarly named denominations. However, the denomination's headquarters are actually located in Cleveland.
History
Charleston was the site of the last CherokeeCherokee
The Cherokee are a Native American people historically settled in the Southeastern United States . Linguistically, they are part of the Iroquoian language family...
Agency as well as Fort Cass
Fort Cass
Fort Cass, established in 1835, was an important site during the Cherokee removal known as the Trail of Tears. Located on the Hiwassee River in present-day Charleston, Tennessee, it housed a garrison of United States troops and watched over the largest concentration of internment camps where...
, the headquarters of the Cherokee Removal of 1838, known as the Trail of Tears
Trail of Tears
The Trail of Tears is a name given to the forced relocation and movement of Native American nations from southeastern parts of the United States following the Indian Removal Act of 1830...
. The valley between Charleston and Cleveland, Tennessee
Cleveland, Tennessee
Cleveland is a city in Bradley County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 41,285 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Bradley County...
was filled for 12 miles (19.3 km) with internment camps in which thousands of Cherokee from various towns waited during the summer of 1838 for the start of the main trek west (Duncan 2003:261).
Further reading
- Duncan, Barbara R. and Riggs, Brett H. Cherokee Heritage Trails Guidebook. University of North Carolina Press: Chapel Hill (2003). ISBN 0-8078-5457-3