Rockwood, Tennessee
Encyclopedia
Rockwood is a city in Roane County, Tennessee, United States
. Its population was 5,774 at the 2000 census
. It is included in the Harriman, Tennessee
Micropolitan Statistical Area.
, known locally as Walden Ridge. The boundary between the Eastern Time Zone and Central Time Zone runs along Rockwood's western boundary. The Watts Bar Lake
impoundment of the Tennessee River
provides much of Rockwood's southern boundary.
Rockwood is centered around a series of roads which intersect U.S. Route 70
between its junction with State Route 29 in the northeast and State Route 27 to the southwest. In recent years, the town has expanded toward Interstate 40
to the northeast. Rockwood is a familiar site to travelers who frequent I-40 between Knoxville and Nashville, as dramatic views of Rockwood and the Tennessee Valley beyond line the interstate just before it tops out at the edge of the Cumberland Plateau.
According to the United States Census Bureau
, the city has a total area of 7.9 square miles (20.5 km²), of which, 7.9 square miles (20.5 km²) of it is land and 0.1 square mile (0.258998811 km²) of it (0.63%) is water.
of 2000, there were 5,774 people, 2,478 households, and 1,558 families residing in the city. The population density
was 731.4 people per square mile (282.6/km²). There were 2,729 housing units at an average density of 345.7 per square mile (133.5/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 92.86% White, 5.44% African American, 0.26% Native American, 0.29% Asian, 0.21% from other races
, and 0.94% from two or more races. Hispanic/Latino/Tejano
of any race were 0.81% of the population.
There were 2,478 households out of which 25.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.8% were married couples living together, 14.7% had a female households with no husband present, and 37.1% were non-families. 34.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household
size was 2.25 and the average family size was 2.87.
In the city the population was spread out with 21.5% under the age of 18, 7.8% from 18 to 24, 25.0% from 25 to 44, 25.0% from 45 to 64, and 20.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 83.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 78.1 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $23,986, and the median income for a family was $32,237. Males had a median income of $27,188 versus $20,755 for females. The per capita income
for the city was $13,106. About 17.4% of families and 21.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 30.4% of those under age 18 and 17.6% of those age 65 or over.
village situated in what is now Rockwood was the headquarters of Chief Tallentuskie, a Cherokee leader in the late 18th and early 19th centuries.
general John T. Wilder
, who in the 1850s had managed a foundry
in Indiana, noted the iron ore and coal deposits of the Cumberland Plateau region while operating in the area during the Civil War. After the war, Wilder and Ohio-born Knoxville Iron Company
founder Hiram Chamberlain (1835–1916) purchased 900 acres (364.2 ha) at what is now Rockwood, selecting the location due to the ore and coal resources at the base of Walden Ridge, the proximity to the Tennessee River, and an assumption that the encroaching railroads would descend the Plateau at nearby Emory Gap. Wilder and Chamberlain enlisted several other investors from Indiana and Ohio, and the Roane Iron Company was chartered on June 18, 1867. By late 1868, the company had constructed a blast furnace
with a capacity of 15 tons per day between the ridge and the end of what is now Rockwood Street.
The company mined coal and iron ore along the ridge, which it transported by narrow-gauge rail to the furnace site. The coal was delivered to coking ovens, where it was converted into coke
, and the coke was then used to generate the temperatures needed to convert the iron ore into pig iron
. The pig iron was then shipped by river to rolling mills in Knoxville and Chattanooga, and was used primarily in railroad construction. In the early 1880s, Roane Iron purchased a rolling mill in Chattanooga and experimented with steel production, but the Walden Ridge ore proved to be too low-quality for such a process, and the company abandoned its steel venture in 1889.
Roane Iron's Rockwood furnace employed a mix of local labor (both caucasian and African-American) and immigrants (especially Welsh
immigrants), and did not practice wage discrimination. The company paid workers either cash, which was issued on paydays, or scrip
, which could be issued anytime at the worker's request. Other than a miners' strike in 1904, Roane Iron experienced relatively few labor disputes, even though labor organizations were active in Rockwood. A series of mining accidents— namely a 1926 mine explosion— damaged the company's image and led to out-of-control workers' compensation payments, however, and in 1929 Roane Iron shut down operations.
and Harriman
, Rockwood's growth was gradual. Rockwood's population grew from 696 in 1870 to 1,011 in 1880. By 1890, the city's population had swelled to 2,305.
For the first 50 years of its existence, Rockwood was polarized by the temperance issue. Wilder, a prohibitionist, banned alcoholic beverages on company property, and tried in vain to prevent drunkenness in the town throughout the 1870s. Saloons became commonplace in Rockwood in the 1880s, however, and Roane Iron began to struggle with absenteeism
, as many employees worked for just a few days per week in order to make enough money for a "weekend of drinking and fighting." In 1887, after the state's "four-mile" law effectively banned saloons in unincorporated area
s, a section of the town incorporated as "East Rockwood" to dodge the law. Rockwood, which incorporated in 1890, passed an ordinance banning the sale of alcohol in 1903, but the ordinance didn't apply to railroads, and the so-called "jug train" from Chattanooga continued supplying Rockwood with liquor until the statewide prohibition law took effect in 1909.
Noting the success of land auctions in nearby Cardiff and Harriman, Roane Iron held its own land auction for Rockwood in May 1890, selling several hundred lots and raising $600,000. To promote the city, the company laid out new streets, built new hotels, and allowed general stores to set up shop in the city and compete with the company store. These de-paternalization measures helped Rockwood survive the Panic of 1893
, which doomed neighboring Cardiff.
, however, the Tennessee Products Corporation reopened the iron works to produce ferromanganese
for the wartime effort.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Its population was 5,774 at the 2000 census
United States Census, 2000
The Twenty-second United States Census, known as Census 2000 and conducted by the Census Bureau, determined the resident population of the United States on April 1, 2000, to be 281,421,906, an increase of 13.2% over the 248,709,873 persons enumerated during the 1990 Census...
. It is included in the Harriman, Tennessee
Harriman, Tennessee
Harriman is a city in the U.S. state of Tennessee, primarily in Roane County, with a small extension into Morgan County. It is the principal city of and is included in the Harriman Micropolitan Statistical Area, which consists of Roane County and is a component of the Knoxville-Sevierville-La...
Micropolitan Statistical Area.
Geography
Rockwood is located at 35°52′9"N 84°40′31"W (35.869147, -84.675176). The city is situated at the base of the eastern escarpment of the Cumberland PlateauCumberland Plateau
The Cumberland Plateau is the southern part of the Appalachian Plateau. It includes much of eastern Kentucky and western West Virginia, part of Tennessee, and a small portion of northern Alabama and northwest Georgia . The terms "Allegheny Plateau" and the "Cumberland Plateau" both refer to the...
, known locally as Walden Ridge. The boundary between the Eastern Time Zone and Central Time Zone runs along Rockwood's western boundary. The Watts Bar Lake
Watts Bar Lake
Watts Bar Lake is a reservoir on the Tennessee River created by Watts Bar Dam as part of the Tennessee Valley Authority system.-Geography:Located about midway between Chattanooga and Knoxville, the lake begins as the Tennessee River below Fort Loudon Dam in Lenoir City, Tennessee and stretches...
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...
provides much of Rockwood's southern boundary.
Rockwood is centered around a series of roads which intersect U.S. Route 70
U.S. Route 70
U.S. Route 70 is an east–west United States highway that runs for 2,385 miles from eastern North Carolina to east-central Arizona. As can be derived from its number, it is a major east–west highway of the Southern and Southwestern United States...
between its junction with State Route 29 in the northeast and State Route 27 to the southwest. In recent years, the town has expanded toward Interstate 40
Interstate 40
Interstate 40 is the third-longest major east–west Interstate Highway in the United States, after I-90 and I-80. Its western end is at Interstate 15 in Barstow, California; its eastern end is at a concurrency of U.S. Route 117 and North Carolina Highway 132 in Wilmington, North Carolina...
to the northeast. Rockwood is a familiar site to travelers who frequent I-40 between Knoxville and Nashville, as dramatic views of Rockwood and the Tennessee Valley beyond line the interstate just before it tops out at the edge of the Cumberland Plateau.
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 7.9 square miles (20.5 km²), of which, 7.9 square miles (20.5 km²) of it is land and 0.1 square mile (0.258998811 km²) of it (0.63%) 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 5,774 people, 2,478 households, and 1,558 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 731.4 people per square mile (282.6/km²). There were 2,729 housing units at an average density of 345.7 per square mile (133.5/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 92.86% White, 5.44% African American, 0.26% Native American, 0.29% Asian, 0.21% 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 0.94% from two or more races. Hispanic/Latino/Tejano
Tejano
Tejano or Texano is a term used to identify a Texan of Mexican heritage.Historically, the Spanish term Tejano has been used to identify different groups of people...
of any race were 0.81% of the population.
There were 2,478 households out of which 25.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.8% were married couples living together, 14.7% had a female households with no husband present, and 37.1% were non-families. 34.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household
Household
The household is "the basic residential unit in which economic production, consumption, inheritance, child rearing, and shelter are organized and carried out"; [the household] "may or may not be synonymous with family"....
size was 2.25 and the average family size was 2.87.
In the city the population was spread out with 21.5% under the age of 18, 7.8% from 18 to 24, 25.0% from 25 to 44, 25.0% from 45 to 64, and 20.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 83.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 78.1 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $23,986, and the median income for a family was $32,237. Males had a median income of $27,188 versus $20,755 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 $13,106. About 17.4% of families and 21.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 30.4% of those under age 18 and 17.6% of those age 65 or over.
Early history
A CherokeeCherokee
The Cherokee are a Native American people historically settled in the Southeastern United States . Linguistically, they are part of the Iroquoian language family...
village situated in what is now Rockwood was the headquarters of Chief Tallentuskie, a Cherokee leader in the late 18th and early 19th centuries.
Roane Iron Company
UnionUnion (American Civil War)
During the American Civil War, the Union was a name used to refer to the federal government of the United States, which was supported by the twenty free states and five border slave states. It was opposed by 11 southern slave states that had declared a secession to join together to form the...
general John T. Wilder
John T. Wilder
John Thomas Wilder was an officer in the Union Army during the American Civil War. As an industrialist, he was instrumental in developing the natural resources of the State of Tennessee.-Early life and career:...
, who in the 1850s had managed a foundry
Foundry
A foundry is a factory that produces metal castings. Metals are cast into shapes by melting them into a liquid, pouring the metal in a mold, and removing the mold material or casting after the metal has solidified as it cools. The most common metals processed are aluminum and cast iron...
in Indiana, noted the iron ore and coal deposits of the Cumberland Plateau region while operating in the area during the Civil War. After the war, Wilder and Ohio-born Knoxville Iron Company
Knoxville Iron Company
The Knoxville Iron Company was an iron production and coal mining company that operated primarily in Knoxville, Tennessee, USA, and its vicinity, in the late 19th and 20th centuries. The company was Knoxville's first major post-Civil War manufacturing firm, and played a key role in bringing heavy...
founder Hiram Chamberlain (1835–1916) purchased 900 acres (364.2 ha) at what is now Rockwood, selecting the location due to the ore and coal resources at the base of Walden Ridge, the proximity to the Tennessee River, and an assumption that the encroaching railroads would descend the Plateau at nearby Emory Gap. Wilder and Chamberlain enlisted several other investors from Indiana and Ohio, and the Roane Iron Company was chartered on June 18, 1867. By late 1868, the company had constructed a blast furnace
Blast furnace
A blast furnace is a type of metallurgical furnace used for smelting to produce industrial metals, generally iron.In a blast furnace, fuel and ore and flux are continuously supplied through the top of the furnace, while air is blown into the bottom of the chamber, so that the chemical reactions...
with a capacity of 15 tons per day between the ridge and the end of what is now Rockwood Street.
The company mined coal and iron ore along the ridge, which it transported by narrow-gauge rail to the furnace site. The coal was delivered to coking ovens, where it was converted into coke
Coke (fuel)
Coke is the solid carbonaceous material derived from destructive distillation of low-ash, low-sulfur bituminous coal. Cokes from coal are grey, hard, and porous. While coke can be formed naturally, the commonly used form is man-made.- History :...
, and the coke was then used to generate the temperatures needed to convert the iron ore into pig iron
Pig iron
Pig iron is the intermediate product of smelting iron ore with a high-carbon fuel such as coke, usually with limestone as a flux. Charcoal and anthracite have also been used as fuel...
. The pig iron was then shipped by river to rolling mills in Knoxville and Chattanooga, and was used primarily in railroad construction. In the early 1880s, Roane Iron purchased a rolling mill in Chattanooga and experimented with steel production, but the Walden Ridge ore proved to be too low-quality for such a process, and the company abandoned its steel venture in 1889.
Roane Iron's Rockwood furnace employed a mix of local labor (both caucasian and African-American) and immigrants (especially Welsh
Welsh people
The Welsh people are an ethnic group and nation associated with Wales and the Welsh language.John Davies argues that the origin of the "Welsh nation" can be traced to the late 4th and early 5th centuries, following the Roman departure from Britain, although Brythonic Celtic languages seem to have...
immigrants), and did not practice wage discrimination. The company paid workers either cash, which was issued on paydays, or scrip
Scrip
Scrip is an American term for any substitute for currency which is not legal tender and is often a form of credit. Scrips were created as company payment of employees and also as a means of payment in times where regular money is unavailable, such as remote coal towns, military bases, ships on long...
, which could be issued anytime at the worker's request. Other than a miners' strike in 1904, Roane Iron experienced relatively few labor disputes, even though labor organizations were active in Rockwood. A series of mining accidents— namely a 1926 mine explosion— damaged the company's image and led to out-of-control workers' compensation payments, however, and in 1929 Roane Iron shut down operations.
Development of Rockwood
Worried that the region's Confederate-sympathizers might shun an operation led by a well-known Union general, Wilder decided to name Roane Iron's company town after one of its lesser-known Indiana investors, William O. Rockwood. In spite of the name, William Rockwood played only a minor role in Roane Iron's affairs, and the early development of the town was largely the work of Wilder and Chamberlain. Unlike the "boom" towns in nearby CardiffCardiff, Tennessee
Cardiff was a company town once located in Roane County, Tennessee, USA. Established in the early 1890s by New England investors, the town was to house workers and managers for a large-scale mining operation that sought to utilize the abundant iron ore and coal resources along nearby Walden Ridge...
and Harriman
Harriman, Tennessee
Harriman is a city in the U.S. state of Tennessee, primarily in Roane County, with a small extension into Morgan County. It is the principal city of and is included in the Harriman Micropolitan Statistical Area, which consists of Roane County and is a component of the Knoxville-Sevierville-La...
, Rockwood's growth was gradual. Rockwood's population grew from 696 in 1870 to 1,011 in 1880. By 1890, the city's population had swelled to 2,305.
For the first 50 years of its existence, Rockwood was polarized by the temperance issue. Wilder, a prohibitionist, banned alcoholic beverages on company property, and tried in vain to prevent drunkenness in the town throughout the 1870s. Saloons became commonplace in Rockwood in the 1880s, however, and Roane Iron began to struggle with absenteeism
Absenteeism
Absenteeism is a habitual pattern of absence from a duty or obligation. Traditionally, absenteeism has been viewed as an indicator of poor individual performance, as well as a breach of an implicit contract between employee and employer; it was seen as a management problem, and framed in economic...
, as many employees worked for just a few days per week in order to make enough money for a "weekend of drinking and fighting." In 1887, after the state's "four-mile" law effectively banned saloons in unincorporated area
Unincorporated area
In law, an unincorporated area is a region of land that is not a part of any municipality.To "incorporate" in this context means to form a municipal corporation, a city, town, or village with its own government. An unincorporated community is usually not subject to or taxed by a municipal government...
s, a section of the town incorporated as "East Rockwood" to dodge the law. Rockwood, which incorporated in 1890, passed an ordinance banning the sale of alcohol in 1903, but the ordinance didn't apply to railroads, and the so-called "jug train" from Chattanooga continued supplying Rockwood with liquor until the statewide prohibition law took effect in 1909.
Noting the success of land auctions in nearby Cardiff and Harriman, Roane Iron held its own land auction for Rockwood in May 1890, selling several hundred lots and raising $600,000. To promote the city, the company laid out new streets, built new hotels, and allowed general stores to set up shop in the city and compete with the company store. These de-paternalization measures helped Rockwood survive the Panic of 1893
Panic of 1893
The Panic of 1893 was a serious economic depression in the United States that began in 1893. Similar to the Panic of 1873, this panic was marked by the collapse of railroad overbuilding and shaky railroad financing which set off a series of bank failures...
, which doomed neighboring Cardiff.
20th century
In the early 20th century, Rockwood's economy further diversified. Former Roane Iron employee James Tarwater founded Rockwood Mills, which manufactured hosiery, in 1905. Another former Roane Iron employee, Sewell Howard, established Rockwood Stove Works in 1916. After Roane Iron's collapse in 1929, Rockwood struggled with unemployment. At the outbreak of World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, however, the Tennessee Products Corporation reopened the iron works to produce ferromanganese
Ferromanganese
Ferromanganese, a ferroalloy with high content of manganese, is made by heating a mixture of the oxides MnO2 and Fe2O3, with carbon, usually as coal and coke, in either a blast furnace or an electric arc furnace-type system, called a submerged arc furnace. The oxides undergo carbothermal reduction...
for the wartime effort.
Notable people
- Harry T. BurnHarry T. BurnHarry Thomas Burn, Sr. was a member of the Tennessee General Assembly for McMinn County, Tennessee. Burn became the youngest member of the state legislature when he was elected at the age of twenty-two...
(1885–1977), Tennessee legislator who broke the deadlock on the 19th Amendment to the United States Constitution and gave women the right to vote in the United States - Christian H. CooperChristian H. CooperChristian Cooper is an author, trader and independent film producer living in New York City. He is the Head of USD Derivatives Trading at Jefferies & Co. in New York City and is a frequent commentator in the Wall Street Journal, Reuters, Financial Times, and Bloomberg News. He is the author of...
(b. 1976), author, derivatives trader and independent film producer, member of the CSISCenter for Strategic and International StudiesThe Center for Strategic and International Studies is a bipartisan Washington, D.C., foreign policy think tank. The center was founded in 1962 by Admiral Arleigh Burke and Ambassador David Manker Abshire, originally as part of Georgetown University...
, Aspen InstituteAspen InstituteThe Aspen Institute is an international nonprofit organization founded in 1950 as the Aspen Institute of Humanistic Studies. The organization is dedicated to "fostering enlightened leadership, the appreciation of timeless ideas and values, and open-minded dialogue on contemporary issues." The...
, and Chatham HouseChatham HouseChatham House, formally known as The Royal Institute of International Affairs, is a non-profit, non-governmental organization based in London whose mission is to analyse and promote the understanding of major international issues and current affairs. It is regarded as one of the world's leading... - Nancy-Ann DeParle (b. 1956), Rhodes Scholar, American expert on health carePublic healthPublic health is "the science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life and promoting health through the organized efforts and informed choices of society, organizations, public and private, communities and individuals" . It is concerned with threats to health based on population health...
issues and director of White House Office of Health ReformWhite House Office of Health ReformThe White House Office of Health Reform is a new government entity in the United States created by President Barack Obama. The office forms part of the Domestic Policy Council which is part of the Office of White House Policy. The Director of the Office of Health Reform is titled the Deputy...
. - Megan FoxMegan FoxMegan Denise Fox is an American actress and model. She began her acting career in 2001 with several minor television and film roles, and played a regular role on Hope & Faith. In 2004, she launched her film career with a role in Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen...
(b. 1986), actress, best known for her role in the 2007 science fiction blockbuster Transformers - Michael Calvin McGeeMichael Calvin McGeeMichael Calvin McGee was an American rhetorical theorist, writer, and social critic....
(1943-2002), academic - C. M. NewtonC. M. NewtonCharles Martin "C. M." Newton is a retired American basketball player, coach and administrator. He was enshrined in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as a Contributor on October 13, 2000....
(b. 1930), basketball player, coach and administrator, member of the Basketball Hall of FameBasketball Hall of FameThe Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, located in Springfield, Massachusetts, United States, honors exceptional basketball players, coaches, referees, executives, and other major contributors to the game of basketball worldwide...
External links
- Official City of Rockwood website
- Rockwood, Tennessee — Roane County Heritage Commission website