A Brief History of Morristown
Morristown is the county seat of Hamblen County, located in the northeast corner of Tennessee. The area was first settled in the late 1700’s by settlers of Scotch-Irish and German descent who moved into the region from Virginia, Pennsylvania and North Carolina.
The city of Morristown was incorporated in 1855. At that time the city was part of Jefferson and Grainger counties. Hamblen County was formed fifteen years later in 1870 from portions of Jefferson, Grainger and Hawkins counties.
In the middle of the 20th century the community evolved from an agricultural based economy to a manufacturing based economy, producing such a wide range of products as textiles and furniture to automotive parts and high tech plastics. Morristown/Hamblen County serves as the hub of the Lakeway Area for employment, educational, retail, medical, and entertainment services.
Demographic Information
Population (2010):
City of Morristown – 29,137
Hamblen County – 62,544
Total Land Area – 174 Square Miles
Elevation
1,351 feet above sea level
Climate and Temperature
Annual average temperature: 60 degrees F
Annual average rainfall: 46”
Annual average snowfall: 11.9”
Median Household Income: $25, 910
Retail Sales (2008): $1,322,352,772
GOVERNMENT
City of Morristown – www.mymorristown.com
Mayor and Six Council Members
Council/City Administrator
80 Police Officers/86 Patrol Cars
92 Full-time Fire Fighters/12 Vehicles
Hamblen County - www.hamblencountygovernment.us
County Mayor and Fourteen Member Commission
County Sherriff – 65 Officers/32 Patrol Cars
Four Volunteer Fire Departments
COMMUNICATIONS
Post Office Class - First
Newspaper- Citizen Tribune (daily except Saturday)
3 Radio Stations – WCRK, WJDT, WMTN
Television Stations – ABC, CBS, Fox, NBC, PBS
Cable Television – Charter Communications, FiberNet
Telephone Companies – BellSouth, FiberNet
EDUCATIONAL FACILITIES
Public School System – Hamblen County Department of Education www.hcboe.net
Elementary Schools – 11
Middle Schools – 4
High Schools – 2
Alternate School – 1
Student/Teacher Ratio – 19:1
Total Enrollment – 9,500
Private and Parochial Schools – 6
Higher Education – 2
Tennessee Technology Center - www.ttcmorristown.edu
Walters State Community College – www.ws.edu
COMMUNITY FACILITIES
Health Care
Two Hospitals with 332 inpatient beds
Two Nursing Homes with 358 beds
Two Assisted Living Facilities with 238 beds (both equipped with memory loss halls)
One Out-Patient Mental Health Facility
Physicians – 125, practicing in both family care and specialty areas
Dentists – 29
Churches – 116 (over 25 denominations)
Recreational Facilities
Panther Creek State Park
Cherokee Lake
City and/or County Parks – 14
Golf Courses – 3
Restaurants – 117
Movie Theatres – 12
Theatres – 3
Motel/Hotel Rooms – 755
Day Care
Child Care Centers – 24
Libraries - 4
TRANSPORTATION
Interstates – 40 & 81
Highways – U.S. 11E, U.S. 25E
State Routes – 66, 160, 342
Air Service
Municipal: Moore-Murrell Airport (MOR)
Commercial: McGhee-Tyson Airport (TYS) – Knoxville, Tennessee
Tri-Cities Regional Airport (TRI) – Blountville, Tennessee
Rail – Norfolk Southern
TAX STRUCTURE
Local
Property Tax Rate per $100 Value:
City - $1.05
County - $1.64
Rate of Assessment
Residential – 25%
Industrial – 40%
Personal (Equipment) – 30%
Sales Tax – 2.75% City, 2.75% County
Hotel-Motel Tax – 7% City, 7% County
State
Sales Tax – 7%
(5.5% on Food and Food Ingredients)
Income Tax
Personal – 6% on Interest and Dividends
Corporate (Excise)...6.5% of Net Earnings