Sneedville, Tennessee

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Sneedville, Tennessee
Town
Main Street (TN-33) in Sneedville
Main Street (TN-33) in Sneedville
Location of Sneedville, Tennessee
Location of Sneedville, Tennessee
Coordinates: Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
Country United States
State Tennessee
County Hancock
Settled 1790s
Incorporated 1850[1]
Named for William Henry Sneed
Area
 • Total 2.3 sq mi (5.9 km2)
 • Land 2.3 sq mi (5.9 km2)
 • Water 0.0 sq mi (0.0 km2)
Elevation 1,171 ft (357 m)
Population (2010)
 • Total 1,387
 • Density 600/sq mi (240/km2)
Time zone Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
 • Summer (DST) EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP code 37869
Area code(s) 423
FIPS code 47-69460[2]
GNIS feature ID 1303706[3]

Sneedville is a town in Hancock County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 1,387 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Hancock County.[4]

History

European-American settlement began in the 1790s,[5] as migrants moved into the area from the Piedmont frontiers of Virginia and North Carolina. Such migrants had formed families in colonial Virginia. Among them was a multi-racial group of settlers who became known as Melungeon. They have been documented as having primarily European and sub-Saharan African, with a lesser amount of Native American ancestry.

The county historical society asserts that French traders noted encountering the Melungeons in the late 1600s in the area that is now east Tennessee.[6] Such early settlement is not supported by the work of Edward Price, a cultural geographer, who wrote a 1950 dissertation on the Melungeons;[7] Dr. Virginia DeMarce, a professional genealogist;[8] and Paul Heinegg, a genealogist,[9] who have documented the migration of ancestors of the first families known as Melungeon from Virginia and North Carolina in the late eighteenth century.

Sneedville was originally known as "Greasy Rock." When Hancock County was formed from parts of Hawkins and Claiborne counties in the 1840s, Greasy Rock was chosen as the county seat. The town was renamed in honor of William Henry Sneed (1812–1869), an attorney from Knoxville who helped defend the new county when several residents sued in an attempt to block its creation.[10]

Geography

Sneedville is located at Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. (36.532062, -83.214140).[11]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 2.3 square miles (6.0 km2), all land. The Clinch River passes within the city limits.

Demographics

Historical population
Census Pop. %±
1870 177 —
1880 157 −11.3%
1890 156 −0.6%
1960 799 —
1970 874 9.4%
1980 1,110 27.0%
1990 1,446 30.3%
2000 1,257 −13.1%
2010 1,387 10.3%
Est. 2014 1,361 [12] −1.9%
Sources:[13][14]

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 1,387 people residing in the town. 97.4% were White, 0.6% Black or African American, 0.3% Native American, 0.1% Asian and 1.7% of two or more races. 0.3% were Hispanic or Latino (of any race).

As of the census[2] of 2000, there were 1,257 people, 527 households, and 310 families residing in the town. The population density was 551.0 people per square mile (212.9/km²). There were 593 housing units at an average density of 259.9 per square mile (100.4/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 97.69% White, 0.64% African American, 0.16% Native American, 0.72% from other races, and 0.80% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.24% of the population. Melungeons, a so-called "tri-racial isolate", are also present in this area, especially in the Vardy Valley, on the other side of Newman's Ridge.

Sneedville, viewed from Newmans Ridge

There were 527 households out of which 27.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.2% were married couples living together, 14.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 41.0% were non-families. 38.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 18.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.08 and the average family size was 2.77.

In the town the population was spread out with 18.4% under the age of 18, 11.4% from 18 to 24, 28.2% from 25 to 44, 23.5% from 45 to 64, and 18.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 93.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.9 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $13,281, and the median income for a family was $20,208. Males had a median income of $20,500 versus $15,461 for females. The per capita income for the town was $13,173. About 32.9% of families and 36.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 46.9% of those under age 18 and 28.4% of those age 65 or over.

In 2010, Sneedville had the 10th-lowest median household income of all places in the United States with a population over 1,000.[15]

Arts and culture

Annual cultural events

Sneedville hosts two major festivals yearly, the Jimmy Martin Memorial Bluegrass festival in May,[16] and the annual Hancock County Fall Festival on the first weekend of October. This festival highlights some of the most prominent cultural features of the area with music, crafts, and food.

Museums and related points of interest

The Hancock County Tennessee Historical and Genealogical Society is a non-profit organization located in the Old County Jail. The organization provides access to archival material related to the community, and maintains a small museum displaying aspects of traditional mountain life. They publish a bi-yearly newsletter called Our Mountain Heritage for members of the society.[17]

Education

Schools in Sneedville include Hancock County Middle/High School and Hancock County Elementary School.

Infrastructure

Hancock County Hospital, which opened in 2005, is located in Sneedville.[18]

Notable people

See also

Further reading

  • Hancock County Tennessee and It’s People, Volume I, II & III. Sneedsville: Hancock County Historical & Genealogical Society.
  • Hancock County Tennessee Pictorial History Book. Sneedsville: Hancock County Historical & Genealogical Society.

References

  1. ↑ Tennessee Blue Book, 2005-2006, pp. 618-625.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  3. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  4. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  5. ↑ Will Thomas Hale and Dixon L. Merritt, A History of Tennessee and Tennesseans, Vol. 3 (Lewis Publishing Co., 1913), p. 794.
  6. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  7. ↑ Price, Edward T. (1953). "A Geographic Analysis of White-Negro-Indian Racial Mixtures in Eastern United States", Annals of the Association of American Geographers 43 (June 1953): 138–155, accessed 18 February 2013
  8. ↑ DeMarce, Virginia E. (1992). "'Verry Slitly Mixt': Tri-Racial Isolate Families of the Upper South – A Genealogical Study", National Genealogical Society Quarterly 80 (March 1992): 5–35, scanned online, Historical-Melungeons, accessed 18 February 2013
  9. ↑ Paul Heinegg, Free African Americans in Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Delaware and Maryland, 1999–2005
  10. ↑ William G. Cook, "Hancock County," Tennessee Encyclopedia of History and Culture. Retrieved: 18 February 2013.
  11. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  12. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  13. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  14. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  15. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  16. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  17. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  18. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  19. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  20. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.

External links

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