Paris, Tennessee

Paris is a city in and the county seat of Henry County,[6] Tennessee, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 10,156.[7]

Paris, Tennessee
Location in Henry County, Tennessee
Coordinates: 36°18′4″N 88°18′50″W
CountryUnited States
StateTennessee
CountyHenry
Incorporated1823
Named forParis, France[1]
Area
  Total12.96 sq mi (33.55 km2)
  Land12.91 sq mi (33.43 km2)
  Water0.05 sq mi (0.12 km2)
Elevation
515 ft (157 m)
Population
 (2010)
  Total10,156
  Estimate 
(2019)[3]
10,056
  Density778.99/sq mi (300.78/km2)
Time zoneUTC-6 (Central (CST))
  Summer (DST)UTC-5 (CDT)
ZIP code
38242
Area code(s)731
FIPS code47-56720[4]
GNIS feature ID1296772[5]
Websitewww.cityofparistn.gov

A 70-foot (21 m) replica of the Eiffel Tower stands in the southern part of Paris.[8] The city hosts what it claims as the "World's Biggest Fish Fry."

History

The present site of Paris was selected by five commissioners appointed to the task of choosing a county seat at the December 1822 session of the Court of Pleas and Quarter Sessions of Henry County. Their choice was a 50-acre (20 ha) site, of which 37.5 acres (15.2 ha) were owned by Joseph Blythe and 12.5 acres (5.1 ha) owned by Peter Ruff; both men donated the land to the county to have the seat there. A public square, streets, alleys, and 104 lots were laid off, and the lots were sold at auction over a two-day period in either March or April 1823.[9]

Paris was incorporated on September 30, 1823. It was the first town incorporated in West Tennessee, followed by Lexington on October 9, 1824, and Memphis on December 19, 1826.[9][10][11] The city was named after Paris, France, in honor of the Marquis de Lafayette, a hero of the American Revolutionary War.[1]

As the county seat, Paris was a center of trade for the rural county, which was largely devoted to agriculture and particularly the cultivation of cotton as a commodity crop. The planters depended on a large workforce of enslaved African Americans.

Between about 1970 and 1990, Paris became the center of the Old Beachy Amish. Beachy Amish from different regions moved there to maintain their traditional ways. Because of internal conflicts, most Old Beachy Amish left the region in the early 1990s and had completely vacated it by 2000.[12]

Geography

Paris is located just south of the center of Henry County at 36°18′4″N 88°18′50″W (36.301229, -88.313815).[13] U.S. Route 641 passes through the city center as Market Street, leading north 21 miles (34 km) to Murray, Kentucky, and southeast 22 miles (35 km) to Camden. U.S. Route 79 passes southeast of the city center as Tyson Avenue and Wood Street; it leads northeast 62 miles (100 km) to Clarksville and southwest 16 miles (26 km) to McKenzie. Nashville, the state capital, is 86 miles (138 km) to the east as the crow flies and 113 miles (182 km) by the quickest road route, via Clarksville.

According to the United States Census Bureau, Paris has a total area of 13.0 square miles (33.7 km2), of which 13.0 square miles (33.6 km2) are land and 0.04 square miles (0.1 km2), or 0.27%, is covered by water.[7] The city is drained primarily to the east, by tributaries of West Sandy Creek, flowing to the Tennessee River in Kentucky Lake. The southwest corner of the city drains to the Middle Fork of the Obion River, a west-flowing tributary of the Mississippi River.

Climate

The climate of Paris is humid subtropical (Köppen Cfa) with mild winters and hot summers. Under the Trewartha climate classification, it is a temperate oceanic (Do) climate because only 7 months of the Paris year have a mean daily temperature of 50°F (10°C) or higher.

Demographics

Historical population
CensusPop.
18801,767
18901,9178.5%
19002,0185.3%
19103,88192.3%
19204,73021.9%
19308,16472.6%
19406,395−21.7%
19508,82638.0%
19609,3255.7%
19709,8926.1%
198010,7288.5%
19909,332−13.0%
20009,7634.6%
201010,1564.0%
2019 (est.)10,056[3]−1.0%
Sources:[14]

As of the census[4] of 2010, there were 10,156 people, 4,394 households, and 2,605 families residing in the city. The population density was 897.4 people per square mile (346.5/km2). There were 4,965 housing units at an average density of 456.4 per square mile (176.2/km2). The racial makeup of the city was 76.99% White, 19.25% African American, 0.34% Native American, 0.64% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.42% from other races, and 2.34% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.63% of the population.

There were 4,394 households, out of which 24.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 38.5% were married couples living together, 16.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 40.7% were non-families. 36.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 19.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.14 and the average family size was 2.77.

In the city, the ages of population were nearly equally distributed, with 22.94% under the age of 18, 55.89% from 18 to 64, and 21.7% who were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females, there were 81.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 77.1 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $25,261, and the median income for a family was $32,258. Males had a median income of $27,759 versus $20,198 for females. The per capita income for the city was $15,572. About 14.1% of families and 19.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 26.6% of those under age 18 and 20.5% of those age 65 or over.

Industry

Local companies manufacture brakes, small electric motors, aftermarket auto parts, metal doors, rubber parts and school laboratory furniture.[15]

Culture

Welcome sign along US 79

Eiffel Tower

Constructed by students at Christian Brothers University in the early 1990s, the Eiffel Tower was installed in Eiffel Tower Park. The original 65-foot (20 m) wooden tower was later replaced with a 70-foot (21 m) metal structure. The tower is a scale model of the Eiffel Tower in Paris, France.[16]

Eiffel Tower Park provides tennis courts, a public Olympic-sized swimming pool, soccer fields, two walking trails, a children's playground with pavilions, and a frisbee golf course.

Arts

Paris is known for its support of the arts. Many large events of musical nature take place in the city's auditorium, the Krider Performing Arts Center. Known as "KPAC", the building is attached to the city's public elementary school, Paris Elementary.

Sports

From 1922 to 1924, Paris was home to a Minor League Baseball team that played in the Kentucky–Illinois–Tennessee League as the Paris Travelers (1922) and the HCHS Football team has won the 5A State Championship twice Paris Parisians (1923–1924).[17]

Notable people

Paris/Henry County media

Radio stations
Newspapers
  • The Paris Post-Intelligencer

References

  1. History of Paris/Henry Co. Archived 2013-02-21 at the Wayback Machine, Paris-Henry County Chamber of Commerce. Retrieved: 24 January 2013.
  2. "2019 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved July 30, 2020.
  3. "Population and Housing Unit Estimates". United States Census Bureau. May 24, 2020. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
  4. "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
  5. "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-25. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
  6. "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved 2011-06-07.
  7. "Geographic Identifiers: 2010 Census Summary File 1 (G001): Paris city, Tennessee". American Factfinder. U.S. Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved February 1, 2018.
  8. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2007-09-30. Retrieved 2008-03-28.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) Paris, TN Chamber of Commerce. Retrieved on 2008-02-17.
  9. Johnson, E. McLeod (1958). A History of Henry County Tennessee, Volume 1.
  10. "Goodspeed Publishing Co., History of Tennessee, 1886 History of Henderson County". Retrieved 29 July 2011.
  11. "Memphis History and Facts". Archived from the original on 27 September 2007. Retrieved 29 July 2011.
  12. Midwest Beachy Amish Mennonite Church at Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online
  13. "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2011-02-12. Retrieved 2011-04-23.
  14. "Census of Population and Housing: Decennial Censuses". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2012-03-04.
  15. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2007-08-12. Retrieved 2008-02-18.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) Paris, TN Chamber of Commerce. Retrieved on 2008-02-17.
  16. "Eiffel Tower". Paris-Henry County Chamber of Commerce. Archived from the original on 2007-09-30. Retrieved 2008-03-28.
  17. "Paris, Tennessee Encyclopedia". Baseball Reference. Sports Reference. Retrieved May 23, 2020.
  18. "Buchanan, John Hall, Jr". Retrieved 25 August 2012.
  19. "Crockett, John Wesley". Retrieved 21 August 2012.
  20. "Henry County". Retrieved 21 August 2012.
  21. "Rattlesnake Annie". Retrieved 21 August 2012.
  22. "Dr. Edwin Wiley Grove". Retrieved 27 July 2011.
  23. "Isham Green Harris". Retrieved 17 August 2012.
  24. "JACKSON, Howell Edmunds, (1832 - 1895)". Retrieved 3/8/2011. Check date values in: |access-date= (help)
  25. "Howell E. Jackson, 1893-1895". Retrieved 21 August 2012.
  26. Lamb, Yvonne (25 May 2004). "Vernon Jarrett, 84; Journalist, Crusader". Washington Post. Retrieved 27 July 2011.
  27. "Bobby Jone Radio Show". Archived from the original on 23 July 2011. Retrieved 27 July 2011.
  28. "Cherry Jones". Retrieved 22 August 2012.
  29. "Merle Kilgore". Retrieved 21 August 2012.
  30. "About Chick King". Retrieved 27 July 2011.
  31. "Tennessee Governor James Davis Porter". Retrieved 27 July 2011.
  32. "James Davis Porter". Retrieved 21 August 2012.
  33. "Tennessee Governor Thomas Clarke Rye". Retrieved 2 June 2012.
  34. "Tarrant, Edward H." Retrieved 17 August 2012.
  35. "STEPHEN M. VEAZEY". Archived from the original on 13 May 2008. Retrieved 27 July 2011.
  36. Tamara Saviano (2010-04-09). "Hank Williams Jr.: Son of a Gun! (1997)". Country Weekly. Retrieved 2013-12-03.
  37. "Zollicoffer, Felix Kirk". Retrieved 17 August 2012.
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