Dickson, Tennessee

History

Dickson was named for Congressman William Dickson, as was Dickson County. The City started as a stop on the railroad line between Nashville and the Tennessee River. When Union Troops had finished the supply line during the Civil War, the area was known as Mile 42 post.

It is disputed on what the community was known as prior to being named Dickson. Dr. Robert Corlew's book A History of Dickson County makes the claim that the community was named Sneedsville in honor of a railroad engineer named Sneed who helped complete the tracks under the orders of General Ulysses S. Grant. Various other sources also state that the city was at one point named Sneedsville. Other sources claim that the community was named Smeedsville rather than Sneedsville. One claim comes from a series of writings for the Dickson Free Press by former mayor Robert S. Clement From Mile Post 42… To City of Dickson 1980. In article 7 "Was it called Sneedsville or Smeedsville?" Clement writes about a 1867 Chancery Court decree that was brought to his attention by historian Henry Ragan that refers to the land as "Smeedsville, Dickson County, Tennessee.", and that Ragan interviewed various locals who remembered the town being named Smeedsville. Corlew claimed that he had found Chancery Court documents from the same year that incorporated the area as Sneedsville or Smeedsville, and that it's hard to interpret it being an "n" or an "m" due to the handwriting.

Geography

Dickson is located in south-central Dickson County at (36.071485, -87.374539). It is bordered to the east by the town of Burns. U.S. Route 70 passes through the north side of the city as Henslee Drive; it leads east 40 mi to Nashville and west 62 mi to Huntingdon. Interstate 40 passes through the Dickson city limits 5 mi south of the center of town, with access from Exit 172 (Tennessee State Route 46). I-40 leads east 37 mi to Nashville from Exit 172 and west 92 mi to Jackson.

According to the United States Census Bureau, Dickson has a total area of 51.9 sqkm, of which 51.7 sqkm is land and 0.2 sqkm, or 0.41%, is water. The city center sits on the Tennessee Valley Divide, with the southwest side of the city draining via the East Piney River to the Piney River, then to the Duck River, and then to the Tennessee River, while the northeast side drains via Turnbull Creek or Jones Creek to the Harpeth River and thence to the Cumberland River.

Climate

|Jan record high F = 80 |Feb record high F = 82 |Mar record high F = 93 |Apr record high F = 95 |May record high F = 98 |Jun record high F = 109 |Jul record high F = 110 |Aug record high F = 110 |Sep record high F = 108 |Oct record high F = 95 |Nov record high F = 88 |Dec record high F = 78 |year record high F = 110 |Jan record low F = -23 |Feb record low F = -14 |Mar record low F = -1 |Apr record low F = 16 |May record low F = 29 |Jun record low F = 38 |Jul record low F = 48 |Aug record low F = 42 |Sep record low F = 32 |Oct record low F = 20 |Nov record low F = -3 |Dec record low F = −13 |year record low F = -23 | access-date = October 2, 2021}} | access-date = October 2, 2021}}

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 16,058 people, 5,842 households, and 3,690 families residing in the city.

2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 12,244 people, 4,934 households, and 3,300 families residing in the city. There were 24,325 people in the 37055 zip code. The population density was 743.4 PD/sqmi. There were 5,280 housing units at an average density of 320.6 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the city was 87.86% White, 8.83% African American, 0.46% Native American, 0.56% Asian, 0.77% from other races, and 1.54% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.94% of the population.

There were 4,934 households, out of which 34.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.5% were married couples living together, 16.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.1% were non-families. 29.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.42 and the average family size was 2.97.

In the city the population was spread out, with 27.2% under the age of 18, 9.0% from 18 to 24, 28.9% from 25 to 44, 20.6% from 45 to 64, and 14.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 86.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 79.8 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $34,549, and the median income for a family was $42,632. Males had a median income of $32,733 versus $23,138 for females. The per capita income for the city was $17,654. About 12.6% of families and 15.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.3% of those under age 18 and 14.2% of those age 65 or over.

Government

Mayor

The City of Dickson is governed by a mayor and City Council. Mayor Don Weiss, Jr., has served in office since 1993, making him the longest-serving mayor of Dickson.

City Council

The City of Dickson is divided into four wards, each of which elects two members to the City Council. Councillors are elected to staggered four-year terms, with one councillor from each ward being elected every two years.

City Administrator

As the Mayor of Dickson is only a part-time job, a City Administrator is also appointed to oversee the day-to-day operations of the city government and its budget.

Parks and Recreation

The City of Dickson Parks and Recreation Department maintains and operates various green spaces in Dickson, including sports areas, playgrounds, lake areas, and community centers.

Media

Television

• WDHC-LD Channel 6 (The Family Channel)

Radio

AM

• WDKN 1260 AM, Country, Gospel, Talk

FM

• WLTD-LP 103.9 FM 3ABN Radio, Religious
• WNRZ 91.5 FM Bott Radio Network

Notable people

• Frank G. Clement, Governor of Tennessee
• Francis Craig, songwriter, bandleader
• Trevor Daniel, American Football punter for the Tennessee Titans of the National Football League
• Walter S. Davis, educator.
• John Mitchell, baseball player
• Craig Morgan, country singer
• Anson Mount, actor
• Sunita Mani, Indian-American actress
• Anthony Wayne Van Leer, entrepreneur

References

References

1. "ArcGIS REST Services Directory". United States Census Bureau.
2. "U.S. Census website". [[United States Census Bureau]].
3. (October 25, 2007). "US Board on Geographic Names". [[United States Geological Survey]].
4. "Dickson, Tennessee".
5. Gannett, Henry. (1905). "The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States". Govt. Print. Off..
6. "About the City".
7. Corlew, Robert. (May 17, 2019). "A History of Dickson County". Southern Historical Press.
8. "TGN Full Record Display, English (Getty Research)".
9. "Dickson, Dickson County, Tennessee, United States".
10. "From Milepost 42…to City of Dickson {{!}} Ragan's Five Rivers".
11. (February 12, 2011). "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". [[United States Census Bureau]].
12. "Census of Population and Housing: Decennial Censuses". [[United States Census Bureau]].
13. "Incorporated Places and Minor Civil Divisions Datasets: Subcounty Resident Population Estimates: April 1, 2010 to July 1, 2012". U.S. Census Bureau.
14. "Census Population API". United States Census Bureau.
15. "Explore Census Data".
16. "Mayor's Office".
17. McKinney., Clay. "City of Dickson, Tennessee - City Council".
18. McKinney., Clay. "City of Dickson, Tennessee - Administrator Tom Waychoff".
19. McKinney., Clay. "City of Dickson, Tennessee - Parks".
20. (Spring 2011). "Not Just a Matter of Black and White: The Nashville Riot of 1967". Tennessee Historical Quarterly.