Editing Tullahoma, Tennessee (section)

==History==
Tullahoma was founded in 1852 as a work camp along the new [[Nashville, Chattanooga and St. Louis Railway|Nashville and Chattanooga Railroad]]. Its name is derived from the [[Choctaw language]], and means "red rock".

An alternative explanation (see Sam Davis Elliott's ''Soldier of Tennessee'' and sources cited therein) of the name is that Peter Decherd, who donated the land for the [[Right-of-way (transportation)|railroad right-of-way]] (and was therefore given the right to name two stations along the line), named one station [[Decherd, Tennessee|Decherd]], after himself, and the other as Tulkahoma (later changed to Tullahoma). Tullahoma was the name of Decherd's favorite horse, which had been named for a [[Choctaw]] chief captured by Decherd's grandfather. (There was also a town called Tullahoma in [[Mississippi]], which later changed its name to [[Grenada, Mississippi|Grenada]].)

The earliest settlement was by farmers from [[Virginia]] and [[North Carolina]]. Using [[African Americans|African-American]] [[Slavery in the United States|slave]] labor, they developed plantations for tobacco and hemp. Slaves also tended their livestock, both horses and cattle. Early families were named Moore, Decherd (pronounced as Deckerd), Anderson, Ragon, Montgomery, Ferrell, Stephenson, and Gunn.

They called a nearby spring Bottle Spring, though it was later known as John Gunn's Spring, since it was on his property. Nowadays, it is called Big Springs. This spring provided water for the steam locomotives. Later it was exploited for health and tourist attractions, as the town developed spa facilities.<ref>''Historical & Biographical Sketches of Coffee County, TN''</ref>

When the [[Civil war|Civil War]] began in April 1861, Company B, 1st Regiment of Tennessee Volunteers, was formed in Tullahoma. It joined General [[Robert E. Lee]]'s [[Army of Northern Virginia]]. The division fought in the battles of [[Bull Run, Prince William County, Virginia|Bull Run]], [[Fredericksburg, Virginia|Fredericksburg]], [[Chancellorsville, Virginia|Chancellorsville]], [[Gettysburg Battlefield|Gettysburg]], and [[Petersburg, Virginia|Petersburg]], before surrendering to Union General [[Ulysses S. Grant]] at [[Appomattox Court House National Historical Park|Appomattox]].

During the war, Tullahoma served in 1863 as the headquarters for the Confederate [[Army of Tennessee]]. That year the Union Army undertook the [[Tullahoma Campaign]], defeating Confederate forces and taking control of Middle Tennessee. Federal troops occupied this area for the duration of the war. As a result of the campaign, Union forces captured [[Chattanooga, Tennessee|Chattanooga]].

Tullahoma was little more than a rough frontier outpost, and had no paved streets. 1863 was a wet year, and the place became known to the bedraggled troops of both sides as a place of endless mud. An aide on [[Confederate States Army|Confederate]] [[William J. Hardee|General William Hardee]]'s staff is said to have written his own account of the origin of the name: "It is from two Greek words – 'Tulla' meaning mud, and 'Homa,' meaning more mud."<ref>{{cite book |last1=Ward |first1=Geoffrey C. |title=The Civil War, An Illustrated History |date=1990–2017 |publisher=Borzoi Books |isbn=978-0-679-74277-7 |page=256}}</ref>

The selection of Tullahoma as a headquarters by Confederate General [[Braxton Bragg]] has been much criticized by military historians. Although the location was strategic with regard to the road and rail network, it had no strong natural defenses. Bragg did little to fortify it while his forces occupied the area. Eventually the town was evacuated without a battle.

After the war, Tullahoma recovered slowly, but began to prosper owing to its railroad link. It became renowned for its educational facilities, a rarity in the area at the time.

At the turn of the 20th century, Tullahoma became a popular health destination, with many [[spa]]s across town to take advantage of Big Springs.

Manufacturing was developed in the area, notably of shoes, clothing, and sporting goods. In 1924, the General Shoe Corporation was established here, which eventually developed as [[Genesco]]. The diversified apparel firm is Tennessee's oldest listed firm on the [[New York Stock Exchange]]. Since the early 1900s, a variety of sports products have been manufactured in Tullahoma, including baseballs, bats, and golf clubs by Campbell Mfg, Wilsons, Worth Sports, Tennessee Tanning Co. and Rawlings.

In 1939, [[U.S. Route 41A (Tennessee)|U.S. Route 41A]] was built{{clarify|date=November 2014}} through town. This improved access between the town and [[Nashville, Tennessee|Nashville]], {{convert|71|mi}} to the northwest, and Chattanooga, {{convert|77|mi}} to the southeast.

The noted whiskey brand of [[George Dickel]] is made in Cascade Hollow, just north of Tullahoma near Normandy, TN.<ref>{{Cite web|title=George Dickel Distillery Directions|url=https://node-georgedickel.diageoplatform.com/directions|access-date=August 27, 2021|website=George Dickel}}</ref> [[Jack Daniel's]] whiskey is distilled {{convert|12|mi}} southwest of Tullahoma in [[Lynchburg, Tennessee|Lynchburg]].

From the 1930s to mid-20th century, the area benefited from considerable federal investment and development: the projects of the [[Tennessee Valley Authority]] constructed dams and related facilities to generate hydroelectric power and electrify many rural areas, as well as providing needed jobs during the [[Great Depression]]. [[Camp Forrest]] was established during World War II<ref>{{Cite web |date=December 2022 |title=Tullahoma, TN: A Tapestry of History and Progress |url=https://www.timsford411.com/blog/tullahoma-tn-a-tapestry-of-history-and-progress |access-date=August 24, 2023}}</ref> as an infantry training center and later POW camp. The [[Arnold Engineering Development Complex]] (AEDC) was constructed near Tullahoma after WWII as a major development and test center for the [[United States Air Force|Air Force]] and other [[Department of Defense|DOD]] organizations, as well as [[NASA]]. [[Woods Reservoir]] was built to provide cooling water for AEDC.  It was instrumental in the development of numerous aerospace systems, as well development for the Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo space programs.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Arnold AFB, TN {{!}} History|url=https://www.arnoldafbhousing.com/history|access-date=August 29, 2021|website=www.arnoldafbhousing.com}}</ref>  It remains as the most advanced and largest complex of flight simulation test facilities in the world.<ref>{{Cite web|title=See the Arnold Engineering Development Complex|url=https://www.bechtel.com/projects/arnold-engineering-development-complex/|access-date=August 29, 2021|website=Bechtel Corporate|language=en}}</ref>  Later the state established two institutions of higher learning here, the [[Motlow State Community College]] and an aerospace engineering graduate school, the [[University of Tennessee Space Institute]].

Today manufacturing makes up a smaller part of the Tullahoma economy. The town's growth has been steady though slow since the late 20th century, based on a mixture of education, services, tourism, and retail. The area is a major hub for aerospace, particularly aerospace ground testing, due to the presence of AEDC and the Space Institute.  The former Sverdrup Technology Inc., now a subsidy of Jacobs Engineering,<ref>{{Cite web|title=Jacobs Names Executives for Company Strategy, Innovation and Information Technology to Extend Differentiated Leadership and Profitable Growth|url=http://www.jacobs.com/newsroom/news/jacobs-names-executives-company-strategy-innovation-and-information-technology-extend|access-date=August 29, 2021|website=Jacobs|language=en}}</ref> is a major supplier of wind tunnels, test equipment and support.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Research & Development|url=http://www.jacobs.com/insights/space-exploration/research-and-development|access-date=August 29, 2021|website=Jacobs|language=en}}</ref>  Microcraft, Inc., which built the first air-breathing flight vehicles to reach Mach 7-10 under the NASA X-43a program,<ref>{{Cite web|last=Gibbs|first=Yvonne|date=May 10, 2017|title=X-43A Hyper-X|url=http://www.nasa.gov/centers/dryden/history/pastprojects/HyperX/index.html|access-date=August 29, 2021|website=NASA|language=en}}</ref> is located near the downtown square.  A national aircraft preservation museum, Beechcraft Heritage Museum, was established on grounds south of the city's municipal airport.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.beechcraftheritagemuseum.org/|title=Beechcraft Aviation Museum &#124; Tullahoma Airport &#124; Tennessee fly park|website=www.beechcraftheritagemuseum.org}}</ref>

Tullahoma celebrated its 150th (sesquicentennial) anniversary on October 4, 2002.

Rock pioneer [[Little Richard]] Penniman died in Tullahoma in 2020.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Weiner|first=Tim|date=May 9, 2020|title=Little Richard, Flamboyant Wild Man of Rock 'n' Roll, Dies at 87|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/09/arts/music/little-richard-dead.html|access-date=May 9, 2020|issn=0362-4331}}</ref>

The town was featured in the song, "Tullahoma Dancing Pizza Man" by [[Eddie Rabbitt]] off of the album "Rocky Mountain Music."<ref>{{Cite web|title=tullahoma dancing pizza man lyrics - Google Search|url=https://www.google.com/search?q=tullahoma+dancing+pizza+man+lyrics|access-date=August 26, 2021|website=www.google.com}}</ref>