Editing Rutledge, Tennessee

{{Use mdy dates|date=March 2024}}
{{Infobox settlement
| name                     = Rutledge, Tennessee
| official_name            = City of Rutledge
| settlement_type          = [[City]]
| nickname                 = 
| motto                    = <!-- Images -->
| image_skyline            = GraingerCountyCourthouse2020.jpg
| imagesize                = 250px
| image_caption            = Grainger County Courthouse in Rutledge
| image_flag               = 
| image_seal               = <!-- Maps -->
| image_map                = File:Grainger County Tennessee Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Rutledge Highlighted 4765820.svg
| mapsize                  = 250px
| map_caption              = Location of Rutledge in Grainger County, Tennessee.
| image_map1               = 
| mapsize1                 = 
| map_caption1             = <!-- Location -->
| subdivision_type         = [[List of sovereign states|Country]]
| subdivision_name         = United States
| subdivision_type1        = [[U.S. state|State]]
| subdivision_name1        = [[Tennessee]]
| subdivision_type2        = [[List of counties in Tennessee|County]]
| subdivision_name2        = [[Grainger County, Tennessee|Grainger]]

<!-- Government -->
| government_footnotes     = <ref>{{Cite web|last=University of Tennessee|first=Municipal Technical Advisory Service|title=Rutledge|url=https://www.mtas.tennessee.edu/city/rutledge|access-date=June 22, 2020|website=MTAS.edu}}</ref>
| government_type          = [[Mayor-council government|Mayor-aldermen]]
| leader_title             = Mayor
| leader_name              = Fred Sykes
| leader_title1            = Vice Mayor
| leader_name1             = Benny Atkins
| leader_title2            = Aldermen
| leader_name2             = {{Collapsible list
|title = List of Aldermen
|frame_style = border:none; padding: 0;
|list_style = text-align:left;display:none;
|1 = Ed Boling
|2 = Martha Cameron
|3 = Jason Day
|4 = Benny Atkins
}}
| established_title        = Incorporated
| established_date         = 1797<ref>''[http://www.state.tn.us/sos/bluebook/05-06/48-data.pdf Tennessee Blue Book]'', 2005-2006, pp. 618-625.</ref>
| established_title1       = Reincorporated
| established_date1        = 1955<ref name="reincorporate">{{cite news |title=Rutledge to Incorporate |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/79228255/rutledge-to-incorporate/ |access-date=June 14, 2021 |work=[[The Rogersville Review]] |date=May 19, 1955}}</ref>
| named_for                = George Rutledge

<!-- Area -->
| unit_pref                = Imperial
| area_footnotes           = <ref name="TigerWebMapServer">{{cite web|title=ArcGIS REST Services Directory|url=https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services/TIGERweb/Places_CouSub_ConCity_SubMCD/MapServer/5/query?where=STATE='47'&outFields=NAME,STATE,PLACE,AREALAND,AREAWATER,LSADC,CENTLAT,CENTLON&orderByFields=PLACE&returnGeometry=false&returnTrueCurves=false&f=json|publisher=United States Census Bureau|accessdate=October 15, 2022}}</ref>
| area_magnitude           = 
| area_total_km2           = 14.34
| area_land_km2            = 14.33
| area_water_km2           = 0.01
| area_total_sq_mi         = 5.54
| area_land_sq_mi          = 5.53
| area_water_sq_mi         = 0.01

<!-- Population -->| population_as_of         = [[2020 United States Census|2020]]
| population_footnotes     = <ref name="USCensusDecennial2020CenPopScriptOnly"/>
| population_total         = 1321
| population_density_km2   = 92.21
| population_density_sq_mi = 238.84

<!-- General information -->| timezone                 = [[North American Eastern Time Zone|Eastern (EST)]]
| utc_offset               = -5
| timezone_DST             = EDT
| utc_offset_DST           = -4
| elevation_footnotes      = 
| elevation_m              = 310
| elevation_ft             = 1017
| coordinates              = {{coord|36|16|48|N|83|31|5|W|region:US_type:city|display=inline,title}}
| postal_code_type         = [[ZIP code]]
| postal_code              = 37861
| area_code                = [[Area code 865|865]]
| blank_name               = [[Federal Information Processing Standard|FIPS code]]
| blank_info               = 47-65820<ref name="GR2">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov|publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|access-date=January 31, 2008|title=U.S. Census website}}</ref>
| blank1_name              = [[Geographic Names Information System|GNIS]] feature ID
| blank1_info              = 1269919<ref name="GR3">{{cite web|url=http://geonames.usgs.gov|access-date=January 31, 2008|title=US Board on Geographic Names|publisher=[[United States Geological Survey]]|date=October 25, 2007}}</ref>
| website                  = 
| footnotes                = 
| pop_est_as_of            = 
| pop_est_footnotes        = 
| population_est           = 
}}

'''Rutledge''' is a city in and the [[county seat]] of [[Grainger County, Tennessee|Grainger County]], [[Tennessee]].<ref name="GR6">{{cite web|url=http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx|access-date=June 7, 2011|title=Find a County|publisher=National Association of Counties}}</ref> The city is part of both the [[Knoxville metropolitan area]] and the [[Morristown metropolitan area]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Revised Delineations of Metropolitan Statistical Areas, Micropolitan Statistical Areas, and Combined Statistical Areas, and Guidance on Uses of the Delineations of These Areas|url=https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/sites/default/files/omb/bulletins/2013/b13-01.pdf|publisher=Office of Management and Budget|access-date=April 27, 2014}}</ref> As of the 2020 census, the city had a total population of 1,321.

==History==
{{expand section|date=September 2020}}
[[File:RutledgeTN1900s.jpg|thumb|left|Downtown Rutledge, circa 1910s]]
Rutledge was established and incorporated in 1797 and named for General George Rutledge, a prominent citizen in nearby [[Sullivan County, Tennessee|Sullivan County]]. At the time of its incorporation, it became the first municipality to have its own police department in Grainger County.<ref name="police">{{cite news |last1=Lakins |first1=Laura |title=Rutledge City Police Department has long history |url=https://www.graingertoday.com/living/rutledge-city-police-department-has-long-history/article_0f9cf4fa-e790-11ea-b97c-4b068acac4df.html |access-date=September 7, 2020 |work=Grainger Today |date=August 26, 2020}}</ref> In 1801, Rutledge became the official county seat of Grainger County, a distinction that had been shared by several communities since the county's formation in 1796.  Rutledge prospered in the early 19th century in part due to its situation along the Federal Road (present day [[U.S. Route 11W|US 11W]]), which connected [[New Orleans, Louisiana|New Orleans]] and [[Virginia]].  The road intersected the [[Wilderness Road]] (present day [[U.S. Route 25E|US 25E]]) at Bean Station, just east of Rutledge.<ref name="tnencyclopedia">{{cite web |last1=Collins |first1=Kevin |title=Grainger County |url=https://tennesseeencyclopedia.net/entries/grainger-county/ |website=[[Tennessee Encyclopedia]] |publisher=[[Tennessee Historical Society]] |access-date=September 7, 2020 |date=October 8, 2017 }}</ref>

In the 1820s, President [[Andrew Johnson]], who worked as a tailor in [[Greeneville, Tennessee|Greeneville]], briefly operated a tailor shop in Rutledge.<ref>Tennessee Historical Commission Marker 1B 43 in Rutledge, Tennessee.  Information accessed: February 17, 2008.</ref>  In 1976, a replica of Johnson's tailor shop was erected on the Grainger County Courthouse lawn.<ref name="people">{{cite book |last1=Grainger County Heritage Book Committee |title=Grainger County, Tennessee and Its People 1796-1998 |date=January 1, 1998 |publisher=Walsworth Publishing |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_rHbtgAACAAJ |access-date=August 7, 2020}}</ref>

During the [[U.S. Civil War]], guerilla warfare largely paralyzed Grainger County.  In December 1863, [[Confederate States of America|Confederate]] General [[James Longstreet]], who had earlier failed to wrest Knoxville from [[Union (American Civil War)|Union]] forces, passed through Rutledge en route to winter quarters at [[Russellville, Tennessee|Russellville]].  On December 14, in what became known as the [[Battle of Bean's Station]], Longstreet attacked a Union detachment that had been pursuing him.  The Confederates failed to exploit the element of surprise, and the Union forces were able to hold out until reinforcements arrived.  While Longstreet was victorious, Union forces were able to retreat to fortifications at Blaine, and Longstreet subsequently abandoned the assault and continued eastward to [[Russellville, Tennessee|Russellville]].<ref name="battle">{{cite web |title=Bean's Station |url=http://www.nps.gov/history/hps/abpp/battles/tn026.htm |website=CWSAC Battle Summaries |publisher=[[National Park Service]] |access-date=September 2, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080223071156/http://www.nps.gov/history/hps/abpp/battles/tn026.htm |archive-date=February 23, 2008 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

In May 1955, following efforts from the community's [[Lions Clubs International|Lions Club]], Rutledge would vote to reincorporate into a city in an overwhelming 192 in favor compared to 21 against incorporation.<ref name="reincorporate"/> Following the reincorporation, the city would construct sewage treatment and waterworks systems to promote economic development with funding given from the Eisenhower administration's Rural Development Program.<ref name="farmstudy">{{cite news |title=Grainger Only ET County In US Farm Study Program |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/79226573/grainger-only-et-county-in-us-farm/ |access-date=June 14, 2021 |work=The Knoxville Journal |date=February 12, 1956 |page=7-D}}</ref>

==Geography==
Rutledge is situated near the center of Richland Valley, a narrow valley that stretches for some {{convert|35|mi|km}} along the southern base of [[Clinch Mountain]] between [[Blaine, Tennessee|Blaine]] and [[Bean Station, Tennessee|Bean Station]]. [[Richland Creek (Tennessee)|Richland Creek]] traverses most of the valley en route to its confluence along the [[Cherokee Lake]] impoundment of the [[Holston River]], approximately {{convert|20|mi|km}} downstream from Rutledge.  Cherokee Lake's Ray Creek embayment is located approximately {{convert|10|mi|km}} east of Rutledge.

Rutledge is centered around the junction of [[U.S. Route 11W (Tennessee)|U.S. Route 11W]], which connects the city to [[Kingsport, Tennessee|Kingsport]] to the east and [[Knoxville, Tennessee|Knoxville]] to the west, and [[State Route 92 (Tennessee)|State Route 92]], which connects the city to [[Jefferson County, Tennessee|Jefferson County]], [[Interstate 40 (Tennessee)|Interstate 40]], and [[Interstate 81 (Tennessee)|Interstate 81]] to the south. [[U.S. Route 25E]], which traverses Clinch Mountain, intersects US-11W in nearby [[Bean Station, Tennessee|Bean Station]].

According to the [[United States Census Bureau]], the city has a total area of {{convert|4.7|sqmi|km2}}, all land.

==Demographics==
{{US Census population
|align=left
|1870= 107
|1880= 126
|1890= 143
|1960= 793
|1970= 863
|1980= 1058
|1990= 903
|2000= 1187
|2010= 1122
|2020= 1321
|footnote=Sources:<ref name="GR9">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census.html|publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|access-date=March 4, 2012|title=Census of Population and Housing: Decennial Censuses}}</ref><ref name=CensusPopEst>{{cite web|title=Incorporated Places and Minor Civil Divisions Datasets: Subcounty Resident Population Estimates: April 1, 2010 to July 1, 2012|url=https://www.census.gov/popest/data/cities/totals/2012/SUB-EST2012.html|work=Population Estimates|publisher=U.S. Census Bureau|access-date=December 11, 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130611010502/http://www.census.gov/popest/data/cities/totals/2012/SUB-EST2012.html|archive-date=June 11, 2013}}</ref><ref name="USCensusDecennial2020CenPopScriptOnly">{{cite web|url=https://api.census.gov/data/2020/dec/pl?get=P1_001N,NAME&for=place:*&in=state:47&key=5ccd0821c15d9f4520e2dcc0f8d92b2ec9336108|title=Census Population API|publisher=United States Census Bureau|accessdate=October 15, 2022}}</ref>
}}

===2020 census===
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:right"
|+Rutledge racial composition<ref>{{Cite web|title=Explore Census Data|url=https://data.census.gov/cedsci/table?g=1600000US4765820&tid=DECENNIALPL2020.P2|access-date=December 27, 2021|website=data.census.gov}}</ref>
!scope="col"| Race
!scope="col"| Number
!scope="col"| Percentage
|-
!scope="row"| [[White (U.S. Census)|White]] (non-Hispanic)
| 1,238
| 93.72%
|-
!scope="row"| [[African American (U.S. Census)|Black or African American]] (non-Hispanic)
| 10
| 0.76%
|-
!scope="row"| [[Native American (U.S. Census)|Native American]]
| 3
| 0.23%
|-
!scope="row"| [[Asian (U.S. Census)|Asian]]
| 5
| 0.38%
|-
!scope="row"| [[Pacific Islander (U.S. Census)|Pacific Islander]]
| 1
| 0.08%
|-
!scope="row"| [[Race (United States Census)|Other/Mixed]]
| 45
| 3.41%
|-
!scope="row"| [[Hispanic (U.S. Census)|Hispanic]] or [[Latino (U.S. Census)|Latino]]
| 19
| 1.44%
|}
As of the [[2020 United States census]], there were 1,321 people, 611 households, and 355 families residing in the town.

===2000 census===
As of the [[census]]<ref name="GR2" /> of 2000, there were 1,187 people, 475 households, and 298 families residing in the city. The population density was {{convert|253.1|PD/sqmi|PD/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}. There were 530 housing units at an average density of {{convert|113.0|/sqmi|/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}. The racial makeup of the city was 96.88% [[White (U.S. Census)|White]], 2.02% [[African American (U.S. Census)|African American]], 0.08% [[Native American (U.S. Census)|Native American]], 0.08% [[Asian (U.S. Census)|Asian]], 0.42% from [[Race (U.S. Census)|other races]], and 0.51% from two or more races. [[Hispanic (U.S. Census)|Hispanic]] or [[Latino (U.S. Census)|Latino]] of any race were 1.01% of the population.

There were 475 households, out of which 27.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.9% were [[Marriage|married couples]] living together, 14.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.1% were non-families. 34.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 18.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.17 and the average family size was 2.76.

In the city, the population was spread out, with 19.0% under the age of 18, 5.7% from 18 to 24, 28.1% from 25 to 44, 21.7% from 45 to 64, and 25.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43 years. For every 100 females, there were 86.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.2 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $24,276, and the median income for a family was $33,571. Males had a median income of $26,151 versus $20,677 for females. The [[per capita income]] for the city was $14,477. About 11.8% of families and 20.0% of the population were below the [[poverty line]], including 20.8% of those under the age of 18 and 31.9% of those 65 and older.

==Arts and culture==
===Tomato Festival===
Rutledge Middle School in Rutledge is the location of the [[Grainger County Tomato Festival]], which celebrates the [[tomato]], Grainger County's most popular [[cash crop]], annually since 1992. Around thirty-thousand festival-goers across the state of Tennessee and the United States gather to witness events about the county's heritage and its significant agricultural impact across the state of Tennessee, enjoy live music performances, purchase local produce and handmade gifts, and take part in arts and crafts events. The Grainger County Tomato Festival takes place during the final weekend in July.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.graingercountytomatofestival.com|title=Grainger County Tomato Festival TN.|website=Grainger County Tomato Festival TN.|access-date=September 7, 2020}}</ref>

===Historic sites===
[[File:Andrew-johnson-tailor-shop-tn1.jpg|thumb|Replica of Andrew Johnson's tailor shop]]
* [[Henderson Chapel African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church]]
* [[Nance Building]]
* [[Old Grainger County Jail]]
* [[William Cocke House]]

==Notable people==
* [[Samuel Bunch]] (1786&ndash;1849), Congressman and state legislator
* [[John Alexander Cocke]] (1772&ndash;1854), Congressman and rival of Andrew Jackson during the Creek War
* [[William Michael Cocke]] (1815&ndash;1896), Congressman and state legislator
* [[A. W. Davis]] (1943&ndash;2014), All-American basketball player at the [[University of Tennessee]]<ref>[http://www.utsports.com/sports/m-baskbl/spec-rel/all-americans.html University of Tennessee All-Americans] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150331181037/http://www.utsports.com/sports/m-baskbl/spec-rel/all-americans.html |date=March 31, 2015 }}</ref>
* [[Robert Taylor Jones]] (1884&ndash;1958), ninth governor of [[Arizona]], was born in Rutledge.
*[[James F. Lawrence Jr.]] (1918&ndash;2006), American Marine Corps Navy Cross recipient, lawyer
*[[Harold Theodore Tate]] (1875&ndash;1960), 26th [[Treasurer of the United States]] under President [[Calvin Coolidge]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

{{Grainger County, Tennessee}}
{{Knoxville Metro}}
{{Morristown Metro}}
{{Tennessee county seats}}

{{authority control}}

[[Category:County seats in Tennessee]]
[[Category:Morristown metropolitan area, Tennessee]]
[[Category:Populated places established in 1798]]
[[Category:Cities in Tennessee]]
[[Category:Cities in Grainger County, Tennessee]]
[[Category:Knoxville metropolitan area]]