2005 Census Estimates for Cities in Tennessee

[Hankster]

The Census Bureau has released population estimates for cities for 2005. Here's a list of all the cities in Tennessee with over 10,000 people, their population in the 2000 Census followed by their 2005 population estimate. All cities which have annexed over 1,000 residents since the 2000 census have been noted. At the rate Murfreesboro is growing, it will be the 6th city to reach 100,000 by 2008. For sheer rate of growth, nothing compares to Spring Hill's 150% growth rate in only 5 years!

1. Memphis............650,100....672,277 (Annexed 32,853)

2. Nashville............545,524....549,110

3. Knoxville...........173,890....180,130 (Annexed 1,478)

4. Chattanooga......155,554....154,762

5. Clarksville.........103,455....112,878

6. Murfreesboro.......68,816......86,793

7. Jackson..............59,643......62,099

8. Johnson City.......55,649......58,718

9. Franklin..............41,842......53,311 (Annexed 3,063)

10. Hendersonville...40,620......44,876

11. Kingsport..........44,905......44,130

12. Bartlett.............40,543......43,263

13. Cleveland.........37,192......38,186

14. Collierville........31,872......37,564

15. Germantown.....37,348......37,480

16. Columbia..........33,055......33,777

17. Smyrna.............25,569......33,497 (Annexed 1,622)

18. Brentwood.........23,445......32,426 (Annexed 2,559)

19. Cookeville.........23,923......27,743 (Annexed 1,990)

20. Oak Ridge.........27,387......27,297

21. Gallatin.............23,230......26,720

22. Morristown........24,965......26,187

23. La Vergne.........18,687......25,885

24. Maryville...........23,120......25,851

25. Bristol...............24,821......24,994

26. Lebanon............20,235......23,043

27. East Ridge.........20,640......19,821

28. Farragut............17,720......19,054

29. Tullahoma.........17,994......18,909

30. Shelbyville........16,105......18,648

31. Mount Juliet.......12,366......18,099 (Annexed 1,620)

32. Dyersburg.........17,452......17,466

33. Spring Hill...........7,715......17,148

34. Springfield.........14,329......15,916

35. Greeneville........15,198......15,383

36. Goodlettesville....13,780......15,320

37. Sevierville..........11,757......14,788

38. Elizabethton........13,372......13,944

39. Athens...............13,220......13,878

40. McMinnville.........12,749......13,242

41. Dickson..............12,244......12,873

42. Soddy-Daisy.......11,530......11,985

43. Red Bank...........12,418......11,726

44. Lawrenceburg.....10,796......10,911

45. Lewisburg...........10,413......10,790

46. Union City..........10,876......10,788

47. Brownsville.........10,748......10,720

48. Crossville.............8,981......10,424

49. Portland...............8,458......10,342

50. Millington............10,433......10,306

51. Martin................10,515......10,151

[HABANERO7]

Franklin, Smyrna, La Vergne, Spring Hill, Mount Juliet, Murfreesboro and Brentwood are smokin hot around the Nashville area...

It

[flith]

To get the complete picture for the Chattanooga area the North Georgia cities need to be shown:

pop % change

Fort Oglethorpe 8864 +29.2%

Ringgold 2793 +15.3%

Trenton 2155 +11.0%

LaFayette 6753 +0.7%

Rossville 3416 -3.7%

Dalton* 32140 15.%

Dalton is not part of Chattanooga's MSA, but borders it.

Most of the Chattanooga MSA growth has been in N. Georgia for the past 15 years.

If Chattanooga were in the geographic center of Hamilton County instead of the southern end these figures might have reflected more on Hamilton County instead of the general area.

[nashvol85]

Well I have to go to work now, but I've got a little something planned to do with this info later.

[Hankster]

Well I have to go to work now, but I've got a little something planned to do with this info later.

I 'm looking forward to it. I know it will be good!

[nashvol85]

I took the numbers from 2005, compared it to the growth since 2000, and added the average yearly gain to the total population to get a guestiment for what the population is about right now. Of course it isn't scientific, but it shouldn't be too far off from the actual...now due to annexations, I did have to alter my method with those specific cities.

What did I do? I took the city population's current estimate (say Murfreesboro's 86,793) and subtracted the base population (68,816) to get the growth over the 5 years (17,977), then divided that total by 5 (3,595.4) and then added the yearly average to the 2005 figure to equal the guestimated 2006 population (90,388).

* I first subtracted the annexed population from the current population before I averaged the growth from over the 5 year period...(ie, Franklin: 53,311 - 3,063 = 50,248 - 41,842 = 8,406 / 5 = 1,681.2 . . . 53,311 + 1,681 = 54,992)...I did this because not all the time when a city annexes land that land is growing...it might already be fully developed.

** Memphis...the only real anomaly that there is to deal with...gained fewer people than it annexed (22,177 gained, annexed 32,853)...so it actually LOST 10,676 people during that time...so it's hard to predict what the population actually is in 2006...

1. Memphis............670,142**

2. Nashville............549,827

3. Knoxville...........181,082*

4. Chattanooga......154,604

5. Clarksville.........114,763

6. Murfreesboro......90,388

7. Jackson..............62,590

8. Johnson City.......59,332

9. Franklin..............54,992*

10. Hendersonville...45,727

11. Kingsport..........43,975

12. Bartlett.............43,807

13. Collierville........38,702

14. Cleveland.........38,385

15. Germantown.....37,506

16. Smyrna.............34,758*

17. Columbia..........33,921

18. Brentwood.........33,710*

19. Cookeville.........28,109*

20. Gallatin.............27,418

21. La Vergne.........27,324

22. Oak Ridge.........27,279

23. Morristown........26,431

24. Maryville...........26,397

25. Bristol...............25,028

26. Lebanon............23,605

27. East Ridge.........19,657

28. Farragut............19,321

29. Shelbyville........19,157

30. Tullahoma.........19,092

31. Spring Hill...........19,035

32. Mount Juliet.......18,922*

33. Dyersburg.........17,469

34. Springfield.........16,233

35. Goodlettesville....15,628

36. Greeneville........15,420

37. Sevierville..........15,394

38. Elizabethton........14,058

39. Athens...............14,010

40. McMinnville.........13,341

41. Dickson..............12,999

42. Soddy-Daisy.......12,076

43. Red Bank...........11,588

44. Lawrenceburg.....10,934

45. Lewisburg...........10,865

46. Union City..........10,770

47. Portland.............10,719

48. Brownsville.........10,714

49. Crossville...........10,713

50. Millington............10,281

51. Martin................10,078

[northernbizzkit1]

Germantown is slowing down in growth due to the fact that it is at build-out...no land left except for large horse farms that developers and buying and using as zero-lot line homes or mcmansions...blah.

[AmandaHugginkiss]

All this time, I thought Nashville was the largest city in Tennessee. You learn something new everyday. duh...

[nashvol85]

All this time, I thought Nashville was the largest city in Tennessee. You learn something new everyday. duh...

Memphis has been the largest city for a long time now, but Nashville took the title of largest metro back in the 90's...

[fieldmarshaldj]

All this time, I thought Nashville was the largest city in Tennessee. You learn something new everyday. duh...

Nashville hasn't been the largest city in Tennessee since 1890. Part of the reason that it captured that position at the time was the disastrous Yellow fever epidemic that struck Memphis in the 1870s that was so bad, people fled the city en masse and the city charter had to be surrendered. By 1900, Memphis vaulted past Nashville and hasn't surrendered the title since (although as Nashvol pointed out, it lost the title of most populous Metro Area).

[Hankster]

I took the numbers from 2005, compared it to the growth since 2000, and added the average yearly gain to the total population to get a guestiment for what the population is about right now. Of course it isn't scientific, but it shouldn't be too far off from the actual...now due to annexations, I did have to alter my method with those specific cities.

What did I do? I took the city population's current estimate (say Murfreesboro's 86,793) and subtracted the base population (68,816) to get the growth over the 5 years (17,977), then divided that total by 5 (3,595.4) and then added the yearly average to the 2005 figure to equal the guestimated 2006 population (90,388).

* I first subtracted the annexed population from the current population before I averaged the growth from over the 5 year period...(ie, Franklin: 53,311 - 3,063 = 50,248 - 41,842 = 8,406 / 5 = 1,681.2 . . . 53,311 + 1,681 = 54,992)...I did this because not all the time when a city annexes land that land is growing...it might already be fully developed.

** Memphis...the only real anomaly that there is to deal with...gained fewer people than it annexed (22,177 gained, annexed 32,853)...so it actually LOST 10,676 people during that time...so it's hard to predict what the population actually is in 2006...

1. Memphis............670,142**

2. Nashville............549,827

3. Knoxville...........181,082*

4. Chattanooga......154,604

5. Clarksville.........114,763

6. Murfreesboro......90,388

7. Jackson..............62,590

8. Johnson City.......59,332

9. Franklin..............54,992*

10. Hendersonville...45,727

11. Kingsport..........43,975

12. Bartlett.............43,807

13. Collierville........38,702

14. Cleveland.........38,385

15. Germantown.....37,506

16. Smyrna.............34,758*

17. Columbia..........33,921

18. Brentwood.........33,710*

19. Cookeville.........28,109*

20. Gallatin.............27,418

21. La Vergne.........27,324

22. Oak Ridge.........27,279

23. Morristown........26,431

24. Maryville...........26,397

25. Bristol...............25,028

26. Lebanon............23,605

27. East Ridge.........19,657

28. Farragut............19,321

29. Shelbyville........19,157

30. Tullahoma.........19,092

31. Spring Hill...........19,035

32. Mount Juliet.......18,922*

33. Dyersburg.........17,469

34. Springfield.........16,233

35. Goodlettesville....15,628

36. Greeneville........15,420

37. Sevierville..........15,394

38. Elizabethton........14,058

39. Athens...............14,010

40. McMinnville.........13,341

41. Dickson..............12,999

42. Soddy-Daisy.......12,076

43. Red Bank...........11,588

44. Lawrenceburg.....10,934

45. Lewisburg...........10,865

46. Union City..........10,770

47. Portland.............10,719

48. Brownsville.........10,714

49. Crossville...........10,713

50. Millington............10,281

51. Martin................10,078

Very interesting projections. By the 2010 census, there will be significant changes in the list. I wouldn't be surprised if Murfreesboro isn't considerably over 100,000.....possibly 110,000. Franklin may pass both Johnson City and Jackson, moving all the way to 7th place. And Spring Hill could go to well over 30,000 and vault all the way up to as high as 15th place. That's amazing when you consider the fact that Spring Hill only had about 2,000 people in 1990!!!

[fieldmarshaldj]

Very interesting projections. By the 2010 census, there will be significant changes in the list. I wouldn't be surprised if Murfreesboro isn't considerably over 100,000.....possibly 110,000. Franklin may pass both Johnson City and Jackson, moving all the way to 7th place. And Spring Hill could go to well over 30,000 and vault all the way up to as high as 15th place. That's amazing when you consider the fact that Spring Hill only had about 2,000 people in 1990!!!

Actually, even smaller than that, only 1,464 in 1990.

[Hankster]

The scorching growth of Spring Hill, Tennessee's fastest growing city, led me to do a little research. Among all the cities in the U.S above 10,000 in population according the the latest Census Bureau estimates, how high would Spring hill rank? Here's what I found out.

There are exactly 2,827 cities in the U.S. with a population of 10,000 or more.

Spring Hill grew from 7,892 residents to 17,148 residents from 2000 to 2005. That computes to a growth of 117.3% in only 5 years. Among all the 2,827 cities with 10,000 or more residents, Spring Hill ranked 19th in the U.S. in growth during that period.

Spring Hill grew from 14,511 residents to 17,148 residents from 2004 to 2005. That computes to a growth of 18.2% in only one year. Among all the 2,827 cities with 10,000 or more residents, Spring Hill ranked 14th in the U.S. in growth during that period. The only cities in the South that grew faster than Spring Hill during the past year were 3 cities in Texas and 2 in Florida.

The fastest growing city in the U.S. during both the five and one years periods was Herriman, UT which grew from 2,042 residents to 11,226, a growth of 449.8% for 2000 to 2005, and a growth rate or 32.9% for the past year.

Spring Hill is smoking hot right now!

[Justiceham]

The scorching growth of Spring Hill, Tennessee's fastest growing city, led me to do a little research. Among all the cities in the U.S above 10,000 in population according the the latest Census Bureau estimates, how high would Spring hill rank? Here's what I found out.

There are exactly 2,827 cities in the U.S. with a population of 10,000 or more.

Spring Hill grew from 7,892 residents to 17,148 residents from 2000 to 2005. That computes to a growth of 117.3% in only 5 years. Among all the 2,827 cities with 10,000 or more residents, Spring Hill ranked 19th in the U.S. in growth during that period.

Spring Hill grew from 14,511 residents to 17,148 residents from 2004 to 2005. That computes to a growth of 18.2% in only one year. Among all the 2,827 cities with 10,000 or more residents, Spring Hill ranked 14th in the U.S. in growth during that period. The only cities in the South that grew faster than Spring Hill during the past year were 3 cities in Texas and 2 in Florida.

The fastest growing city in the U.S. during both the five and one years periods was Herriman, UT which grew from 2,042 residents to 11,226, a growth of 449.8% for 2000 to 2005, and a growth rate or 32.9% for the past year.

Spring Hill is smoking hot right now!

And Maury and Williamson Medical Centers don't want them to build a new hospital?

[Hankster]

A little more trivia from the data analysis I did recently:

Of all the cities in the US (any population), Murfreesboro ranks 87th in the number of people added in the past five years. This high ranking was achieved despite the fact that Murfreesboro has less than 100,000 people.

There is a four way tie for the smallest town in the US. They are:

New Amsterdam, IN

Goss, MO

Hoot Owl, OK

Lost Springs, WY

The population of all four towns is 1!

[rocky top buzz]

Wasn't Knoxville or Chattanooga at one point the largest city in Tennessee? How did Memphis capture that ranking in the first place?

[qwertycc]

Location. The Mississippi River was one of the most powerful economic forces of the mid to late 1800's when Memphis was capturing Tennessee's title as most populous city. East, and subsequently Middle, TN cities would have been larger initially because they were founded sometime before Memphis, but it didn't take long for Memphis to take over as largest and most important economically primarily due to the Mississippi and the trade, traffic and convenience of major river transportation.

It lost the title briefly in the late 1800's due to the yellow fever epidemic, but took back over thanks again to the Mississippi River and the increased importance of Memphis as a major cotton hub.

[HABANERO7]

Good point about the River, The East Tennessee area was still quite primitive economically in the 1800

[fieldmarshaldj]

Wasn't Knoxville or Chattanooga at one point the largest city in Tennessee? How did Memphis capture that ranking in the first place?

I went to check on that myself. Now I know Chattanooga was a rather small community in the 19th century until fairly late, but I surely thought Knoxville must've been largest at some point. What I found from the Census Bureau was that there were no urban entity listed in TN until 1830 (so whatever the largest community was from after statehood in 1796 until that time I couldn't ascertain -- surely there must be a website that lists the census figures aside from counties). From 1830 on, this is what I found (note the figures in parenthesis are its national ranking):

1830: Nashville city, TN................. 5,566 (50th)

1840: Nashville city, TN................. 6,929 (58th)

1850: Nashville city, TN................. 10,165 (63rd)

Memphis city, TN................... 8,841 (73rd)

1860: Memphis city, TN................... 22,623 (38th)

Nashville city, TN................. 16,988 (54th)

1870: Memphis city, TN................... 40,226 (32nd)

Nashville city, TN................. 25,865 (52nd)

1880: Nashville city, TN................. 43,350 (40th)

Memphis city, TN................... 33,592 (54th)

1890: Nashville city, TN................. 76,168 (38th)

Memphis city, TN................... 64,495 (43rd)

1900: Memphis city, TN................... 102,320 (37th)

Nashville city, TN................. 80,865 (47th)

1910: Memphis city, TN......... 131,105 (37th)

Nashville city, TN....... 110,364 (45th)

1920: Memphis city, TN......... 162,351 (40th)

Nashville city, TN....... 118,342 (56th)

Knoxville city, TN....... 77,818 (88th)

1930: Memphis city, TN......... 253,143 (36th)

Nashville city, TN....... 153,866 (51st)

Chattanooga city, TN..... 119,798 (67th)

Knoxville city, TN....... 105,802 (81st)

1940: Memphis city, TN......... 292,942 (32nd)

Nashville city, TN....... 167,402 (50th)

Chattanooga city, TN..... 128,163 (66th)

Knoxville city, TN....... 111,580 (77th)

1950: Memphis city, TN......... 396,000 (26th)

Nashville city, TN....... 174,307 (56th)

Chattanooga city, TN..... 131,041 (74th)

Knoxville city, TN....... 124,769 (84th)

1960: Memphis city, TN......... 497,524 (22nd)

Nashville city, TN....... 170,874 (73rd)

Chattanooga city, TN..... 130,009 (93rd)

1970: Memphis city, TN *....... 623,530 (17th)

Nashville-Davidson, TN *. 448,003 (30th)

Knoxville city, TN....... 174,587 (76th)

1980: Memphis city, TN *....... 646,356 (14th)

Nashville-Davidson, TN *. 455,651 (25th)

Knoxville city, TN....... 175,030 (77th)

Chattanooga city, TN..... 169,565 (87th)

1990: Memphis city, TN *....... 610,337 (18th)

Nashville-Davidson, TN *. 488,374 (25th)

2000: Memphis city, TN *....... 650,100 (18th)

Nashville-Davidson, TN *. 545,535 (26th)

This was the "top 100" list, and you'll note a few times that Knoxville dropped out of the top 100 in 1960, only to reemerge (following considerable annexations) in 1970 and Chattanooga dropped off in 1970, only to reemerge in 1980 (again, following considerable annexations), but both dropped off for good in 1990.

[rocky top buzz]

It seems I always here so much about Chattanooga's importance as a railroad hub (even moreso that Atlanta), but statistically it doesn't appear to have mattered as far as population.

Let's forget about the past and talk about now. How has Nashville exploded in Metropolitan growth leaving behind Memphis? I would venture to say jobs, a larger area for growth, and possibly more national exposure (Memphis can only exploit Elvis for so long before the people who were big Elvis fans die off). Any other thoughts?

[qwertycc]

Memphis is a much more important railroad hub today than Chattanooga--behind only Chicago and St. Louis (though I think KC, StL, and Memphis swap positions around every now and then). Chattanooga was very important historically and still reamains a strong hub today.

Link

I don't think you can get very far with "more national exposure" for Nashville than Memphis. Much of Nashville's exposure today is about its growth, so that obviously had little to do with its overtaking Memphis in the 1990's in metropolitan population (though it helps to maintain Nashville's higher rate of growth). Exposure that would have led to its growth would have mostly centered around music--just like Memphis's exposure. It would be tough to argue that exposure through country music outweighs Memphis's exposure through rock and roll, Elvis, soul (Stax) and the blues. Even now business exposure is similar with Nashville probably slightly ahead--Nashville's biggest corporations (HCA, Caremark, Dollar General) are not as big of household names as Memphis's (FedEx, Autozone); however Nashville's growth has given it much positive business exposure. Still that leads to continued growth rather than the growth than put Nashville ahead.

Due to the racial tension in Memphis in the 60's and 70's (although it was not really that bad with the major exception of Dr. King's murder and aftermath), the city was painted negatively on a national scale. The stigma hurt downtown significantly, but East Memphis picked up the slack. It may have contributed to Memphis's growth slipping behind Nasvhille though.

I'm not sure what you mean by larger area for growth--the Mississippi River and floodlands around area rivers/creeks pose somewhat of a barrier for Memphis much like the rocky and hilly terrain does for the Nashville.

I think that jobs is a big part of the reason Nashville has outpaced Memphis in recent years--but the jobs were a result of other factors. The biggest factor is perception--mostly in the eyes of Tennesseans. Nashville is clearly viewed more favorably by Tennesseans than Memphis, but it probably isn't prudent to get into the reasons for the perceptions of Nashville vs. perceptions of Memphis. Another factor is financial--consolidation in the 70's helped Nashville fiscally by eliminating many duplicate and overlapping services in the county/city. Also shaping the financial situation is the reliance for the Memphis metro on 3 state governments rather than one. Also, state support--the state government in Nashville gives it more of an identity to Tennesseans and makes Nashville more attractive for the state government to dote on. Finally, higher poverty and the income gap in Memphis has presented greater challenges for Memphis to continue to grow numerically and economically. Unfortunately, it is typical that with poverty comes crime, but Nashville's crime rates haven't been much better than Memphis's in recent years. Yet Memphis gets the bad press (not just in town but in the rest of the state) while Nashville and Tennessee as a whole focus on the positives of Nashville. Sadly, many people in Memphis share the perceptions of other Tennesseans and flee to the next suburb over every 10 years rather than taking pride in the many great things in Memphis and trying to fix the problems that exist.

Another interesting note is how Nashville's metro has spread vs. how Memphis's has. Memphis has grown out (mostly south and east, but also north). Nashville's metro growth has occurred in outlying areas (Murfreesboro, Franklin, Lebanon, etc) and grown together to start filling in the gaps. That has been a factor because more counties further from Nashville at the center have been added to the metro because of the influence of primarily the outlying cities and notsomuch Nashville on those counties. More counties in the census definition provide more opportunities to add people much like annexation would.

[sleepy]

Let's forget about the past and talk about now. How has Nashville exploded in Metropolitan growth leaving behind Memphis? I would venture to say jobs, a larger area for growth, and possibly more national exposure (Memphis can only exploit Elvis for so long before the people who were big Elvis fans die off). Any other thoughts?

Memphis musical tourism goes way beyond Elvis. You've got rockabilly, blues, soul, and rap. The Smithsonian has their Rock and Soul Museum downtown. Then you've got all sorts of tours which head down into the Delta to places like Clarksdale MS for the blues.

[rocky top buzz]

Don't forget to add Nissan NA and Louisiana-Pacific to the list of Nashville HQ's. I believe LP will be getting much more press with the new "LP Field."I personally believe large scale employers aren't as important in large cities as in small because there are so many more employers in the big cities.

I think your analysis of the outlying cities in Nashville is accurate. The growth of Franklin, Murfreesboro, Gallatin, and Lebanon has caused growth to explode in Brentwood, Smyrna/La Vergne, Mt. Juliet, and Hendersonville. The real anomolly would be Spring Hill which is south of Franklin. All these other options provide better services and typically lower taxes than Davidson County, which helps explain why the suburbs outpace Davidson County.

That's something else to consider. Memphis' property taxes are WAY TOO HIGH! I couldn't even imagine paying those taxes. JFK, Reagan, and Bush have all proved that lower taxes spur growth and actually cause higher total tax revenues. Why don't more cities follow this lead? Spring Hill and Mt. Juliet set a perfect exampleof this.

As for music heritage, I'm not trying to discount Memphis' past, but what is Memphis doing today? I'm not concerned with bands formed there that go to LA or Nashville to record. bands are formed in Chicago, but that doesn't make Chicago famous for music. Who is based and records in Memphis? Again, I've never lived in Memphis, but I can tell you that in Nashville it's not uncommon to see country music stars, Christian music singers, American Idols, an occasional rocker like kid rock, and of course, events like fan fair, the country music hall of fame, and more. I just don't see Memphis as a contender in the music industry today and that's unfortunate for Tennessee.

What about interstate access? I know right now Nashville has one more major interstate than Memphis, but that will soon change. Think that will have an effect on growth their? I would think it would help, but of course places in Florida that only have 1 interstate still manage to grow faster than all of us

[Justiceham]

Don't forget to add Nissan NA and Louisiana-Pacific to the list of Nashville HQ's. I believe LP will be getting much more press with the new "LP Field."I personally believe large scale employers aren't as important in large cities as in small because there are so many more employers in the big cities.

I think your analysis of the outlying cities in Nashville is accurate. The growth of Franklin, Murfreesboro, Gallatin, and Lebanon has caused growth to explode in Brentwood, Smyrna/La Vergne, Mt. Juliet, and Hendersonville. The real anomolly would be Spring Hill which is south of Franklin. All these other options provide better services and typically lower taxes than Davidson County, which helps explain why the suburbs outpace Davidson County.

That's something else to consider. Memphis' property taxes are WAY TOO HIGH! I couldn't even imagine paying those taxes. JFK, Reagan, and Bush have all proved that lower taxes spur growth and actually cause higher total tax revenues. Why don't more cities follow this lead? Spring Hill and Mt. Juliet set a perfect exampleof this.

As for music heritage, I'm not trying to discount Memphis' past, but what is Memphis doing today? I'm not concerned with bands formed there that go to LA or Nashville to record. bands are formed in Chicago, but that doesn't make Chicago famous for music. Who is based and records in Memphis? Again, I've never lived in Memphis, but I can tell you that in Nashville it's not uncommon to see country music stars, Christian music singers, American Idols, an occasional rocker like kid rock, and of course, events like fan fair, the country music hall of fame, and more. I just don't see Memphis as a contender in the music industry today and that's unfortunate for Tennessee.

What about interstate access? I know right now Nashville has one more major interstate than Memphis, but that will soon change. Think that will have an effect on growth their? I would think it would help, but of course places in Florida that only have 1 interstate still manage to grow faster than all of us

Exactly, I just got back from O-Town last week and it still amazes me how much growth is going on out there with only one interstate. It seemed strange passing by huge towers off to the side of the road. As far as Nashville is concerned, the headquarter boom alone will keep it ahead of Memphis as top metro status.

[sleepy]

That's something else to consider. Memphis' property taxes are WAY TOO HIGH! I couldn't even imagine paying those taxes. JFK, Reagan, and Bush have all proved that lower taxes spur growth and actually cause higher total tax revenues. Why don't more cities follow this lead? Spring Hill and Mt. Juliet set a perfect exampleof this.

It's not Memphis property taxes that are particularly high, it's Shelby County property taxes which, of course, residents of Memphis pay in addition to their city taxes.

Shelby County's are sky high to pay for the infrastructure to accommodate the sprawl in East Shelby County--new roads, sewer lines, schools, you name it. The irony is that folks in the city are paying for that sprawl. There was recently a moratorium on new building permits in Shelby to get a handle on the sprawl and costs.

As for music, I never meant to imply that Memphis has a music industry equal to Nashville's. My point was that it has a vibrant music scene--it's considered one of the centers of the rap/crunk world. And there is an awful lot of music there. I would make an imperfect analogy to New Orleans--both cities have a world of homegrown talent, but not much of an industry (though Memphis has a number of studios).

BTW, Chicago is extremely famous for music--Memphis and Chicago usually fight it out for some mythical Blues Capital title.

You can go into dives like these and find people from all over: