Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 36th-largest by ...

is a state located in the

Southern United States The Southern United States (sometimes Dixie, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, the Southland, or simply the South) is a geographic and cultural region of the United States of America. It is between the Atlantic Ocean ...

. There are 346 municipalities in the state of Tennessee.

Municipalities A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the ...

in the state are designated as "cities" or "towns". As of the 2010 U.S. Census, 3,564,494 Tennesseans, or just over 56% of the state's total population of 6,346,105, lived in municipalities. The remainder lived in

unincorporated area An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either hav ...

Municipal charters

Before 1954, all Tennessee municipalities were established by private act of the

state legislature A state legislature is a legislative branch or body of a political subdivision in a federal system. Two federations literally use the term "state legislature": * The legislative branches of each of the fifty state governments of the United Sta ...

and operated under

charter A charter is the grant of authority or rights, stating that the granter formally recognizes the prerogative of the recipient to exercise the rights specified. It is implicit that the granter retains superiority (or sovereignty), and that the re ...

s established by private act of the legislature. As of 2007, 212 of the state's municipalities were operating under charters established by private act of the legislature. In 1953, amendments to the

Tennessee Constitution The Constitution of the State of Tennessee defines the form, structure, activities, character, and fundamental rules (and means for changing them) of the U.S. State of Tennessee. The original constitution of Tennessee came into effect on June 1, ...

prohibited subsequent incorporations by private act and provided for several new forms of municipal charter. Fourteen cities, including Memphis, Knoxville, and

Chattanooga Chattanooga ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Hamilton County, Tennessee, United States. Located along the Tennessee River bordering Georgia, it also extends into Marion County on its western end. With a population of 181,099 in 2020, ...

, three of the state's four largest cities, are "

home rule Home rule is government of a colony, dependent country, or region by its own citizens. It is thus the power of a part (administrative division) of a state or an external dependent country to exercise such of the state's powers of governance wi ...

cities" organized under charters approved by

referendum A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a Direct democracy, direct vote by the Constituency, electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a Representative democr ...

of the citizens. Home rule charters are authorized by Article XI, Section 9, of the Tennessee State Constitution, as amended in 1953. Other municipalities are incorporated under one of several standardized types of

authorized by state statute: * 67 cities use a

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...

alderman An alderman is a member of a municipal assembly or council in many jurisdictions founded upon English law. The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking member of a borough or county council, a council member chosen by the elected members ...

ic charter under Tennessee Code Annotated (TCA) §6-1-101 ''et seq.'' Hendersonville is the largest city using this type of charter. * 49 cities use a uniform city manager-commission charter under TCA §6-18-101 ''et seq.'' Brentwood is the largest city operating with a uniform manager-commission charter. * Two cities (

Elizabethton Elizabethton is a city in, and the county seat of Carter County, Tennessee, United States. Elizabethton is the historical site of the first independent American government (known as the Watauga Association, created in 1772) located west of both t ...

and Union City) are incorporated under a modified city manager-council charter under TCA §6-30-101 ''et seq.'' *

Consolidated city-county In United States local government, a consolidated city-county is formed when one or more cities and their surrounding county ( parish in Louisiana, borough in Alaska) merge into one unified jurisdiction. As such it has the governmental powers ...

governments exist in three places:

Nashville Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and th ...

and Davidson County, Lynchburg and Moore County, and Hartsville and Trousdale County. City-county government consolidation is authorized by the Tennessee Constitution as amended in 1953 and TCA Title 7. Some Tennessee municipalities are called "cities" and others are called "towns." These terms do not have legal significance in Tennessee and are not related to

population Population typically refers to the number of people in a single area, whether it be a city or town, region, country, continent, or the world. Governments typically quantify the size of the resident population within their jurisdiction usi ...

, date of establishment, or type of

municipal charter A city charter or town charter (generically, municipal charter) is a legal document ('' charter'') establishing a municipality such as a city or town. The concept developed in Europe during the Middle Ages. Traditionally the granting of a charte ...

. Under current state law (TCA Title 6), a minimum of 1,500 residents are required to incorporate as a new municipality under the mayor-alderman or city manager-commission charter, and a minimum of 5,000 residents are required to incorporate under a modified city manager-council charter. In general,

s within three miles of an existing municipality (within five miles if the municipality has a population of 100,000 or more) are not permitted to incorporate as new municipalities. Provisions for incorporation were less restrictive in the past. The capital of Tennessee is Nashville.

List of incorporated cities and towns

* A All but one of Tennessee's county seats are municipalities. The exception is Blountville, county seat of Sullivan County.'' * B For municipalities located in more than one county, the primary county (according to U.S. Census) is listed first.

References

External links

Tennessee Code Annotated (TCA)

Constitution of the State of Tennessee
*
Getting to Know and Maybe Love Your Municipal Charter
', by Sidney D. Hemsley, Municipal Technical Advisory Service, 1992, revised 2008. {{Lists of cities by U.S. state

Cities and towns