Germantown, Tennessee
Encyclopedia
Germantown is a city in Shelby County
Shelby County, Tennessee
Shelby County is a county located in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the state's largest both in terms of population and geographic area, with a population of 927,644 at the 2010 census...

, Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...

. The population was 38,844 at the 2010 census.

Germantown is a suburb
Suburb
The word suburb mostly refers to a residential area, either existing as part of a city or as a separate residential community within commuting distance of a city . Some suburbs have a degree of administrative autonomy, and most have lower population density than inner city neighborhoods...

 of Memphis
Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County. The city is located on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff, south of the confluence of the Wolf and Mississippi rivers....

, bordering it to the east. Germantown's economy is dominated by the retail and commercial service sectors; there is no heavy industry in Germantown. In the city center is the "Old Germantown" neighborhood, anchored by a railroad depot (a 1948 reproduction of the 1868 original) and railroad tracks that recall the community's earliest days of development as an outpost along the Memphis and Charleston Railroad
Memphis and Charleston Railroad
The Memphis and Charleston Railroad, completed in 1857, was the first railroad in the United States to link the Atlantic Ocean with the Mississippi River. Chartered in 1846 the railroad ran from Memphis, Tennessee to Stevenson, Alabama through the towns of Corinth, Mississippi and Huntsville,...

.

Germantown, and areas around it, are dotted with large horse farms and smaller barns housing just a few horses. The city hosts many horse shows and competitions annually, most notably the Germantown Charity Horse Show in June. Other major annual events include the Germantown Festival, an arts and crafts fair, in early September.

Germantown is known for having some of the most restrictive sign ordinances in the country as well as excellent fire and police services. In addition, Germantown is one of only 29 cities in the nation that maintains a triple-A Bond rating from both Moody's and Standard & Poors. On November 27, 1994, an F3
Enhanced Fujita Scale
The Enhanced Fujita Scale rates the strength of tornadoes in the United States based on the damage they cause.Implemented in place of the Fujita scale introduced in 1971 by Ted Fujita, it began operational use on February 1, 2007. The scale has the same basic design as the original Fujita scale:...

 tornado
Tornado
A tornado is a violent, dangerous, rotating column of air that is in contact with both the surface of the earth and a cumulonimbus cloud or, in rare cases, the base of a cumulus cloud. They are often referred to as a twister or a cyclone, although the word cyclone is used in meteorology in a wider...

 tore through eastern portions of Germantown, resulting in three fatalities in one home where several families had gathered for a reunion.

Geography

Germantown is located at 35°5′20"N 89°47′38"W (35.089023, -89.793997). It is part of the Memphis metropolitan area
Memphis Metropolitan Area
The Memphis Metropolitan Statistical Area, TN-MS-AR , more commonly known as The Mid-South, is the 41st largest among similarly designated areas in the United States. The metropolitan area covers eight counties in three states – Tennessee, Mississippi, and Arkansas...

.

According to the United States Census Bureau
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...

, the city has a total area of 17.6 square miles (45.6 km²), of which 0.04 square mile (0.1035995244 km²), or 0.17%, is water.

Public schools

Germantown's public schools are operated by Shelby County Schools
Shelby County Schools (Tennessee)
The Shelby County School District is a public school district headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee. It serves Shelby County, Tennessee, except for the city of Memphis...

.

High schools include:
  • Germantown High School
  • Houston High School
    Houston High School (Germantown, Tennessee)
    Houston High School is a fully accredited public high school located in Germantown, Tennessee, serving students in grades 9-12. The school is one of eight high schools currently operating in the Shelby County School District. The principal is Mrs. Leisa Justus, the vice-principal is Mrs...



K-8 schools include:

Middle schools include:

Elementary schools include:

Germanshire Elementary School in unincorporated Shelby County is not located in the city limits of Memphis, and it is a part of Memphis City Schools
Memphis City Schools
Memphis City Schools is the school district operating public schools in the city of Memphis, Tennessee. Its headquarters are in the Francis E. Coe Administration Building...

; therefore Germanshire does not serve the city of Germantown.

As of August 2011, Germantown is exploring the option of establishing its own municipal school district in response to a pending merger of Memphis City and Shelby County Schools.

Private schools

  • Daybreak Specialized School
  • Evangelical Christian School
  • Farmington Presbyterian Kindergarten
  • Madonna Learning Center
  • Our Lady Of Perpetual Help Catholic School (preschool - 8th grade)
  • St. Georges Day School
  • The Bodine School
  • The Phoenix School for Creative Learning
  • Union University - Germantown

Demographics

As of the census
Census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...

of 2000, there were 37,348 people, 13,220 households, and 11,065 families residing in the city. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...

 was 2,124.1 people per square mile (820.3/km²). There were 13,676 housing units at an average density of 777.8 per square mile (300.4/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 92.94% White, 2.33% Black, 0.16% Native American, 3.50% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.17% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

, and 0.87% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.09% of the population.

There were 13,220 households out of which 41.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 75.7% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...

 living together, 6.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 16.3% were non-families. 14.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 5.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.82 and the average family size was 3.14.

In the city the population was spread out with 28.0% under the age of 18, 6.8% from 18 to 24, 23.5% from 25 to 44, 33.5% from 45 to 64, and 9.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females there were 95.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.2 males.

According to a 2007 estimate, the median income for a household in the city was $113,733, and the median income for a family was $125,964. Males had a median income of $77,857 versus $38,311 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...

 for the city was $44,021. About 1.6% of families and 2.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.0% of those under age 18 and 1.3% of those age 65 or over.

Churches

  • Cumberland Presbyterian Church of Germantown
  • Faith Presbyterian Church (EPC)
  • Forest Hill Baptist Church
  • Forest Hill Church of Christ
  • Germantown Baptist Church
    Germantown Baptist Church
    Germantown Baptist Church dates back to 1838 in Germantown, Tennessee and is a large Southern Baptist church, now categorized as a megachurch. The church is 171 years old, and since its founding has moved from its location in downtown Germantown to an over building complex on a campus near the...

  • Germantown Church of Christ
  • Germantown Presbyterian Church (PCUSA)
  • Germantown United Methodist Church
  • Grace Evangelical Church
  • Our Lady of Perpetual Help
  • River Oaks Presbyterian Church (PCA)
  • St. George's Episcopal Church

Notable residents

Notables celebrities who currently reside or have previously resided in Germantown include:
  • Matt Cain
    Matt Cain
    Matthew Thomas Cain is an American Major League Baseball starting pitcher for the San Francisco Giants...

    , pitcher for the San Francisco Giants
    San Francisco Giants
    The San Francisco Giants are a Major League Baseball team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the National League West Division....

  • John Daly
    John Daly (golfer)
    John Patrick Daly is an American professional golfer on the PGA Tour.Daly is known primarily for his driving distance off the tee , his non-country club appearance and attitude, and his rough-and-tumble personal life. Daly remains one of the most popular and intriguing figures on the PGA Tour...

    , professional golfer
  • Kallen Esperian
    Kallen Esperian
    Kallen Esperian, born in Barrington, Illinois on , is an Armenian-American lyric soprano.-History:After earning her degree at the University of Illinois, Kallen Esperian went on to win the Luciano Pavarotti International Voice Competition in 1985...

    , soprano, Metropolitan Opera
  • Marc Gasol
    Marc Gasol
    Marc Gasol i Sàez is a Spanish professional basketball player for the NBA's Memphis Grizzlies. He was drafted in the second round, 48th overall, by the Los Angeles Lakers in the 2007 NBA Draft...

    , NBA player with the local Memphis Grizzlies, moved to Germantown as a teenager with his parents after older brother Pau
    Pau Gasol
    Pau Gasol Sáez is a Spanish professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association . He was born to Marisa Sáez and Agustí Gasol, and he spent his childhood in Spain...

     was drafted by the Grizzlies. Their parents still live in Germantown.
  • David Gossett
    David Gossett
    David Spencer Gossett is an American professional golfer who plays on the PGA Tour and the Nationwide Tour.Gossett was born in Phoenix, Arizona. His father introduced him to the game of golf and he competed in his first tournament at age 10. He went to Germantown High School in Germantown, Tennessee...

    , professional golfer
  • Hamed Haddadi, NBA player
  • Paul Maholm
    Paul Maholm
    Paul Gurner Maholm is a left-handed Major League Baseball starting pitcher for the Pittsburgh Pirates.-Amateur career:Maholm is a graduate of Germantown High School in Germantown, Tennessee...

    , 2003 8th overall pick MLB draft, Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher
  • Bob Melvin
    Bob Melvin
    Robert Paul Melvin is the manager of the Oakland Athletics, and a former Major League Baseball catcher.During a 10-year playing career, he played from 1985–94 for seven different teams...

    , manager of the Arizona Diamondbacks
    Arizona Diamondbacks
    The Arizona Diamondbacks are a professional baseball team based in Phoenix. They play in the West Division of Major League Baseball's National League. From 1998 to the present, they have played in Chase Field...

  • Cindy Parlow, US Women's National Soccer Team member and 2-time Olympic gold medal winner (1996 and 2004)
  • Chris Parnell
    Chris Parnell
    Thomas Christopher "Chris" Parnell is an American comic actor best known as a cast member on Saturday Night Live from 1998–2006 and currently for his recurring role as Dr. Leo Spaceman on NBC's Emmy Award-winning comedy series 30 Rock. Parnell also voices Cyril Figgis on the FX animated comedy...

    , former member of the cast of Saturday Night Live
    Saturday Night Live
    Saturday Night Live is a live American late-night television sketch comedy and variety show developed by Lorne Michaels and Dick Ebersol. The show premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title of NBC's Saturday Night.The show's sketches often parody contemporary American culture...

  • Elliot Perry
    Elliot Perry
    Elliot Lamonte Perry is a retired American professional basketball player in the NBA.The 6'0" point guard from Memphis State University , was selected with the tenth pick of the second round by the Los Angeles Clippers in the 1991 NBA Draft...

    , professional basketball player
  • Loren Roberts
    Loren Roberts
    Loren Lloyd Roberts is an American professional golfer.-Early life:Roberts was born in San Luis Obispo, California. He competed for San Luis Obispo Senior High School and Cal Poly-SLO...

    , professional golfer
  • Steven Seagal
    Steven Seagal
    Steven Frederic Seagal is an American action film star, producer, writer, martial artist, guitarist and reserve deputy sheriff. A 7th-dan black belt in Aikido, Seagal began his adult life as an Aikido instructor in Japan...

    , actor
  • Melanie Smith
    Melanie Smith (equestrian)
    Melanie Smith is an equestrian from the United States and Olympic champion. She won a gold medal in show jumping with the American team at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.-References:...

    , U.S. Equestrian Team member, gold medal winner, 1984 Olympics
  • Ben Spies
    Ben Spies
    Ben Spies , also known as "Elbowz" due to his riding style where his elbows protrude outward, is a professional motorcycle road racer who turned pro in 2000...

    , former World Super Bike champion and Moto GP racer
  • Michael Stern
    Michael Stern (conductor)
    Michael Stern is a noted American symphony conductor. Currently, he serves as the music director and lead conductor of the Kansas City Symphony in Kansas City, Missouri. He is also the founding music director of the IRIS Orchestra in Germantown, Tennessee.- Early life and education :Stern is the...

    , conductor
  • Sammy Swindell
    Sammy Swindell
    Samuel Alan "Sammy" Swindell is a three-time World of Outlaws champion, winning the title in 1981, 1982, and 1997, with hundreds of A-main victories to his credit. He also competed in the CART series in 1985 and 1986 and failed to qualify for the 1987 Indianapolis 500 in a March-Pontiac...

    , Hall of Fame sprint car driver
  • Joe Theismann
    Joe Theismann
    Joseph Robert "Joe" Theismann is a former quarterback in the National Football League and Canadian Football League . He achieved his most enduring fame in his 12 seasons playing for the Washington Redskins, where he was a two-time Pro Bowler and quarterback of the winning team in Super Bowl XVII...

    , former NFL quarterback

External links

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