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Shelby County, Tennessee

 

 
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Shelby County, Tennessee
 
 
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Shelby County is a county
County

A county is a land area of Local government government within a larger state. A county may have city and towns within its area....
 located in the U.S. state
U.S. state

A U.S. state is any one of the 50 state of the United States that share sovereignty with the federal government of the United States . Because of this shared sovereignty, an United States is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of Domicile ....
 of Tennessee
Tennessee

Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States United States. In 1796, it became the sixteenth state to join the United States....
. The county is the state's largest in terms of both population and geographic area. Its county seat
County seat

A county seat or parish seat is a term for an administrative center for a county or civil parish, primarily used in the United States. In the Northeast United States, the statutory term often is shire town, but colloquially county seat is the term in use there....
 is Memphis
Memphis, Tennessee

Memphis is a city in the southwest corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County, Tennessee. Memphis rises above the Mississippi River on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff just south of the mouth of the Wolf River ....
.

Shelby County is part of the Memphis Metropolitan Statistical Area, which comprises eight counties in the three states of Tennessee, Mississippi
Mississippi

Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Deep South of the United States. Jackson, Mississippi is the state capital and largest city. The state's name comes from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, and takes its name from the Anishinaabe language word misi-ziibi ....
, and Arkansas
Arkansas

Arkansas is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States of the United States. Arkansas shares a border with six states, with its eastern border largely defined by the Mississippi River....
.

rding to the U.S. 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 county has a total area of 784 square miles (2,030 kmē), of which, 755 square miles (1,954 kmē) of it is land and 29 square miles (75 kmē) of it (3.71%) is water.



ty government is headed by an elected county mayor and a thirteen-member county commission that is elected from five districts.






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Encyclopedia


Shelby County is a county
County

A county is a land area of Local government government within a larger state. A county may have city and towns within its area....
 located in the U.S. state
U.S. state

A U.S. state is any one of the 50 state of the United States that share sovereignty with the federal government of the United States . Because of this shared sovereignty, an United States is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of Domicile ....
 of Tennessee
Tennessee

Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States United States. In 1796, it became the sixteenth state to join the United States....
. The county is the state's largest in terms of both population and geographic area. Its county seat
County seat

A county seat or parish seat is a term for an administrative center for a county or civil parish, primarily used in the United States. In the Northeast United States, the statutory term often is shire town, but colloquially county seat is the term in use there....
 is Memphis
Memphis, Tennessee

Memphis is a city in the southwest corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County, Tennessee. Memphis rises above the Mississippi River on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff just south of the mouth of the Wolf River ....
.

Shelby County is part of the Memphis Metropolitan Statistical Area, which comprises eight counties in the three states of Tennessee, Mississippi
Mississippi

Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Deep South of the United States. Jackson, Mississippi is the state capital and largest city. The state's name comes from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, and takes its name from the Anishinaabe language word misi-ziibi ....
, and Arkansas
Arkansas

Arkansas is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States of the United States. Arkansas shares a border with six states, with its eastern border largely defined by the Mississippi River....
.

Geography

According to the U.S. 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 county has a total area of 784 square miles (2,030 kmē), of which, 755 square miles (1,954 kmē) of it is land and 29 square miles (75 kmē) of it (3.71%) is water.

Parks and recreation

  • Shelby Farms
    Shelby Farms

    Shelby Farms is the largest Urban area park in the United States, located in Memphis, Tennessee, Shelby County, Tennessee, Tennessee. At a size of 4,500 acres , it covers more than five times the area of Central Park in New York City with 843 acres ....
  • Meeman-Shelby Forest State Park
    Meeman-Shelby Forest State Park

    Meeman-Shelby Forest State Park is a state park in Shelby County, Tennessee near Memphis, located in the Southeastern United States.The park borders the Mississippi River and contains two lakes— Poplar Tree Lake and Lake Piersol....
  • T.O. Fuller State Park
  • Overton Park
    Overton Park

    Overton Park is a large, 342-acre public park in Midtown, Memphis Memphis, Tennessee. The park grounds contain the Memphis Brooks Museum of Art, the Memphis Zoo, a 9-hole golf course, the Memphis College of Art, the Rainbow Pool, the War Memorial, the Greensward, and other features....
  • Jim Flynn State Park


Adjacent counties

  • Tipton County
    Tipton County, Tennessee

    Tipton County is a county located on the western end of the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of 2000, the population was 51,271. Its county seat is Covington, Tennessee....
     (north)
  • Fayette County
    Fayette County, Tennessee

    Fayette County is a county located in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of 2000, the population was 28,806. The 2005 Census Estimate placed the population at 34,458 ....
     (east)
  • Marshall County, Mississippi
    Marshall County, Mississippi

    Marshall County is a county located in the U.S. state of Mississippi. As of 2000, the population was 34,993. Its county seat is Holly Springs, Mississippi....
     (southeast)
  • DeSoto County, Mississippi
    DeSoto County, Mississippi

    DeSoto County is a county located in the U.S. state of Mississippi. DeSoto County is part of the Memphis metropolitan area. Its county seat is Hernando, Mississippi....
     (south)
  • Crittenden County, Arkansas
    Crittenden County, Arkansas

    Crittenden County is a county located in the U.S. state of Arkansas. As of the United States Census, 2000, the population was 50,866. The county seat is Marion, Arkansas, while its largest city is West Memphis, Arkansas....
     (west)


Law and government

County government is headed by an elected county mayor and a thirteen-member county commission that is elected from five districts. Current mayor A.C. Wharton was first elected in 2002. He was elected to a second four-year term in 2006.

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....
 of 2000, there were 897,472 people, 338,366 households, and 228,735 families residing in the county. 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 1,189 people per square mile (459/kmē). There were 362,954 housing units at an average density of 481 per square mile (186/kmē). The racial makeup of the county was 48.56% Black
Race (United States Census)

Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the United States Census Bureau and the Federal Office of Management and Budget , are Self-concept data items in which residents choose the Race in the United States or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are of Hispanic or Latino origin ....
, or African American
Race (United States Census)

Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the United States Census Bureau and the Federal Office of Management and Budget , are Self-concept data items in which residents choose the Race in the United States or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are of Hispanic or Latino origin ....
, 47.34% White
Race (United States Census)

Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the United States Census Bureau and the Federal Office of Management and Budget , are Self-concept data items in which residents choose the Race in the United States or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are of Hispanic or Latino origin ....
, 0.20% Native American
Race (United States Census)

Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the United States Census Bureau and the Federal Office of Management and Budget , are Self-concept data items in which residents choose the Race in the United States or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are of Hispanic or Latino origin ....
, 1.64% Asian
Race (United States Census)

Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the United States Census Bureau and the Federal Office of Management and Budget , are Self-concept data items in which residents choose the Race in the United States or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are of Hispanic or Latino origin ....
, 0.04% Pacific Islander
Race (United States Census)

Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the United States Census Bureau and the Federal Office of Management and Budget , are Self-concept data items in which residents choose the Race in the United States or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are of Hispanic or Latino origin ....
, 1.20% from other races
Race (United States Census)

Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the United States Census Bureau and the Federal Office of Management and Budget , are Self-concept data items in which residents choose the Race in the United States or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are of Hispanic or Latino origin ....
, and 1.02% from two or more races. 2.60% of the population were Hispanic
Race (United States Census)

Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the United States Census Bureau and the Federal Office of Management and Budget , are Self-concept data items in which residents choose the Race in the United States or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are of Hispanic or Latino origin ....
 or Latino
Race (United States Census)

Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the United States Census Bureau and the Federal Office of Management and Budget , are Self-concept data items in which residents choose the Race in the United States or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are of Hispanic or Latino origin ....
 of any race.

There were 338,366 households out of which 34.20% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.80% were married couples
Marriage

Marriage is a social, spirituality, or law union of individuals. This union may also be called matrimony, while the ceremony that marks its beginning is usually called a wedding and the married status created is sometimes called wedlock....
 living together, 20.10% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.40% were non-families. 27.00% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.70% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.60 and the average family size was 3.18.

In the county, the population was spread out with 28.20% under the age of 18, 9.70% from 18 to 24, 31.10% from 25 to 44, 21.00% from 45 to 64, and 10.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females there were 91.40 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.80 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $39,593, and the median income for a family was $47,386. Males had a median income of $36,932 versus $26,776 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income

Per capita income means how much each individual receives, in monetary terms, of the yearly income generated in the country. This is what each citizen is to receive if the yearly national income is divided equally among everyone....
 for the county was $20,856. About 12.90% of families and 16.00% of the population were below the poverty line, including 22.90% of those under age 18 and 13.30% of those age 65 or over.

Shelby County Courthouse


Shelby County Courthouse, located in Memphis on Adams Avenue between North 2nd and North 3rd Streets, was designed by James Gamble Rogers
James Gamble Rogers

James Gamble Rogers was an United States of America architect best known for his academic commissions at Yale University, Columbia University, Northwestern University, and elsewhere....
 and completed in 1909. This Neo-classic
Neoclassical architecture

Neoclassical architecture was an architectural style produced by the Neoclassicism that began in the mid-18th century, both as a reaction against the Rococo style of anti-tectonic naturalistic ornament, and an outgrowth of some classicizing features of Baroque architecture....
 pile features a long portico topped by a cornice supported by massive Ionic columns. The ambitious sculptural program executed by J. Massey Rhind
J. Massey Rhind

John Massey Rhind was an United States sculptor born in Edinburgh, Scotland. Among Rhind's better known works is the marble statue of Dr. Crawford W....
 includes the pediment groups, Canon Law
Canon law

Canon law is internal ecclesiastical law governing the Roman Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church churches, and the Anglicanism of churches....
, Roman Law
Roman law

Roman law is the law system of ancient Rome. As used in the West the term commonly refers to legal developments prior to the Roman/Byzantine state's adopting Greek language as its official language in the 7th century....
, Statutory Law
Statutory law

Statutory law or statute law is written law set down by a legislature or other governing authority such as the executive branch of government in response to a perceived need to clarify the functioning of government, improve civil order, to codification existing law, or for an individual or company to obtain special treatment....
, Civil Law
Civil law (common law)

Civil law, as opposed to criminal law, refers to that branch of law dealing with disputes between individuals and/or organizations, in which damages may be awarded to the victim....
 and Criminal Law
Criminal law

The term criminal law, sometimes called penal law, refers to any of various bodies of rules in different jurisdictions whose common characteristic is the potential for unique and often severe impositions as punishment for failure to comply....
. Female allegorical figures can be found on the north facade cornice representing Integrity, Courage, Mercy, Temperance, Prudence and Learning. Flanking the main entrances are over life sized seated figures embodying Wisdom, Justice, Liberty, Authority, Peace and Prosperity. It is also featured in the movie The Silence of the Lambs as the place where Dr. Hannibal Lecter escapes custody.



Cities and towns

  • Arlington
    Arlington, Tennessee

    Arlington is a town in Shelby County, Tennessee, Tennessee, United States. The population was 2,569 at the 2000 census. It is one of seven municipalities in Shelby County....
  • Bartlett
    Bartlett, Tennessee

    Bartlett is a city in Shelby County, Tennessee, Tennessee, United States, and a suburb of the Memphis metropolitan area. The population was 40,543 at the 2000 census....
  • Collierville
    Collierville, Tennessee

    Collierville is a town in Shelby County, Tennessee, and a suburb located in the Memphis metropolitan area. As of the United States Census, 2000, the population was 31,872....
  • Cordova
    Cordova, Tennessee

    Cordova is a community in Shelby County, Tennessee, Tennessee, United States. Much of Cordova have been annexed by the city of Memphis, Tennessee....
  • Eads
    Eads, Tennessee

    Eads is an unincorporated community in Shelby County, Tennessee, Tennessee, United States. Some of Eads have been annexed by the city of Memphis, Tennessee....
  • Fisherville
    Fisherville, Tennessee

    Fisherville is an unincorporated community in Shelby County, Tennessee, Tennessee, United States. Fisherville is located between Eads, Tennessee and Collierville, Tennessee....
  • Germantown
    Germantown, Tennessee

    Germantown is a city in Shelby County, Tennessee, Tennessee, United States. The population was 37,348 at the 2000 census.Germantown is a suburb of Memphis, Tennessee, Tennessee....
  • Lakeland
    Lakeland, Tennessee

    Lakeland is a city in Shelby County, Tennessee, Tennessee, United States, and a suburb of Memphis, Tennessee. The population was 6,862 at the 2000 census....
  • Memphis
    Memphis, Tennessee

    Memphis is a city in the southwest corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County, Tennessee. Memphis rises above the Mississippi River on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff just south of the mouth of the Wolf River ....
  • Millington
    Millington, Tennessee

    Millington is a city in Shelby County, Tennessee, Tennessee, United States. As of the 2000 census, the city had a population of 10,433. It is the home of Memphis Motorsports Park....


Major highways


Interstate 22
  • I 40
    Interstate 40
    Interstate 40

    Interstate 40 is a major west-east Interstate Highway in the United States. Its western terminus is at Interstate 15 in California in Barstow, California; its eastern terminus is at a concurrency of U.S....
  • I 55
    Interstate 55
    Interstate 55

    Interstate 55 is an Interstate Highway in the central United States. Its odd number indicates that it is primarily a north-south highway. It goes from Laplace, Louisiana at Interstate 10 to Chicago at U.S....
  • I 69
    Interstate 69
    Interstate 69

    Interstate 69 is an Interstate Highway in the United States. It exists in two parts: a completed highway from Indianapolis, Indiana, northeast to the Canadian border in Port Huron, Michigan, and a mostly-proposed extension southwest to the Mexican border in Texas....
  • I 240
    Interstate 240
    Interstate 240 (Tennessee)

    Interstate 240 is an Interstate Highway in the U.S. state of Tennessee. Running or 31.0 km, it loops southward from Interstate 40 in east Memphis, Tennessee, then turning west at TN 385 ....
  • Us 51
    U.S. Highway 51
  • Us 61
    U.S. Highway 61
  • Us 64
    U.S. Highway 64
  • Us 72
    U.S. Highway 72
  • Us 78
    U.S. Highway 78
  • Tennessee 14
    State Route 14 (Tennessee)
  • State Route 300 (Tennessee)
  • State Route 385 (Tennessee)
    State Route 385 (Tennessee)

    State Route 385 is the designation for three separate segments of highway in the Memphis Metropolitan Area in Shelby County, Tennessee and Fayette County, Tennessee counties in West Tennessee, forming a semicircle around and through the Memphis suburbs....
  • State Route 388 (Tennessee)
  • Sam Cooper Boulevard
    Sam Cooper Boulevard

    Sam Cooper Boulevard is a six-lane controlled-access expressway/parkway in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It runs from Tennessee State Route 277 to Interstate 240 in Memphis, Tennessee....
  • State Route 175 (Tennessee)
  • State Route 177 (Tennessee)


    • Education

    Almost all areas in Shelby County that are outside of the city of Memphis are zoned to schools operated by Shelby County Schools
    Shelby County Schools (Tennessee)

    The Shelby County School District is the fourth largest school system in Tennessee with a population of over 45,000 students.The district includes almost all of the public schools in Shelby County, Tennessee outside the corporate limits of the city of Memphis, Tennessee, including those schools located within the six incorporated towns of A...
    . Schools in Memphis are operated by Memphis City Schools
    Memphis City Schools

    Memphis City Schools is the school district serving Memphis, Tennessee, Tennessee, United States and the largest school district in Tennessee....
    .

    Some portions of unincorporated Shelby County are zoned to Memphis City Schools from kindergarten through 12th grade. Some portions of unincorporated Shelby County are zoned to Shelby County Schools for elementary and middle school and Memphis City Schools schools for high school.

    See also

    • County named after Isaac Shelby
      Isaac Shelby

      Isaac Shelby was the first and fifth Governor of Kentucky of the U.S. state of Kentucky and served in the state legislatures of Virginia and North Carolina....
    • Davies Manor
      Davies Manor

      Davies Manor is the oldest home in Shelby County, Tennessee and possibly West Tennessee. It is a two-story, log and chink home made using white oak logs that is on what was once a plantation with a total of approximately ....
       - oldest home in Shelby County


    External links

    • (official county government website)