Morristown

Morristown: Crockett Tavern Museum

Morristown, city, seat (1870) of Hamblen county, northeastern Tennessee, U.S., about 40 miles (65 km) northeast of Knoxville. It lies in a valley bounded on the north and west by Clinch Mountain and on the south by the Great Smoky Mountains. The community was named for Gideon Morris, who settled the site in the 1780s. The boyhood home of frontiersman Davy Crockett has been reproduced as a museum. During the American Civil War a series of actions took place (October–November 1864) in the vicinity involving Union forces led by Alvan C. Gillem and Confederate troops under John C. Breckinridge.

Local industries include poultry processing and the manufacture of furniture, automotive parts, aircraft parts, and health care products. Agriculture (including tobacco, corn [maize], soybeans, livestock, and dairying) is also important. Walters State Community College was founded in 1970. Cherokee and Douglas lakes, reservoirs of the Tennessee Valley Authority system, are nearby. Panther Creek State Park is just west of the city; Great Smoky Mountains National Park and Cherokee National Forest are to the south. The Rose Center has historical exhibits and hosts the annual Mountain Makin’s Festival in October. Inc. 1867. Pop. (2000) 24,965; Morristown Metro Area, 123,081; (2010) 29,137; Morristown Metro Area, 136,608.