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Tennessee Counties
There are ninety-five counties in the State of Tennessee. The oldest county is Washington County, founded in 1777. The most recently formed county is Chester County (1879)Knox County, Tennessee
Knox County Education, Geography, and History
Knox County is a county in the state of Tennessee. Based on the 2010 census, the population was 432,226,] making it the third-most populous
county in Tennessee. Its county seat is Knoxville, the third-most populous city in Tennessee.
Knox County is included in the Knoxville, TN Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Etymology - Origin of Knox County Name
Named in honor of Henry Knox (1750-1806), American Revolutionary War artillery commander, one of the founders of the Society of the Cincinnati and first US secretary of war.
Demographics:
County QuickFacts: CensusBureau Quick Facts
History of Knox County
Created 1792 from Greene and Hawkins counties; named in honor of Henry Knox (1750-1806), American Revolutionary War artillery commander, one of the founders of the Society of the Cincinnati and first US secretary of war.
Knox County was formed in 1792 from Greene and Hawkins counties
(Ordinance by William Blount, Governor of the Territory of the United States South of the River Ohio, 1792).
Tennessee Encyclopedia of History and Culture
In 1786 James White built a fort five miles below the junction of the French Broad and Holston Rivers on the
southernmost edge of frontier settlement in present-day East Tennessee. William Blount, governor of the Territory of
the United States South of the River Ohio, selected the site of James White's Fort as the territorial capital in
1791 and gave it the name Knoxville in honor of Revolutionary War hero General Henry Knox (1750-1806), who served as
the first US secretary of war from 1785 to 1794.
Knox County, also named for Henry Knox, was created from parts of Greene and Hawkins Counties on June 11, 1792, by
Governor Blount and has the distinction of being one of only eight counties created during territorial
administration. Knoxville has served as the county seat of Knox County from the date of the county's creation.
Portions of Knox County were later removed to create Blount County (1795), Anderson County (1801), Roane County
(1801), and Union County (1850). Knox County currently contains 509 square miles and lies at the geographical center
of the Great Valley of East Tennessee. The Tennessee River originates near the center of the county from the union
of the Holston and French Broad Rivers. Find more from the Tennessee Encyclopedia of History and Culture:
KNOX COUNTY
Geography: Land and Water
As reported by the Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 526 square miles (1,362 km2), of which, 508 square miles (1,317 km2) of it is land and 17 square miles (45 km2) of it (3.29%) is water.
The county is at the geographical center of the Great Valley of East Tennessee. Near the heart of the county is the origin of the Tennessee
River at the union of the Holston and French Broad rivers.
Neighboring Counties
Bordering counties are as follows:
- Union County (north)
- Grainger County (northeast)
- Jefferson County (east)
- Sevier County (southeast)
- Blount County (south)
- Loudon County (southwest)
- Roane County (west)
- Anderson County (northwest)
Education
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