Dickson, Tennessee

Dickson, Tennessee
City
Downtown business district of Dickson
Location of Dickson in Dickson County, Tennessee.
Coordinates: 36°4′17″N 87°22′28″W / 36.07139°N 87.37444°W / 36.07139; -87.37444Coordinates: 36°4′17″N 87°22′28″W / 36.07139°N 87.37444°W / 36.07139; -87.37444
Country	United States
State	Tennessee
County	Dickson
Government
• Mayor	Don L. Weiss Jr.
• Chief of Police	Jeff Lewis
Area
• Total	20.0 sq mi (51.9 km2)
• Land	20.0 sq mi (51.7 km2)
• Water	0.08 sq mi (0.2 km2)
Elevation	804 ft (245 m)
Population (2010)
• Total	14,538
• Estimate (2016)[1]	15,492
• Density	729/sq mi (281.3/km2)
Time zone	UTC-6 (Central (CST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC-5 (CDT)
ZIP codes	37055-37056
Area code(s)	615
FIPS code	47-20620[2]
GNIS feature ID	1303436[3]
Website	www.cityofdickson.com

Dickson is a city in Dickson County, Tennessee, United States. It is part of the Nashville Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population at the 2010 census was 14,538,^[4] with an estimate of 14,993 in 2014.^[5]

History

Dickson was named for Congressman William Dickson, as was Dickson County.^[6]

Geography

Dickson is located in south-central Dickson County at 36°4′17″N 87°22′28″W / 36.07139°N 87.37444°W / 36.07139; -87.37444 (36.071485, -87.374539).^[7] It is bordered to the east by the town of Burns. U.S. Route 70 passes through the north side of the city as Henslee Drive; it leads east 40 miles (64 km) to Nashville and west 62 miles (100 km) to Huntingdon. Interstate 40 passes through the Dickson city limits 5 miles (8 km) south of the center of town, with access from Exit 172 (Tennessee State Route 46). I-40 leads east 37 miles (60 km) to Nashville from Exit 172 and west 92 miles (148 km) to Jackson.

According to the United States Census Bureau, Dickson has a total area of 20.0 square miles (51.9 km²), of which 20.0 square miles (51.7 km²) is land and 0.1 square miles (0.2 km²), or 0.41%, is water.^[4] The city center sits on the Tennessee Valley Divide, with the southwest side of the city draining via the East Piney River to the Piney River, then to the Duck River, and then to the Tennessee River, while the northeast side drains via Turnbull Creek or Jones Creek to the Harpeth River and thence to the Cumberland River.

Demographics

The 1922 Dickson County High School basketball team

As of the census^[2] of 2000, there were 12,244 people, 4,934 households, and 3,300 families residing in the city. There were 24,325 people in the 37055 zip code. The population density was 743.4 people per square mile (287.0/km²). There were 5,280 housing units at an average density of 320.6 per square mile (123.8/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 87.86% White, 8.83% African American, 0.46% Native American, 0.56% Asian, 0.77% from other races, and 1.54% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.94% of the population.

There were 4,934 households out of which 34.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.5% were married couples living together, 16.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.1% were non-families. 29.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.42 and the average family size was 2.97.

In the city the population was spread out with 27.2% under the age of 18, 9.0% from 18 to 24, 28.9% from 25 to 44, 20.6% from 45 to 64, and 14.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 86.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 79.8 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $34,549, and the median income for a family was $42,632. Males had a median income of $32,733 versus $23,138 for females. The per capita income for the city was $17,654. About 12.6% of families and 15.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.3% of those under age 18 and 14.2% of those age 65 or over.

Government

Mayor

The City of Dickson is governed by a mayor and City Council. The current Mayor, Don Weiss, Jr., has served in that office since 1993, making him the longest-serving Mayor of Dickson.^[10]

City Council

The City of Dickson is divided into four wards, each of which elects 2 members to the City Council. Current members of the City Council are:^[11]

First Ward - Betty Lou Alsobrooks, Jason Epley

Second Ward - Jason Turbeville, Robby Harmon

Third Ward - Jon “Bird” Armstrong, Horace Perkins III

Fourth Ward - Michael J. Outlaw, Dwight E. Haynes

City Administrator

As the Mayor of Dickson is only a part-time job, a City Administrator is also appointed to oversee the day-to-day operations of the city government and its budget. The current City Administrator is Rydell Wesson.^[12]

Parks and Recreation

The City of Dickson Parks and Recreation Department maintains and operates various green spaces in Dickson. The current Parks Superintendent is Cherie Wilson. The following are spaces overseen by the Parks Department: J. Dan Buckner Park (soccer and baseball fields, tennis courts, pool, and lake), Holland Park (downtown Dickson), Lester Speyer Complex (softball fields, basketball courts, playground, tennis courts, Tennsco Community Center/event space), Luther Lake, Lakeview Park, Dickson Housing Authority Community Center (indoor gymnasium), and Tom Waychoff Memorial Park (downtown Dickson).^[13]

Media

The Hotel Halbrook Railroad & Local History Museum was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1990.

Notable people

• Francis Craig, songwriter, bandleader
• Walter S. Davis, educator.^[14]
• John Mitchell, baseball player
• Craig Morgan, country singer
• Anson Mount, actor
• Sunita Mani, actress
• John Rich, country singer
• Trevor Daniel, American Football punter for the Houston Texans of the National Football League

References

External links

• City of Dickson official website
• City charter