Cocke County, Tennessee facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Cocke County
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| County of Cocke | |
Cocke County Courthouse in Newport
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Location within the U.S. state of Tennessee
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 Tennessee's location within the U.S. |
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| Country |  United States |
| State |  Tennessee |
| Founded | October 9, 1797 |
| Named for | William Cocke |
| Seat | Newport |
| Largest city | Newport |
| Area | |
| • Total | 443 sq mi (1,150 km2) |
| • Land | 435 sq mi (1,130 km2) |
| • Water | 8.6 sq mi (22 km2) 1.9%% |
| Population
(2020)
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| • Total | 35,999  |
| • Density | 82/sq mi (32/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−5 (Eastern) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−4 (EDT) |
| Congressional district | 1st |
Cocke County is a county on the eastern border of the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2010 census, the population was 35,662. Its county seat is Newport. Cocke County comprises the Newport, TN Micropolitan Statistical Area, which is part of the Knoxville-Morristown-Sevierville, Tennessee Combined Statistical Area.
Contents
History
Before the arrival of European settlers, the area that is now Cocke County probably was inhabited by Cherokees. The first recorded European settlement in the county was in 1783 when land near the fork of the French Broad and the Pigeon Rivers was cleared and cultivated. The earliest European settlers were primarily Scots-Irish, Dutch, and Germans who came to the area over the mountains from the Carolinas or through Virginia from Pennsylvania and other northern states.
The county was established by an Act of the Tennessee General Assembly on October 9, 1797, from a part of Jefferson County, Tennessee. It was named for William Cocke, one of the state's first United States Senators.
Like many East Tennessee counties, Cocke County was largely pro-Union on the eve of the Civil War. In Tennessee's Ordinance of Secession referendum on June 8, 1861, the county's residents voted 1,185 to 518 against secession.
Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 443 square miles (1,150 km2), of which 435 square miles (1,130 km2) is land and 8.6 square miles (22 km2) (1.9%) is water. The southern part of the county is located within the Great Smoky Mountains, and is protected by the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The northern part of the county is situated within the Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians. The county's highest point is Old Black, which rises to 6,370 feet (1,940 m) in the Smokies along the county's border with North Carolina. English Mountain, a large ridge that peaks at 3,629 feet (1,106 m), dominates the northwestern part of the county.
Cocke County is drained by the French Broad River, which traverses the northern part of the county and forms much of its boundary with Jefferson County. A portion of this river is part of Douglas Lake, an artificial reservoir created by Douglas Dam further downstream. The Pigeon River flows northward across the county and empties into the French Broad north of Newport at Irish Bottoms.
Adjacent counties
- Hamblen County (north)
- Greene County (northeast)
- Madison County, North Carolina (east)
- Haywood County, North Carolina (south)
- Sevier County (southwest)
- Jefferson County (northwest)
National protected areas
- Appalachian Trail (part)
- Cherokee National Forest (part)
- Foothills Parkway (part)
- Great Smoky Mountains National Park (part)
State protected areas
- Rankin Wildlife Management Area (part)
- Martha Sundquist State Forest
Major Highways
I-40
US 25
US 25E
US 25W
US 321
US 411
SR 32
SR 73
Demographics
| Historical population | |||
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| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1810 | 5,154 | — | |
| 1820 | 4,892 | −5.1% | |
| 1830 | 6,017 | 23.0% | |
| 1840 | 6,992 | 16.2% | |
| 1850 | 8,300 | 18.7% | |
| 1860 | 10,408 | 25.4% | |
| 1870 | 12,458 | 19.7% | |
| 1880 | 14,808 | 18.9% | |
| 1890 | 16,523 | 11.6% | |
| 1900 | 19,153 | 15.9% | |
| 1910 | 19,399 | 1.3% | |
| 1920 | 20,782 | 7.1% | |
| 1930 | 21,775 | 4.8% | |
| 1940 | 24,083 | 10.6% | |
| 1950 | 22,991 | −4.5% | |
| 1960 | 23,390 | 1.7% | |
| 1970 | 25,283 | 8.1% | |
| 1980 | 28,792 | 13.9% | |
| 1990 | 29,141 | 1.2% | |
| 2000 | 33,565 | 15.2% | |
| 2010 | 35,662 | 6.2% | |
| 2020 | 35,999 | 0.9% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census 1790-1960 1900-1990 1990-2000 2010-2014 |
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2020 census
| Race | Number | Percentage |
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| White (non-Hispanic) | 32,733 | 90.93% |
| Black or African American (non-Hispanic) | 582 | 1.62% |
| Native American | 126 | 0.35% |
| Asian | 150 | 0.42% |
| Pacific Islander | 9 | 0.03% |
| Other/Mixed | 1,445 | 4.01% |
| Hispanic or Latino | 954 | 2.65% |
As of the 2020 United States census, there were 35,999 people, 14,060 households, and 9,196 families residing in the county.
Communities
City
Towns
Unincorporated communities
Former communities
In popular culture
The novel Christy and the television series of the same name are based on historical events, actual people, and localities of Cocke County. The fictional small town of El Pano, where the novel begins, is based on the existing village of Del Rio, Tennessee. The fictional Cutter Gap, where most of the plot unfolds, represents the locale now known as Chapel Hollow. Several area landmarks associated with the story are marked for visitors, including the site of the Ebenezer Mission in Chapel Hollow, which is located off the Old Fifteenth Rd., about 5 miles (8.0 km) from Del Rio.
The Amazon.com e-novel Mountain Treachery, a Christian fiction novel written by Matt Reid, is set in Cocke County.
Notable residents
- Ben W. Hooper, governor of Tennessee from 1911 to 1915
- Popcorn Sutton, moonshiner
- Marshall Teague, actor
