McNairy County, Tennessee
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
McNairy County is a county located in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of 2000, the population was 24,653. Its county seat is Selmer, pop. 4,500,6. McNairy County is located along the northern border of the state of Mississippi.
The notable sheriff, Buford Pusser, served as the sheriff of McNairy County from 1964 to 1970, and since Selmer is the county seat, the location of the courthouse and the jail, that was his base of operations. Pusser was prominent in fighting illegal distilleries, bootleggers, gambling establishments, and corruption in McNairy county. His story has been made famous in the Walking Tall series of movies starring Joe Don Baker and Bo Svenson
The major highways U.S. Route 64 (east-west), and U.S. Route 45 (north-south) intersect in McNairy County and mutually bisect it into four parts. McNairy County's position on Route 64 places it on the historic Lee Highway, which stretches from New York to San Francisco.
McNairy County is also the location of the Coon Creek Science Center, a notable fossil site over the Coon Creek Formation that preserves Late Cretaceous marine shells and vertebrate remains (such as mosasaurs) left there 70 million years ago when the Gulf of Mexico receded towards the south.
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[edit] Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,453 km² (561 mi²). 1,450 km² (560 mi²) of it is land and 2 km² (1 mi²) of it (0.14%) is water.
[edit] Parks and Recreation
[edit] Adjacent Counties
- Chester County (north)
- Hardin County (east)
- Alcorn County, Mississippi (south)
- Hardeman County (west)
[edit] Demographics
As of the census² of 2000, there were 24,653 people, 9,980 households, and 7,135 families residing in the county. The population density was 17/km² (44/mi²). There were 11,219 housing units at an average density of 8/km² (20/mi²). The racial makeup of the county was 92.22% White, 6.23% Black or African American, 0.20% Native American, 0.13% Asian, 0.24% from other races, and 0.98% from two or more races. 0.93% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 9,980 households out of which 29.90% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.00% were married couples living together, 9.90% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.50% were non-families. 25.90% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.50% 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 2.89.
In the county, the population was spread out with 23.60% under the age of 18, 8.10% from 18 to 24, 26.70% from 25 to 44, 25.60% from 45 to 64, and 15.90% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 94.20 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.40 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $30,154, and the median income for a family was $36,045. Males had a median income of $30,028 versus $21,450 for females. The per capita income for the county was $16,385. About 11.80% of families and 15.90% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.00% of those under age 18 and 20.80% of those age 65 or over.
