Tennessee Valley
Information about Tennessee Valley
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Map of the Tennessee Watershed
Tennessee Valley is also a generally accepted term for North Alabama, anchored by the city of Huntsville.
Geography
The Tennessee Valley begins in the upper head water portions of the Holston River, Watauga River, and Doe River in Northeast Tennessee and travels southwest into North Alabama. The roughly 150 mile (240 km) stretch within Tennessee is bound on the east by the Appalachian Mountains (including the Great Smoky Mountains) and on the west by the Cumberland Plateau and Cumberland Mountains. Near Chattanooga, Tennessee, the Tennessee River cuts though the Cumberland Plateau creating a canyon called the Tennessee River Gorge before it enters northern Alabama. The 100 mile (160 km) Alabama stretch of the valley runs mainly west before turning back north and re-entering Tennessee. In Alabama, the valley is bound on the north by the southern end of the Cumberland Plateau. On the south it is bound by the southern end of the Appalachians.The valley continues back north into Tennessee, creating the dividing line between Middle Tennessee and West Tennessee, eventually reaching to the Ohio River in Western Kentucky.
Geologically, the eastern Tennessee Valley consists of many small valleys and ridges within a great valley. The region is termed the Ridge and Valley Province and the great valley is termed the Great Appalachian Valley.
Important cities
- Knoxville, Tennessee, the most populous metropolitan area in the valley, is where the Tennessee River begins at the confluence of the Holston and the French Broad Rivers. Here, the Tennessee Valley is sometimes called the Volunteer Valley. Knoxville along with nearby Oak Ridge and Maryville-Alcoa, form a major research and manufacturing corridor anchored by the University of Tennessee, the Oak Ridge National Laboratory, and the Tennessee Valley Authority headquarters.
- Chattanooga, Tennessee, is nicknamed "The Scenic City" for its vistas of the Tennessee Valley from atop the many mountaintops that surround the city. Chattanooga and its suburbs form the second most populous metropolitan area in the valley. The Battle of Chattanooga was fought on nearby Lookout Mountain.
- Elizabethton, Tennessee, is a small city formerly known by the moniker "The City of Power" prior to the post World War II era of nuclear power production. It is located at the confluence of the Doe River and Watauga River downstream from the Watauga Reservoir and the Wilbur Reservoir. Both are maintained by the Tennessee Valley Authority.
- Decatur, Alabama, known as "The River City", dominated the economic landscape of north Alabama until the late 1950s, when the space race catapaulted its neighbor Huntsville (see below) into that position. For most of the 20th century up to that point, Decatur held the top position in terms of economic impact and population. Its mixture of river transport and rail access has made it a busy hub of business, commerce, and manufacturing (chemicals and textiles especially) flowing down the river on the barges and boats of numerous companies and docking at the Port of Decatur.
- The City of Decatur also claims the nickname "The Heart of the Valley" because of its location near the exact center of the length of the Tennessee River. Also because most north/south shipping traffic is funneled through the town utilizing three river crossings that are main routes for rail and road traffic between Birmingham, and Nashville. The city is also an important river port that uses intramodal facilities to switch shipping methods between trains, trucks, and barges.
- Huntsville, Alabama, has risen to be the center of north Alabama economic activity since the dawn of the space age in the 1950s. Its aerospace and military technology centers of Redstone Arsenal, Cummings Research Park, and NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center define the high-tech landscape for the state of Alabama.
- Scottsboro, Alabama, "the Friendly City", is located on Highway 72, 40 miles east of Huntsville. It was founded in the mid 1850s and is most famous for the Scottsboro Boys and Unclaimed Baggage Center, as well as "First Monday," an open-air marketplace held in and around downtown on Mondays following the first weekend of a month.
Transportation
Interstates
- Interstate 24 (abbreviated I-24, in keeping with other roads in the Interstate Highway System) connects Paducah, Kentucky, at the mouth of the Tennessee, with Chattanooga via Clarksville and Nashville. Much of this road's route in Kentucky and Tennessee actually lies outside the Tennessee Valley.
- Interstate 26 is an east-west main route of the Interstate Highway System in the Northeast Tennessee. It runs from the junction of U.S. Route 11W and U.S. Route 23 in Kingsport, Tennessee, generally south and southeast to U.S. Route 17 in Charleston, South Carolina.
- Interstate 40 runs east-west across the Tennessee portion of the Tennessee Valley. Connecting Nashville with Knoxville and Asheville, North Carolina.
- Interstate 65 is the main north-south road in the central part of the valley, connecting Birmingham, Huntsville-Decatur, and Nashville.
- Interstate 565/Alabama 20/Alt 72 is the main corrider of the Huntsville-Decatur Combined Statistical Area that links the Huntsville Metropolitan Area and the Decatur Metropolitan Area, along with all of the scientific research and space exploration institutions in Northern Alabama. The road also provides a vital link to I-65 for both urban areas.
- Interstate 75 runs down the middle of the valley of East Tennessee. It connects Chattanooga and Knoxville with Atlanta, Georgia and Cincinnati, Ohio.
Airports
- Chattanooga Metropolitan Airport, Chattanooga
- Huntsville International Airport, Huntsville
- McGhee Tyson Airport, Alcoa, Tennessee (serves the Knoxville metropolitan area)
- Northwest Alabama Regional Airport, Muscle Shoals
- Pryor Field Regional Airport, Decatur
- Tri-Cities Regional Airport (serving the Northeast Tennessee area)
River Ports
- Port of Decatur - Decatur
- Port of Guntersville - Guntersville
- Chattanooga
- Knoxville
- Florence - The Shoals area
- Paducah, Kentucky
See also
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A drainage basin is a region of land where water from rain or snow melt drains downhill into a body of water, such as a river, lake, dam, estuary, wetland, sea or ocean. The drainage basin includes both the streams and rivers that convey the water as well as the land surfaces from
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Origin Confluence of French Broad and Holston at Knoxville.
Mouth Ohio River at Paducah, Kentucky
Basin countries USA
Length 652 mi (1049 km) [1]
Source elevation 813 ft (248 m) [2]
Mouth elevation
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Mouth Ohio River at Paducah, Kentucky
Basin countries USA
Length 652 mi (1049 km) [1]
Source elevation 813 ft (248 m) [2]
Mouth elevation
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United States of America
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State of Tennessee
Flag Seal
Nickname(s): Volunteer State
Motto(s): Agriculture and commerce
Official language(s) English
Capital Nashville
Largest city Memphis
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Flag Seal
Nickname(s): Volunteer State
Motto(s): Agriculture and commerce
Official language(s) English
Capital Nashville
Largest city Memphis
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Commonwealth of Kentucky
Flag of Kentucky Seal
Nickname(s): Bluegrass State
Motto(s): United we stand, divided we fall
Official language(s) English[1]
Capital Frankfort
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Flag of Kentucky Seal
Nickname(s): Bluegrass State
Motto(s): United we stand, divided we fall
Official language(s) English[1]
Capital Frankfort
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State of Georgia
Flag of Georgia Seal of Georgia
Nickname(s): Peach State, Empire State of the South
Motto(s): Wisdom, Justice, and Moderation
Official language(s) English
Capital Atlanta
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Flag of Georgia Seal of Georgia
Nickname(s): Peach State, Empire State of the South
Motto(s): Wisdom, Justice, and Moderation
Official language(s) English
Capital Atlanta
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State of Mississippi
Flag of Mississippi Seal
Nickname(s): The Magnolia State, The Hospitality State
Motto(s): Virtute et armis (By Valor and Arms)
Official language(s) English
Capital
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Flag of Mississippi Seal
Nickname(s): The Magnolia State, The Hospitality State
Motto(s): Virtute et armis (By Valor and Arms)
Official language(s) English
Capital
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Commonwealth of Virginia
Flag of Virginia Seal
Nickname(s): Old Dominion, Mother of Presidents
Motto(s): Sic semper tyrannis
Official language(s) English
Capital Richmond
Largest city
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Flag of Virginia Seal
Nickname(s): Old Dominion, Mother of Presidents
Motto(s): Sic semper tyrannis
Official language(s) English
Capital Richmond
Largest city
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The State of North Carolina
Flag of North Carolina Seal
Nickname(s): Tar Heel State; Old North State;
The Rip Van Winkle State
''Motto(s): Esse quam videri (Latin: To be, rather than to seem)''
Official language(s)
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Flag of North Carolina Seal
Nickname(s): Tar Heel State; Old North State;
The Rip Van Winkle State
''Motto(s): Esse quam videri (Latin: To be, rather than to seem)''
Official language(s)
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The Tennessee Valley Divide begins at its juncture with the Eastern Continental Divide in the Blue Ridge Mountains near Bluefield, West Virginia, and ends at the foot of Broadway in downtown Paducah, Kentucky, which also marks Mile 0 of the Tennessee River at its confluence with the Ohio.
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North Alabama is a region of the U.S. state of Alabama, generally thought to include these 12 counties: Cherokee, Colbert, DeKalb, Franklin, Jackson, Lauderdale, Lawrence, Limestone, Madison, Marshall, Morgan, and Winston, with a combined population of 953,247, or 20.
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Huntsville, Alabama
Nickname: "Rocket City"
Coordinates:
Country United States
State Alabama
Counties Madison, Limestone
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Nickname: "Rocket City"
Coordinates:
Country United States
State Alabama
Counties Madison, Limestone
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Origin Bland County, Virginia.
Mouth Tennessee River at Knoxville
Basin countries USA
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Mouth Tennessee River at Knoxville
Basin countries USA
For other uses of "Holston", see Holston (disambiguation).
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Origin Watauga County, North Carolina
Mouth South Fork Holston River near Kingsport, TN
Basin countries USA
Length 60 mi (97 km)
The Watauga River
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Mouth South Fork Holston River near Kingsport, TN
Basin countries USA
Length 60 mi (97 km)
The Watauga River
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The Doe River is a naturally flowing river in Northeast Tennessee that forms in Carter County, Tennessee near the North Carolina line, just south of Roan Mountain State Park.
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Tri-Cities" refers to the region comprising of the cities of Kingsport, Johnson City, and Bristol and the surrounding smaller towns and communities in Northeast Tennessee. All three of the principal cities are located in the extreme northeastern corner of the state; Bristol is on
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North Alabama is a region of the U.S. state of Alabama, generally thought to include these 12 counties: Cherokee, Colbert, DeKalb, Franklin, Jackson, Lauderdale, Lawrence, Limestone, Madison, Marshall, Morgan, and Winston, with a combined population of 953,247, or 20.
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The Appalachian Mountains
Countries | United States,Canada
Regions |
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Appalachians in North Carolina
Countries | United States,Canada
Regions |
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Appalachian Mountain system ]]
The Great Smoky Mountains are a major mountain range in the southern part of the Appalachian Mountains, the second ridge line forming a north-south running mountain chain from the Eastern United States and bordering the western side of
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The Great Smoky Mountains are a major mountain range in the southern part of the Appalachian Mountains, the second ridge line forming a north-south running mountain chain from the Eastern United States and bordering the western side of
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The Cumberland Plateau is the southern part of the Appalachian Plateau. It includes much of eastern Kentucky and western West Virginia, part of Tennessee, and a small portion of northern Alabama.
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Cumberland Mountains is a mountain range in the southeastern section of the Appalachian Mountains. It is located in western Virginia, eastern edges of Kentucky, and eastern middle Tennessee, including the Crab Orchard Mountains.
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Chattanooga, Tennessee
Nickname: Scenic City (official), River City Chattanooga is the fourth-largest city in Tennessee (after Memphis, Nashville, and Knoxville), and the seat of Hamilton County
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Nickname: Scenic City (official), River City Chattanooga is the fourth-largest city in Tennessee (after Memphis, Nashville, and Knoxville), and the seat of Hamilton County
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Origin Confluence of French Broad and Holston at Knoxville.
Mouth Ohio River at Paducah, Kentucky
Basin countries USA
Length 652 mi (1049 km) [1]
Source elevation 813 ft (248 m) [2]
Mouth elevation
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Mouth Ohio River at Paducah, Kentucky
Basin countries USA
Length 652 mi (1049 km) [1]
Source elevation 813 ft (248 m) [2]
Mouth elevation
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The Tennessee River Gorge is a 26 mile long, steep canyon formed by the Tennessee River. It is the fourth largest river gorge in the Eastern United States. The gorge is cut into the Cumberland Plateau as the river winds its way into Alabama from Tennessee.
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State of Alabama
Flag of Alabama Seal
Nickname(s): Yellowhammer State, Heart of Dixie
Motto(s): Audemus jura nostra defendere
Official language(s) English
Spoken language(s) English 96.
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Flag of Alabama Seal
Nickname(s): Yellowhammer State, Heart of Dixie
Motto(s): Audemus jura nostra defendere
Official language(s) English
Spoken language(s) English 96.
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Middle Tennessee is a distinct portion of the state of Tennessee, delineated according to law as well as custom. Middle Tennessee consists of that portion of the state east of the Tennessee River's western crossing of the state (in which it flows northward back into Tennessee after
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West Tennessee is one of the three Grand Divisions in the U.S. state of Tennessee. Of the three, it is the most sharply defined geographically. Its boundaries are the Mississippi River on the west and the Tennessee River on the east.
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Ohio River (Oyo)
Country | United States
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The widest point on the Ohio River is just west of downtown Louisville, where it is one mile wide
Country | United States
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Commonwealth of Kentucky
Flag of Kentucky Seal
Nickname(s): Bluegrass State
Motto(s): United we stand, divided we fall
Official language(s) English[1]
Capital Frankfort
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Flag of Kentucky Seal
Nickname(s): Bluegrass State
Motto(s): United we stand, divided we fall
Official language(s) English[1]
Capital Frankfort
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Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians, also called the Ridge and Valley Province or the Valley and Ridge Appalachians, are a belt within the Appalachian Mountains extending from northern New Jersey westward into Pennsylvania and southward into Maryland, West Virginia,
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