Clinton Tennessee
“Burrville to Clinton”
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Town of Clinton TN
The town of Clinton is located in Anderson county and is also the county seat. Clinton is located 59 miles upstream of the mouth of the clinch at the Tennessee River. The town of Clinton is surrounded by long narrow ridges of the Appalachians and Tennessee Blue Ridge Mountains. to the northeast is the Cumberland Plateau.
Clinton TN is considered a pearl in the Cinch Valley and a perfect place to visit year round. Clinton and Anderson county are well known as the South’s largest shopping for antiques district. Combined with antiques are local artists, coffee shops, local restaurants, event spaces, and more.
Visit our historic downtown, browse through shops, antiques, collectibles, and gifts at affordable prices. From hotels to inns to bed and breakfasts to campgrounds and cabin rentals, Clinton is a great place to stay for a day, weekend or longer. While you are in Clinton visit the Museum of the Appalachia, The Little Ponderosa Zoo and Reserve, Norris Dam State Park, Jaycee Park, Norris Lake and Dam, Appalachian Arts Center, and the Tennessee River.
History of Clinton TN
The history in Clinton, TN dates back to the prehistoric Native Americans habitation. Some of these sites were excavated in the 1930s and 1950s during pre-construction of the Norris Dam. Two villages were uncovered 20 miles downstream from Clinton. The treaty of Holston was signed in 1791. with the Cherokee Indians intending to stop the settlement of the area of what is Anderson county today. More settlers moved across the mountains from Virginia and North Carolina into Tennessee making the treaty ineffective. Due to white settlers taking over Indian territory, many battles and skirmishes were held with the Cherokee.
In 1801 Clinton was called Burrville after Aaron Burr, vice president under Thomas Jefferson. the land was selected, partitioned and designated as the county seat for Anderson county. The city quickly changed its name when Aaron Burr was charged with treason for conspiring with the governor of the Louisiana Purchase and apart of Mexico to form another country. The town was named after his son George Clinton who served as a vice president to Thomas Jefferson and James Madison.
During Word War II Clinton Tennessee played its part. The Clinton Engineer Works named after Clinton was the official name for the Manhattan Project site in Tennessee which produced enriched uranium used in the 1945 Atom Bomb on Hiroshima, Japan. The site is also known as the township, Oak Ridge.
In 1956 Clinton Tennessee gain national attention once again when whites opposed the desegregation of Canton High School. Twelve African American students attended classes in August 1956. This was the the first state supported desegregation in a public school in the Southeast. After unrest the National Guard was stationed in Clinton and the school was bombed but quickly rebuilt.