Jamestown is a city in and the county seat of Fentress County, Tennessee, United States. The population of the city was 1,935 at the 2020 census. who made the appeal for the new county to be carved out of Overton and Morgan counties.
left|200px|thumb|Mark Twain Spring in Jamestown, used by Twain's parents circa 1827-1832
Jamestown was built upon the site of a semi-permanent Cherokee village, which probably made use of the many natural rock shelters in the area. Before the founding of Jamestown, the area was known as "Sand Springs" for the many bubbling springs located within the city. The last remaining spring is located in the Mark Twain City Park, just northeast of the county courthouse. This spring provided water to the family of John M. Clemens, father of noted author Samuel L. Clemens (Mark Twain), before they moved to Missouri. John Clemens served as the first circuit court clerk. He also drew the plans for the first courthouse and jail.
During the American Civil War, Fentress County provided four companies for the Confederate Army and three for the Union Army. The notorious "Tinker Dave" Beaty formed his Union scout company in Fentress County to battle with the pro-Confederate guerrilla's led by Champ Ferguson. Neither of these companies were ever mustered into the armies they supported, and they spent most of their time fighting each other.
World War I hero Sgt. Alvin C. York was born and raised in Fentress County. He built the Alvin C. York Agricultural Institute, a high school in Jamestown. It is one of four state-funded schools in Tennessee.
Geography
Jamestown is located at (36.429082, -84.932414). The city is located along the western edge of the Cumberland Plateau near the center of Fentress County. Streams in the eastern part of the city are part of the Big South Fork of the Cumberland River watershed, while streams in the western part of the city flow into the upper Obey River watershed.
Jamestown is situated at the intersection of U.S. Route 127, which connects the city with Crossville to the south and Kentucky to the north, and State Route 52, which connects the city with Livingston to the west and Allardt to the southeast. State Route 154 connects the Jamestown area with Pickett State Park to the northeast.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all land.
Climate
Demographics
2020 census
As of the 2020 census, there was a population of 1,935, with 856 households and 396 families residing in the city.
The median age was 47.1 years. 17.1% of residents were under the age of 18 and 27.1% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 88.2 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 83.2 males age 18 and over.
Of the 856 households in Jamestown, 23.5% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 20.3% were married-couple households, 23.8% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 47.2% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 49.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 20.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
! Race !! Number !! Percent
|-
| White || 1,803 || 93.2%
|-
| Black or African American || 8 || 0.4%
|-
| American Indian and Alaska Native || 7 || 0.4%
|-
| Asian || 10 || 0.5%
|-
| Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander || 0 || 0.0%
|-
| Some other race || 9 || 0.5%
|-
| Two or more races || 98 || 5.1%
|-
| Hispanic or Latino (of any race) || 47 || 2.4%
|}
2010 census
In 2010, Jamestown had the sixth-lowest median household income of all places in the United States with a population over 1,000.
2000 census
As of the census