Maynardville (originally named Liberty) is a city in and the county seat of Union County, Tennessee, United States. The city was named to honor Horace Maynard, who successfully defended the creation of Union County from a challenge from Knox County. It is included in the Knoxville metropolitan area.

History

Maynardville began in the early 19th century as a small community known as Liberty. When Union County was created in the 1850s, Liberty, being nearest the center of the county, was chosen as the county seat. The land for the courthouse square was donated by Marcus Monroe, a local minister.

Shortly after the Tennessee General Assembly passed legislation authorizing the creation of Union County, Knox County secured an injunction blocking the creation of the new county, which would take some of its area from Knox County. To defend the new county, its supporters retained the services of Horace Maynard, a Knoxville-area attorney and later U.S. Postmaster General. After Maynard successfully defended the new county in litigation proceedings, Liberty was renamed "Maynardville" in his honor. Union County was formally recognized in 1856.

Country music singer Roy Acuff was born in Maynardville in 1903. The Acuff family had been well-established in Union County since the mid-19th century. When Goodspeed published its History of Tennessee in 1887, the Union County section included a brief biography of Roy's grandfather, Coram Acuff (1846–1931), who represented Union County in the state legislature.

Throughout the early to mid-20th century, State Route 33 through Maynardville was part of the infamous Thunder Road, which was used by bootleggers to illegally transport and trade moonshine. This story was later fictionally adapted into a 1958 crime-drama film and song of the same name.

Since the dawn of the 21st century, Maynardville has become increasingly suburban with the widening projects of SR 33 (Maynardville Highway) providing quicker access to Knoxville.

Geography

Maynardville is situated near the center of Raccoon Valley, a narrow valley stretching for roughly between Copper Ridge on the south and Hinds Ridge on the north. Like most mountains in the Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians, these two ridges are long and narrow, and often fractured into smaller hills and knobs. The Norris Lake impoundment of the Clinch River is located about north of Maynardville.

Maynardville is concentrated around a stretch of State Route 33, which connects the city to Knoxville to the southwest and Tazewell to the northeast. State Route 61 connects Maynardville with Luttrell and Blaine to the south, and State Route 144 connects Maynardville with Plainview to the southwest.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all land.

Demographics

thumb|The old Dr. Carr office building, now an art gallery, in Maynardville

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, there was a population of 2,456, with 925 households and 528 families residing in the city. The median age was 35.4 years. 25.9% of residents were under the age of 18 and 14.3% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 92.5 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 90.5 males age 18 and over.

There were 925 households in Maynardville, including 528 families. Of those households, 34.8% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 43.1% were married-couple households, 17.1% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 32.3% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 28.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

! Race !! Number !! Percent

|-

| White || 2,276 || 92.7%

|-

| Black or African American || 5 || 0.2%

|-

| American Indian and Alaska Native || 3 || 0.1%

|-

| Asian || 8 || 0.3%

|-

| Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander || 0 || 0.0%

|-

| Some other race || 38 || 1.5%

|-

| Two or more races || 126 || 5.1%

|-

| Hispanic or Latino (of any race) || 79 || 3.2%

|}

2000 census

As of the census

Nearly 62% of the city's population was reported to commute outside of Union County for employment in 2010.

It is represented in the 8th District of the Tennessee Senate by Frank Niceley, also a Republican.

Federal

Maynardville is represented in the United States House of Representatives by Republican Chuck Fleischmann of the 3rd congressional district.

Notable people

  • Roy Acuff (1903–1992), country music singer-songwriter, Grand Ole Opry regular, Governor of Tennessee candidate, and musician
  • Kenny Chesney
  • Carl Smith (1927–2010), country music, countrypolitan, and rockabilly singer-songwriter, musician

In the 2009 film Inglourious Basterds, the character of 1 SSF First Lieutenant Aldo Raine, portrayed by Brad Pitt, is said to be a moonshiner from Maynardville.

The song "The Ballad of Thunder Road", references Maynardville.

References

  • Municipal Technical Advisory Service entry for Maynardville — information on local government, elections, and link to charter