Paris, Tennessee
The replica of the Eiffel tower in Paris, Tennessee.
Location of Paris, Tennessee
Coordinates: 36°18′4″N 88°18′50″W / 36.30111, -88.31389
Country	United States
State	Tennessee
County	Henry
Area
- Total	10.9 sq mi (28.3 km²)
- Land	10.9 sq mi (28.2 km²)
- Water	0.0 sq mi (0.1 km²)
Elevation	515 ft (157 m)
Population (2000)
- Total	9,763
- Density	897.4/sq mi (346.5/km²)
Time zone	Central (CST) (UTC-6)
- Summer (DST)	CDT (UTC-5)
ZIP code	38242
Area code(s)	731
FIPS code	47-56720[1]
GNIS feature ID	1296772[2]

Paris is a city in Henry County, Tennessee, 86 miles (138 km) west of Nashville, on a fork of the West Sandy River. In 1900, 2,018 people lived in Paris, Tennessee; in 1910, 3,881; and in 1940, 6,395. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 9,763. It is the county seat of Henry County.^[3]

A 60 ft tall replica of the Eiffel Tower stands in a park in Paris.^[4]

Paris is also home of the "World's Biggest Fish Fry".

Geography

Paris is located at 36°18′4″N, 88°18′50″W (36.301229, -88.313815)^[5].

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 10.9 square miles (28.3 km²), of which, 10.9 square miles (28.2 km²) of it is land and 0.04 square mile (0.1 km²) of it is water. The total area is 0.37% water.

Demographics

As of the census^[1] of 2000, there were 9,763 people, 4,394 households, and 2,605 families residing in the city. The population density was 897.4 people per square mile (346.5/km²). There were 4,965 housing units at an average density of 456.4/sq mi (176.2/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 77.09% White, 20.26% African American, 0.10% Native American, 0.60% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 0.39% from other races, and 1.50% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.18% of the population.

There were 4,394 households out of which 24.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 38.5% were married couples living together, 16.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 40.7% were non-families. 36.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 19.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.14 and the average family size was 2.77.

In the city the population was spread out with 21.7% under the age of 18, 8.5% from 18 to 24, 25.0% from 25 to 44, 22.4% from 45 to 64, and 22.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females there were 81.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 77.1 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $25,261, and the median income for a family was $32,258. Males had a median income of $27,759 versus $20,198 for females. The per capita income for the city was $15,572. About 14.1% of families and 19.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 26.6% of those under age 18 and 20.5% of those age 65 or over. The city of Paris also has the nation's highest per-capita share of discount stores.

Industry

Local companies manufacture brakes, small electric motors, metal doors, rubber parts and school laboratory furniture.^[6]

Culture

The catfish, sign underneath reads Welcome to Paris, Tennessee.

World's Biggest Fish Fry

Paris is home of the "World's Biggest Fish Fry". The festival is held every year and culminates on a weekend, on the last full week in April, with a parade, an art and craft fair, a rodeo and a fun fair. There is a sign which features a roughly 20' long catfish that can be seen when entering the town from the south on U.S. Highway 79.

Eiffel Tower replica

In 1992, a 60 ft tall replica of the Eiffel Tower was erected in the Memorial Park in Paris. The tower was constructed of "500 pieces of Douglas fir and 6,000 steel rods". The Eiffel Tower replica was donated to the City of Paris by the Christian Brothers University in Memphis, Tennessee. After deterioration to the wood structure, Keith Jackson, owner of Precision Grinding and Metals of Paris, recreated the original wood replica into a steel structure that still stands today. To accomplish the feat, PGM company constructed the tower in three sections and trailered each section to Memorial Park where it was finally erected. Memorial Park also hosts tennis courts, a public Olympic-sized swimming pool, soccer fields, two walking trails, a children's playground with pavilions, and a newly constructed frisbee golf course. ^[4]

Notable people from Paris, Tennessee

• Dennis Freeland (1956-2002), editor of the Memphis Flyer newspaper [1]
• Howell Edmunds Jackson, U.S. Supreme Court Justice
• Vernon Jarrett, newspaper columnist and social commentator
• Bobby Jones, gospel singer
• Cherry Jones, Tony Award-winning actress (grew up in Paris)
• Chick King, first two-sport professional athlete
• Ula Love, performer in the Ziegfeld Follies
• Harry Neal, member of piano duo Nelson and Neal (grew up in Paris)
• James D. Porter, Jr., Tennessee governor, 1875-1879
• Stephen M. Veazey, world President of Community of Christ (2005 to present) (grew up in Paris)
• Hank Williams, Jr., country music Singer/songwriter (lives near Paris)

Paris/Henry County media

Radio Stations

• WAKQ-FM 105.5 - KF99-KQ105
• WTPR-AM 710 - WENK-WTPR
• WTPR-FM 101.7
• WMUF-AM 1000
• WMUF-FM 104.7 "104.7 W-M-U-F"
• WLZK-FM 94.1 "The Lake"

Newspapers

• The Paris Post Intelligencer

References

External links

• Paris, Tennessee is at coordinates 36°18′04″N 88°18′50″W / 36.301229, -88.313815 (Paris, Tennessee)Coordinates: 36°18′04″N 88°18′50″W / 36.301229, -88.313815 (Paris, Tennessee)
• Official town web site
• World's Biggest Fish Fry
• Our Town USA
• The Paris Post-Intelligencer

v â€¢ d â€¢ e Municipalities and communities of Henry County, Tennessee County seat: Dover Cities Paris | Puryear Towns Cottage Grove | Henry Unincorporated community Buchanan