Johnson County, Tennessee
| Johnson County, Tennessee | |
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Johnson County Courthouse in Mountain City
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 Location in the U.S. state of Tennessee |
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 Tennessee's location in the U.S. |
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| Founded | 1836 |
| Named for | Thomas Johnson, early settler |
| Seat | Mountain City |
| Largest town | Mountain City |
| Area | |
| • Total | 303 sq mi (785 km2) |
| • Land | 298 sq mi (772 km2) |
| • Water | 4.2 sq mi (11 km2), 1.4% |
| Population | |
| • (2010) | 18,244 |
| • Density | 61/sq mi (24/km²) |
| Congressional district | 1st |
| Time zone | Eastern: UTC-5/-4 |
Johnson County is a county located in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2010 census, the population was 18,244. Its county seat is Mountain City. It is the state's northeasternmost county, sharing borders with Virginia and North Carolina.
Johnson County was created in 1836 from parts of Carter County. This followed several years of bickering over the location of Carter County's seat, with residents of what is now Johnson County arguing that travel to Elizabethton was too lengthy and difficult. When their petition to move the seat to a more central location was rejected, they petitioned the state legislature for the creation of a new county. The new county was named after Thomas Johnson, an early settler. The county seat was initially named "Taylorsville" in honor of Colonel James P. Taylor (it was changed to "Mountain City" in the 1880s).
Most Johnson Countians supported the Union during the Civil War. The county's residents rejected secession by a margin of 788 to 111 in Tennessee's secession referendum on June 8, 1861. The county sent a sizable delegation to the Greeneville session of the pro-Union East Tennessee Convention in June 1861.
Due in large part to the county's remoteness, the railroads did not reach Johnson until the early 1900s. The arrival of the railroads during this period aided the development of the timber and manganese mining industries.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 303 square miles (780 km2), of which 298 square miles (770 km2) is land and 4.2 square miles (11 km2) (1.4%) is water.
Situated entirely within the Blue Ridge Mountains, Johnson County is relatively rugged and hilly. The county's boundary with Sullivan County to the northwest is defined as the ridgeline of Holston Mountain, while the Iron Mountains provide the county's boundary with Carter County to the southwest. Snake Mountain, at 5,574 feet (1,699 m), is the county's highest point.
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