Murfreesboro is a city in and the county seat of Rutherford County, Tennessee. The population was 108,755 according to the 2010 census, up from 68,816 residents certified in 2000. In 2014, census estimates showed a population of 120,954. The city is the center of population of Tennessee and is part of the Nashville metropolitan area, which includes thirteen counties and a population of 1,757,912 (2013). It is Tennessee's fastest growing major city and one of the fastest growing cities in the country. Murfreesboro is also home to Middle Tennessee State University, the largest undergraduate university in the state of Tennessee, with 22,729 total students as of fall 2014.

In 2006, Murfreesboro was ranked by Money as the 84th best place to live in the United States, out of 745 cities with a population over 50,000.

In 1811, the Tennessee State Legislature established a county seat for Rutherford County. The town was first named "Cannonsburgh" in honor of Tennessee politician Newton Cannon, but was soon renamed "Murfreesboro" for Revolutionary War hero Colonel Hardy Murfree. Author Mary Noailles Murfree was his great-granddaughter.

As Tennessee grew westward, the location of the state capital in Knoxville began to be inconvenient for the many settlers at a distance to the west. In 1818, Murfreesboro was designated as the capital of Tennessee. In 1826, it was replaced by Nashville as the state capital.

On December 31, 1862, the Battle of Stones River, also called the Battle of Murfreesboro, was fought near the city between the Union Army of the Cumberland and the Confederate Army of Tennessee. This was a major engagement of the American Civil War. Between December 31 and January 2, 1863, there were 23,515 casualties. It was the bloodiest battle of the war based on percentage of casualties.

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