Obion County, TN

Obion County, Tennessee
Obion County Courthouse
Location in the U.S. state of Tennessee
Tennessee's location in the U.S.
Founded	1824
Named for	Obion River
Government • Mayor	Peyton Edwards
Seat	Union City
Largest city	Union City
Area
• Total	556 sq mi (1,440 km2)
• Land	545 sq mi (1,412 km2)
• Water	11 sq mi (28 km2), 1.9%
Population
• (2010)	31,807
• Density	58/sq mi (22/km²)
Congressional district	8th
Time zone	Central: UTC-6/-5
Website	www.obioncounty.org

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Obion County is a county located in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2010 census, the population was 31,807. The county seat is Union City. The county was formed in 1823 and organized in 1824. It was named after the Obion River.

Obion County is part of the Union City, TN–KY Micropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included in the Martin–Union City, TN–KY Combined Statistical Area.

From 1877–1950, there were 18 lynchings of blacks in the county, the second-highest number in the state. Neighboring Lake County had 13 lynchings. These two counties have had small overall populations compared to Shelby County, where there were 20 lynchings in that period. Most of the extrajudicial murders occurred around the turn of the century, part of racial terrorism and suppression targeted at blacks.

Obion was established in 1823 and organized the following year. It was named for the Obion River, which flows through the county and is a tributary of the nearby Mississippi River. The word "Obion" is believed to be derived from a Native American word meaning "many forks."

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 556 square miles (1,440 km²), of which 545 square miles (1,410 km²) is land and 11 square miles (28 km²) (1.9%) is water. It is located in the "rolling hills of northwest Tennessee".

As of the census of 2000, there were 32,450 people, 13,182 households, and 9,398 families residing in the county. The population density was 60 people per square mile (23/km²). There were 14,489 housing units at an average density of 27 per square mile (10/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 88.16% White, 9.85% Black or African American, 0.19% Asian, 0.14% Native American, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 0.91% from other races, and 0.71% from two or more races. 1.90% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.