Tracy City
| Tracy City, Tennessee | |
|---|---|
| Town | |
Tracy City City Hall, November 2014.
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 Location of Tracy City in Grundy County, Tennessee. |
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| Coordinates: 35°15′39″N 85°44′30″W / 35.26083°N 85.74167°WCoordinates: 35°15′39″N 85°44′30″W / 35.26083°N 85.74167°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Tennessee |
| County | Grundy |
| Established | 1850s |
| Incorporated | 1915 |
| Named for | Samuel Franklin Tracy |
| Area | |
| • Total | 4.8 sq mi (12.5 km2) |
| • Land | 4.8 sq mi (12.4 km2) |
| • Water | 0.0 sq mi (0.1 km2) |
| Elevation | 1,821 ft (555 m) |
| Population (2010) | |
| • Total | 1,481 |
| • Estimate (2016) | 1,425 |
| • Density | 310/sq mi (120/km2) |
| Time zone | Central (CST) (UTC-6) |
| • Summer (DST) | CDT (UTC-5) |
| ZIP code | 37387 |
| Area code(s) | 931 |
| FIPS code | 47-74880 |
| GNIS feature ID | 1304149 |
Tracy City is a town in Grundy County, Tennessee, United States. Incorporated in 1915, the population was 1,481 at the 2010 census. Named after financier Samuel Franklin Tracy, the city developed out of railroad and mining interests after coal was found in 1840. In 2010 the people of Tracy City elected a dead man, Carl Robin Geary, as mayor.
In 1840 local boys digging a groundhog out of the ground discovered coal. In the early 1870s Tracy City an experimental blast furnace was built by Samuel Jones and owned by the Tennessee Coal, Iron and Railroad Company. The furnace, called "Fiery Gizzard", was built to see if local coal would be used to produce iron. The furnace made 15 tons of iron before the stovepipe fell on the third day. The former location of the furnace is marked with a historical marker. The coke ovens at Tracy City supplied railroad and industrial fuel and workers and their families moved into the area in great numbers from 1875 until 1900. By 1910 the industry faded due to problems invoked by labor unions and convict labor. Tracy City is also home to the oldest family bakery in Tennessee, Dutch Maid Bakery. In 1987 the coke ovens were placed on the National Register of Historic Places. Tracy City was incorporated in 1915.
Tracy City has featured prominently in Grundy County's history of arson. Ten buildings in the business district were set alight in 1935. The 100-year-old L&N Depot, 86-year-old James K. Shook School, various waterworks, schools, a lumber yard, and a doctor's clinic were also torched in the 20th century.
Tracy City is located at 35°15′39″N 85°44′30″W / 35.26083°N 85.74167°W. According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 4.8 square miles (12 km2), of which 4.8 square miles (12 km2) is land and 0.04 square miles (0.10 km2) (0.83%) is water.
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