History
Memphis was settled by the Chickasaw tribe. The Spanish explorer, Hernando
de Soto, is believed to have visited the area. The French built Fort
Prudhomme in the vicinity. The city was founded in 1819 and incorporated as
a city in 1826. At the conclusion of the Battle of Memphis on June 6, 1862
during the American Civil War, Union forces captured Memphis from
Confederate control. A yellow fever epidemic in 1870 greatly reduced the
population for many years thereafter. In 1897, Memphis' pyramid-shaped
pavilion was a conspicuous part of the Tennessee Centennial exposition. From
the 1910s to the 1950s, Memphis was a hotbed of machine politics under the
direction of E. H. "Boss" Crump.
Law and Government
Since 1966, Memphis has been governed by the "weak mayor" form of mayor-council
government. The new city charter provided for the election of a mayor and
thirteen council members, six elected at large from throughout the city and
seven elected from geographic districts. In 1995, the council adopted a new
district plan which changed council positions to all districts. This plan
provides for nine districts, seven with one representative each and two
districts with three representatives each.
The current mayor of Memphis is Dr. W. W. Herenton. Dr. Herenton is
currently serving his fourth consecutive term as Mayor. He was elected for
the first time in 1991, when he became Memphis' first black mayor. Prior to
his election, Dr. Herenton served for 12 years as the superintendent of
Memphis City Schools.
Geography
Memphis is located at 35°7'3" North, 89°58'16" West (35.117365,
-89.971068)1. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a
total area of 763.4 km˛ (294.8 mi˛). 723.4 km˛ (279.3 mi˛) of it is land and
40.0 km˛ (15.4 mi˛) of it is water. The total area is 5.24% water.
Major Memphis parks include Tom Lee Park, Audubon Park, Overton Park and the
Memphis Botanic Garden.
Economy
Memphis is a center of manufacture of textiles, heating equipment, pianos,
and automobile and truck parts. It is also the headquarters of FedEx
shipping.
Because of its status as the primary hub for FedEx, Memphis International
Airport is currently the world's busiest cargo airport in terms of tonnage.
Memphis' Division of Light, Gas and Water ("LG&W") is one of the largest
municipal utitilites in the United States.
Fortune 500 Companies
AutoZone
FedEx
International Paper
Other Important Companies
Belz Enterprises
Guardsmark
Hohenberg Bros. Co.
Communications and Media
Newspapers
The Commercial Appeal
Memphis Business Journal
Memphis Flyer
Memphis Tri-State Defender
Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there are 650,100 people, 250,721 households, and
158,455 families residing in the city. The population density is 898.6/km˛
(2,327.4/mi˛). There are 271,552 housing units at an average density of
375.4/km˛ (972.2/mi˛). The racial makeup of the city is 34.41% White, 61.41%
African American, 0.19% Native American, 1.46% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander,
1.45% from other races, and 1.04% from two or more races. 2.97% of the
population are Hispanic or Latino of any race. Due to its large African-American
population, Memphis is refered to at times as Memfrica. The term is
considered to be derogatory.
There are 250,721 households out of which 31.3% have children under the age
of 18 living with them, 34.1% are married couples living together, 23.8%
have a female householder with no husband present, and 36.8% are non-families.
30.5% of all households are made up of individuals and 8.9% have someone
living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is
2.52 and the average family size is 3.18.
In the city the population is spread out with 27.9% under the age of 18,
10.8% from 18 to 24, 30.7% from 25 to 44, 19.7% from 45 to 64, and 10.9% who
are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 32 years. For every 100
females there are 89.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there
are 84.9 males.
The median income for a household in the city is $32,285, and the median
income for a family is $37,767. Males have a median income of $31,236 versus
$25,183 for females. The per capita income for the city is $17,838. 20.6% of
the population and 17.2% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the
total people living in poverty, 30.1% are under the age of 18 and 15.4% are
65 or older.
Sites of Interest
Tourists come from all over the world to see Graceland, the home of Elvis
Presley. Sun studios, where Elvis first recorded "My Happiness" and "That's
When Your Heartaches Begin", rock n roll,is located in the city also. Other
famous musicians who got their start at Sun include Johnny Cash, Rufus
Thomas, Charlie Rich, Howlin' Wolf, Roy Orbison, Carl Perkins, and Jerry Lee
Lewis.
Blues fans can head down to Beale Street, where a young B.B. King used to
play his guitar, and occasionally still appears at a club bearing his name
and partly owned by him.
The National Civil Rights Museum is in the former Lorraine Motel, where the
Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated.
There is Libertyland Amusement Park and the adjacent Liberty Bowl and
Memphis Children's Museum, Mud Island, Detour Memphis - an art and
performing space, Lichterman Nature Center, the Pink Palace Museum, The
Pyramid, The Memphis Zoo, the Memphis Queen riverboat and the Memphis Belle,
a heavy bomber which saw action in World War II.
The Mid-South Fair comes to the city every fall, and every May there is the
Memphis in May. Each year, the city honors a foreign country, and each
weekend hosts a special event, including the World Championship Barbeque
Cooking Contest and the Music Festival.
Colleges and Universities
Christian Brothers University (founded 1871)
Le Moyne-Owen College (founded 1871)
Memphis College of Art (founded 1936)
Rhodes College (founded 1848)
Southern College of Optometry (founded 1932)
Southwest Tennessee Community College
University of Memphis (formerly Memphis State University) (founded 1912)
University of Tennessee Medical Units (founded 1911)
Sports Teams
Memphis Redbirds (Pacific Coast League / St. Louis Cardinals system) (Play
at AutoZone Park)
Memphis Grizzlies (NBA) (Play at FedExForum)
Memphis Blues (Rugby)
Theatres
Playhouse on the Square
Circuit Playhouse
Theatre Memphis
The Orpheum
Theatre Works
Notable Natives
Actors, Directors and Musicians
Kathy Bates
Chris Bell
Dixie Carter
David Catching
Alex Chilton
Rey Flemings
Morgan Freeman
George Hamilton
W.C. Handy
Isaac Hayes
Jim Jarmusch
B.B. King
Elvis Presley
Steve Ross
Daniel Schneider
Cybill Shepherd
Rufus Thomas
Justin Timberlake
Businesspeople
Fred Smith
Kemmons Wilson
Jurists, Politicians and Activists
Harold Ford, Jr.
Abe Fortas
Sports Figures
Anfernee "Penny" Hardaway (basketball)
Dr. Cary Middlecoff (golf)
Military
Nathan Bedford Forrest
Other
Jerry Lawler (professional wrestling)
Ric Flair (professional wrestling) was born in Memphis, but was adopted in
infancy by a couple in the Twin Cities and grew up there.
Richard Halliburton (explorer and author)
