The Tri-Cities is the region comprising the cities of Kingsport, Johnson City, and Bristol and the surrounding smaller towns and communities in Northeast Tennessee and Southwest Virginia. All three cities are located in Northeast Tennessee, while Bristol has a twin city of the same name in Virginia.
The Tri-Cities region was formerly a single Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA); due to the U.S. Census Bureau's revised definitions of urban areas in the early 2000s, it is now a Combined Statistical Area (CSA) with two metropolitan components: Johnson City and Kingsport-Bristol (TN)-Bristol (VA).[1] As of the 2000 Census, the CSA had a population of 480,091 (though a July 1, 2008 estimate placed the population at 500,538).
Combined Statistical Area
Day 4 in the Tri Cities area VA/TN - Starting on September 25th, I had a 4 day vacation visiting with family roaming around the Tri Cites area. In the 4 day time frame, some super cool trains showed up and some cool scenes arose....
Components
- Tennessee
- Carter County
- Greene County
- Hancock County
- Hawkins County
- Johnson County
- Sullivan County
- Unicoi County
- Washington County
- Virginia
- City of Bristol (Independent City)
- Scott County
- Washington County
Communities
Places with more than 50,000 inhabitants
- Johnson City, Tennessee (Principal city)
- Kingsport, Tennessee (Principal City)
Places with 10,000 to 50,000 inhabitants
- Bristol, Tennessee (Principal city)
- Bristol, Virginia (Principal city)
- Bloomingdale, Tennessee (CDP)
- Elizabethton, Tennessee
- Greeneville, Tennessee
Places with 1,000 to 10,000 inhabitants
Places with fewer than 1,000 inhabitants
- Baileyton, Tennessee
- Bulls Gap, Tennessee
- Damascus, Virginia
- Clinchport, Virginia
- Duffield, Virginia
- Dungannon, Virginia
- Meadow View, Virginia (CDP)
- Mooresburg, Tennessee (CDP)
- Nickelsville, Virginia
- Telford, Tennessee (CDP)
- Watauga, Tennessee
Unincorporated places
Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 480,091 people, 199,218 households, and 138,548 families residing within the CSA. The racial makeup of the CSA was 96.22% White, 2.12% African American, 0.20% Native American, 0.40% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.02% from other races, and 0.74% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.92% of the population.
The median income for a household in the CSA was $30,331, and the median income for a family was $37,254. Males had a median income of $29,561 versus $21,014 for females. The per capita income for the CSA was $16,923.
Transportation
Interstate Highways I-26 and I-81 intersect in the region, while I-40, I-77, and I-75 are nearby. Tri-Cities Regional Airport (TRI) has non-stop service to Atlanta, Charlotte, Ft. Lauderdale, Orlando, and St. Petersburg/Clearwater, Delta Connection, Allegiant Air, and American Eagle. Additionally, TRI manages an aggressive Air Cargo program, administers Foreign Trade Zone 204, supports and promotes U.S. Customs Port 2027, and provides trade development assistance. The Region has both CSX and Norfolk Southern mainline railway access.
Highways
US Highways
- 11
- 11E
- 11E Business
- 11W
- 11E
- 19
- 19E
- 19W
- 23
- 23 Business
- 58
- 58 Alternate
- 58 Business
- 321
- 321 Truck
- 421
- 421 Business
Education
Colleges and universities
- East Tennessee State University
- Emmanuel Christian Seminary
- Emory & Henry College
- King University
- Milligan College
- Northeast State Community College
- Virginia Intermont College (Closed May 2014)
- Virginia Highlands Community College
- Walters State Community College
The Kingsport Higher Education Center is a complex in downtown Kingsport, Tennessee that combines classes from five area colleges and universities, including The University of Tennessee.
All-American City Award
The All-America City Award is given by the National Civic League annually to ten cities in the United States. In 1999, the Tri-Cities were collectively designated as an All-America City by the National Civic League.
The award is the oldest community recognition program in the nation and recognizes communities whose citizens work together to identify and tackle community-wide challenges and achieve uncommon results.
Since the program's inception in 1949, more than 4,000 communities have competed and over 500 have been named All-America Cities.
Sister cities
The Greater Tri-Cities of Tennessee and Virginia has three sister cities, as designated by Sister Cities International:
- Guaranda, Ecuador
- Teterow, Germany
- Rybinsk, Russia
See also
- Doe River
- Watauga River
- Watauga Lake
- East Tennessee
- Template:Tri-Cities TV
References
- OMB Bulletin No. 04-03. Updates to Statistical Areas. December 2003.
- U.S. Census Bureau, Table 6. Population in Combined Statistical Areas (CSAs): 1990 and 2000
External links
- Tri-Cities TN/VA - The Regional Alliance for Economic Development
