Murfreesboro is a city in
and the county seat of Rutherford
County
, Tennessee
, United
States
. The population was 101,753 according to the
United States Census
Bureau's 2009 report, up from 81,393 residents certified during
the city's 2005 special census. The
center of population of Tennessee is
located in Murfreesboro. The city is part of the
Nashville Metropolitan
Statistical Area, which includes thirteen counties and a
population of 1,632,671 (2009).
Although
Murfreesboro is sometimes considered a suburb
or exurb of Nashville,
Tennessee
, it is far enough away [about ] and has a large
enough population to maintain a separate identity from its larger
neighbor. It is Tennessee's fastest growing major city and
one of the fastest growing cities in the country, with a population
growth from 46,000 to 69,000 between 1990 and 2000, a change of
66%.
The
city is also home to Middle Tennessee State
University
, the largest undergraduate university in the state
of Tennessee, with a current undergraduate population of 20,899 and
23,264 total students.
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.
History
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, later
the great-grandfather of author
Mary Noailles Murfree.
As
Tennessee grew westward, it became clear that having the state
capital in Knoxville
would be a burden to those who had to travel from
the western end of the state. In 1818, Murfreesboro
became the capital of Tennessee until 1826, when Nashville
became the state capital.
On
December 31, 1862, the Battle of Stones River
, also called the Battle of Murfreesboro, was fought
near Murfreesboro. This was a major engagement of the
American Civil War. After the
battle, Murfreesboro was used as a supply depot for the Union Army.
Stones River
National Battlefield
is now an historical site.
Geography
Murfreesboro is located at .
According to the
United
States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of . of it is
land and of it (0.54%) is water.
Murfreesboro is the geographic
center
of the state of Tennessee. A stone monument marks
the official site on Old Lascassas Pike, about a half-mile
(800 m) north of MTSU
.
Transportation
Murfreesboro is served by Nashville
International Airport
(IATA
code BNA), Smyrna Airport
(MQY) and Murfreesboro Municipal
Airport
(MBT). The city also benefits from several
highways running through the city, including
Interstate 24; U.S. Routes
41 and
231; and
State Routes
1,
2,
10,
96,
99,
268 and
840.
Public transportation
The City of Murfreesboro ordered nine buses to serve as the city's
new transportation. Each bus is capable of holding sixteen people
and includes two spaces for wheelchairs. With the system being
called "Rover", the buses are bright green in color with "Rover"
and a cartoon dog painted on the side.
The system has been in service since April 2007, with buses
operating in six major corridors: Memorial Boulevard, NW Broad
Street, Old Fort Parkway, South Church Street (Stopping at Warrior
Drive), Mercury Boulevard and Highland Avenue.
A one-way fare is
US$1.00 for
adults, US$0.50 for children 6-16 and seniors 65 and over, and free
for children under 6. The system operates Monday to Friday, 6:00
a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

Swanson Building, Murfreesboro.
Joseph Swanson is a major developer in the area.
Demographics
As of the
census of 2000, there were 68,816
people, 26,511 households, and 15,747 families residing in the
city. The
population density was
. There were 28,815 housing units at an average density of . The
racial makeup of the city was 79.85%
White, 13.89%
African American, 0.28%
Native American, 2.69%
Asian, 0.03%
Pacific Islander, 1.88% from
other races, and 1.38%
from two or more races.
Hispanic or
Latino of any race were 3.53% of the
population.
There were 26,511 households out of which 30.7% had children under
the age of 18 living with them, 43.8% were
married couples living together, 11.9% had a female
householder with no husband present, and 40.6% were non-families.
28.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.0% had
someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average
household size was 2.42 and the average family size was 3.02.
In the city the population was spread out with 22.7% under the age
of 18, 20.5% from 18 to 24, 30.8% from 25 to 44, 17.3% from 45 to
64, and 8.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was
29 years. For every 100 females there were 98.7 males. For every
100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.2 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $39,705, and the
median income for a family was $52,654. Males had a median income
of $36,078 versus $26,531 for females. The
per capita income for the city was
$20,219. About 8.2% of families and 14.1% of the population were
below the
poverty line, including 12.0%
of those under the age of 18 and 11.1% of those 65 and older.
According to Murfreesboro's 2008 special census, the population had
reached 100,575. Special census estimates in 2005 indicated 81,393
residents, and in 2006 the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community
Survey estimated a population of 92,559, with 35,842 households and
20,979 families in the city.
Parks
- Cannonsburgh Village, World's Largest Cedar
Bucket.
- Old Fort Park, . park including baseball
fields, tennis courts, Kids Castle playground, 18-hole championship
golf course, picnic shelters, bike trails.
- Barfield-Crescent Park, . park including 8
baseball fields, of bike/running trails, 18-hole championship disc
golf course, and 10 picnic shelters.
Culture
Music
Murfreesboro hosts several music-oriented events annually,
including the
Main Street Jazzfest, which is presented by MTSU's
School of Music, and Uncle Dave Macon Days. The city has fostered
the growth of a number of bands, such as
The Tony Danza Tapdance
Extravaganza, Glossary,
A Plea
for Purging, Those Darlins,
Destroy Destroy Destroy, and
The Features.
Arts
Murfreesboro contains a
Center for the Arts close to the Square. It entertains
with an array of exhibits, theatre arts, concerts, dance, and magic
shows. New organizations including
Youth Empowerment
through Arts and Humanities (YEAH!) and the Murfreesboro Youth
Orchestra offer music and art based programming for young
people.
Museums
The
Discovery Center at Murfree Spring houses an
interactive gallery of exhibits and is a local favorite for school
trips.
Bradley
Academy Museum contains collectibles and exhibits of the first
school in Rutherford County. This school was later renovated to
become to only African American school in Murfreesboro, which
closed in 1955.
The
Cannonsburgh Pioneer Village is a reproduction
of what a working pioneer village would have looked like from the
period of 1830s to the 1930s. Visitors can view the grist mill,
school house, Leeman House, Caboose, Wedding Chapel, and even a
doctor's office.
Stones River
National Battlefield
, the museum and battlefield described
about the Battle of
Stones River
in December 31, 1862 - January 3, 1863, one of
American Civil War Battles.
Oaklands
Historic House Museum
, a 19th century house that was involved in
the Battle of Stones River and has a baseball park.
Shopping
There are currently two main malls located within the city limits.
One is the indoor mall,
Stones River Mall, which includes stores and
restraunts such as
Forever 21,
Aeropostale,
Journey's,
Hot Topic,
Agaci,
Dillard's,
Buckle,
Books-a-Million,
The Olive Garden,
TGI Fridays. There is an outdoor mall on Medical
Center Parkway called
The Avenue of Murfreesboro. The shops here
include
American Eagle,
Hollister,
Best
Buy,
Belk,
Petco,
Dicks Sporting Goods,
Express,
Mimi's
Cafe,
Macaroni Grille and
Longhorn Steakhouse. The
Historic Downtown Murfreesboro district also offers a wide variety
of unique shopping and dining experiences that encircle the
pre-Civil War Courthouse.
Media
Murfreesboro is serviced by the following media outlets:
Newspapers:
Radio:
- WGNS - Talk radio
- WMOT - MTSU Jazz station
- WMTS-FM
- MTSU free-form student-run station
TV:
- Channel 3 - Murfreesboro government access
channel
- WETV-LP
- MTTV - MTSU student-run station
2009 Tornado
On April 10, 2009, at approximately 12:30 p.m. CDT, an
EF4 tornado struck the western
and northern fringes of the city of Murfreesboro. As a result, two
people were killed and 41 others injured. 845 homes were affected:
117 were totally destroyed; 292 had major damage; 175 had minor
damage and 255 others were affected to some degree. The tornado,
which the
National Weather
Service indicates was on the ground for about a half hour, is
estimated to have caused in excess of
US$40 million in damages.
Notable natives
- Jerry
Anderson, American and Canadian football player
- David Rankin Barbee,
journalist and historian
- Fernando Bryant, Cornerback for
the New England Patriots
- James M. Buchanan, Nobel Prize-winning economist
- Chad Chaffin, NASCAR driver
- Will Allen Dromgoole,
author
- Winfield Scott
Featherston, Confederate general in the American Civil War
- Bart Gordon, U.S. Congressman
- Muhammed Lawal, Professional
Mixed Martial Artist
- Andrew Nelson Lytle, author,
novelist, member of Vanderbilt Fugitives
- Jean MacArthur, wife of Gen.
Douglas MacArthur
- Matt Mahaffey, musician
- Dutch Mantell, professional
wrestler, writer for TNA Impact TV
show
- Carl P.
Mayfield, talk
show host, Sirius satellite
radio show Carl P &
The P-Team
- Hardy Murfree, Revolutionary War
colonel
- Mary Noailles Murfree,
author
- Andre Norton, science fiction and
fantasy writer
- Sarah Childress Polk, First
Lady of the United States; wife of Pres. James K. Polk
- David Price,
baseball pitcher; 2007
Major League Baseball Draft first overall pick, signed with the
Tampa Bay Rays
- Frank
Gumm, father of Judy Garland
- Grantland Rice, sportswriter
- Margaret Rhea Seddon,
astronaut
- Chad Sugg Singer/Songwriter (Backseat Goodbye)
- Chuck Taylor, MLB player for the St.
Louis Cardinals, New York Mets,
Milwaukee Brewers, and the
Montreal Expos
- Chris Young, musician;
2006 Nashville Star
winner

Points of interest
Murfreesboro is the home of a
Consolidated Mail
Outpatient Pharmacy (CMOP). It is part of an initiative by the
Department of Veterans Affairs to provide mail order prescriptions
to veterans using computerization at strategic locations throughout
the United States.
Top employers in Murfreesboro
- Information is current as of November 2006.
References
- U.S. Census Population Estimates for 2007 -
Counties
-
http://www.rutherfordchamber.org/cvb/visitors/what-to-see/what-to-see-detail.php?PRKey=4
-
http://www.murfreesborotn.gov/government/parks_rec/Parks/old_fort.htm
-
http://www.murfreesborotn.gov/government/parks_rec/Parks/barfield_crescent.htm
External links