Spencer, Tennessee

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Coordinates: 35°44′37″N 85°27′30″W / 35.74361, -85.45833
Spencer, Tennessee
Van Buren County Courthouse in Spencer
Location of Spencer, Tennessee
Country	United States
State	Tennessee
County	Van Buren
Area
- Total	6.8 sq mi (17.7 km²)
- Land	6.8 sq mi (17.7 km²)
- Water	0.0 sq mi (0.0 km²)
Elevation	1,798 ft (548 m)
Population (2000)
- Total	1,713
- Density	250.9/sq mi (96.9/km²)
Time zone	Central (CST) (UTC-6)
- Summer (DST)	CDT (UTC-5)
ZIP code	38585
Area code(s)	931
FIPS code	47-70240^[1]
GNIS feature ID	1270985^[2]

Spencer is a town in Van Buren County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 1,713 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Van Buren County^[3].

1 Geography
2 Demographics
3 History
4 References
5 External links

[edit] Geography

Spencer is located at 35°44′37″N, 85°27′30″W (35.743740, -85.458408)^[4]. The town is situated at the western edge of the Cumberland Plateau, just above the Caney Fork River valley. The river forms Van Buren's boundary with White County several miles north of Spencer.

Spencer is topographically isolated by the Cumberland Plateau's escarpment to the north and west and by the Cane Creek Gorge to the south and east. Cane Creek, along with its tributary, Dry Fork, slices a narrow valley as it spills down northward toward its confluence with the Caney Fork, effectively dividing the Spencer area from the rest of the plateau. Cane Creek's upper watershed, known for its scenic waterfalls and geological formations, comprises the bulk of Fall Creek Falls State Park.

Spencer is centered just west of the junction of State Route 30, which connects Spencer with the Sequatchie Valley to the east and McMinnville to the west, and State Route 111, which connects Spencer with the central Highland Rim area to the north. Spencer is approximately 30 miles south of Cookeville and 25 miles west of Pikeville.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 6.8 square miles (17.7 km²), all of it land.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^[1] of 2000, there were 1,713 people, 670 households, and 471 families residing in the town. The population density was 250.9 people per square mile (96.8/km²). There were 725 housing units at an average density of 106.2/sq mi (41.0/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 99.01% White, 0.23% African American, 0.06% Native American, 0.06% Asian, and 0.64% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.23% of the population.

State Route 30 in Spencer

There were 670 households out of which 29.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.9% were married couples living together, 13.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.7% were non-families. 26.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 2.94.

In the town the population was spread out with 22.1% under the age of 18, 9.6% from 18 to 24, 25.1% from 25 to 44, 26.0% from 45 to 64, and 17.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 92.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.5 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $25,583, and the median income for a family was $32,813. Males had a median income of $25,329 versus $20,735 for females. The per capita income for the town was $13,529. About 19.5% of families and 23.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 34.2% of those under age 18 and 27.5% of those age 65 or over.

[edit] History

Spencer is named after Thomas Sharp Spencer (d. 1794), a long hunter who passed through the Van Buren County area in the mid-1700s. The town was established in 1850 and incorporated in 1909.^[5]

Burritt College was located in Spencer from 1848 until its closure in 1939.^[5]