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Tennessee
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Tennessee: flag Tennessee State Seal The mockingbird is the state bird of Tennessee. Iris. Map of Tennessee Memphis's place for blues music and entertainment Tennessee United States: The Upper South Great Smoky Mountains Tennessee River
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Tennessee: Facts & Stats

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Tennessee executes Harold Wayne Nichols by lethal injection for killing college student in 1988 • Dec. 11, 2025, 5:21 PM ET (AP)
Tennessee special election shows the power of partisan gerrymandering as Trump pushes for more of it • Dec. 4, 2025, 7:17 PM ET (AP)
Republican Matt Van Epps is sworn in as the newest House member days after winning election • Dec. 4, 2025, 11:16 AM ET (AP)
Steve Cropper, guitarist and member of Stax Records' Booker T and the M.G.'s, has died at age 84 • Dec. 3, 2025, 5:48 PM ET (AP)

Facts

Also Known As Volunteer State
Capital Nashville
Population1 (2020) 6,910,840; (2024 est.) 7,227,750
Governor Bill Lee (Republican)
Date Of Admission June 1, 1796
U.S. Senators Bill Hagerty (Republican) • Marsha Blackburn (Republican)
State Nickname Volunteer State
State Motto “Agriculture and Commerce”
State Bird2 northern mockingbird • bobwhite quail
State Flower3 iris • purple passionflower
State Songs “My Homeland, Tennessee” • “When It’s Iris Time in Tennessee” • “My Tennessee” • “The Tennessee Waltz” • “Rocky Top” • “Tennessee” • “The Pride of Tennessee” • “Smokey Mountain Rain”
Seats In U.S. House Of Representatives 9 (of 435)
Time Zone Eastern (GMT − 6 hours) • Central (GMT − 5 hours)
Total Area (Sq Km) 109,153
Total Area (Sq Mi) 42,144
1Excluding military abroad.2The bobwhite quail is the state gamebird.3The purple passionflower is the state wildflower.

Photos and Videos

Tennessee: flag
Tennessee State Seal
The mockingbird is the state bird of Tennessee.
Iris.
Map of Tennessee
Memphis's place for blues music and entertainment
Tennessee
United States: The Upper South
Great Smoky Mountains
Tennessee River
Learn about the soldiers from Confederate-aligned Tennessee and the largely Union-won battles there
Study the settlement of the American South and the evolution of music in the region from gospel to country
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Related Topics and References

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William Blount
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Related Places

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Memphis, Tennessee
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Columbia: James K. Polk Ancestral Home
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Greeneville: Pres. Andrew Johnson's home
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