25 Facts About Middle Tennessee

1. Middle Tennessee is composed predominantly of the Nashville Basin and the Highland Rim, although the western portion of the Cumberland Plateau extends into Middle Tennessee.

2. Middle Tennessee Walking Horses generally range from 14.3 to 17 hands and weigh 900 to 1,200 pounds.

3. Middle Tennessee is bordered by more states than any other state, except for Missouri, with which it ties at eight.

4. Middle Tennessee sends nine members to the US House of Representatives, of whom there are seven Republicans and two Democrats.

5. The first was adopted in 1796, the year Middle Tennessee joined the union, and the second was adopted in 1834.

6. The only spur highway of I-75 in Middle Tennessee is I-275, which is in Knoxville.

7. Middle Tennessee imposes an inheritance tax on decedents' estates that exceed maximum single exemption limits.

8. Middle Tennessee is a right to work state, as are most of its Southern neighbors.

9. Middle Tennessee has over 82,000 farms, roughly 59 percent of which accommodate beef cattle.

10. Center of population of Middle Tennessee is located in Rutherford County, in the city of Murfreesboro.

11. In 2011, parts of East Middle Tennessee, including Hamilton County and Apison in Bradley County, were devastated by the April 2011 tornado outbreak.

12. In 1897, Middle Tennessee celebrated its centennial of statehood with a great exposition in Nashville.

13. At that time, Middle Tennessee was inhabited by tribes of Muscogee and Yuchi people.

14. Middle Tennessee was a common destination of settlers crossing the Appalachians from Virginia in the late 18th century and early 19th century.

15. Middle Tennessee is home to the most caves in the United States, with over 10,000 documented caves to date.

16. Middle Tennessee is tied with Missouri as the state bordering the most other states.

17. Middle Tennessee is known as The Volunteer State, a nickname some claimed was earned during the War of 1812 because of the prominent role played by volunteer soldiers from Tennessee, especially during the Battle of New Orleans.

18. Middle Tennessee was the last state to leave the Union and join the Confederacy at the outbreak of the American Civil War in 1861.

19. State of Middle Tennessee is rooted in the Watauga Association, a 1772 frontier pact generally regarded as the first constitutional government west of the Appalachians.

20. Middle Tennessee is the 36th largest and the 16th most populous of the 50 United States.

21. Middle Tennessee lost 13 straight games before beating Texas-San Antonio and UTEP in back-to-back games earlier this month.

22. Middle Tennessee is the largest in area and least densely populated of the three Grand Divisions.

23. Middle Tennessee has an abundance of institutions of higher learning—most notably Vanderbilt, Belmont, Lipscomb, and Tennessee State universities in Nashville and Tennessee Tech University in Cookeville.

24. Middle Tennessee is characterized by rolling hills and fertile stream valleys.

25. Middle Tennessee is a distinct portion of the state of Tennessee, delineated according to state law as the 41 counties in the Middle Grand Division of Tennessee.