East Tennessee

==Economy==
Throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries, East Tennessee's economy relied heavily on [[subsistence agriculture]]. Agriculture still plays a vital role in Tennessee's economy. In the cities, however, manufacturing was the main source of prosperity and growth. In the years following the Civil War, Chattanooga became one of the first industrial cities in the South. Other cities in East Tennessee such as Knoxville, Kingsport, Cleveland, Maryville, and Morristown were among some of the first cities in Tennessee to experience the effects of the [[Industrial revolution in the United States]], and most manufacturing facilities constructed in the state in the latter 19th century located in East Tennessee.<ref name=jsh>{{cite journal|last=Belissary |first=Constantine G.|date=May 1953|title=The Rise of Industry and the Industrial Spirit in Tennessee, 1865–1885|jstor=2955013|journal=The Journal of Southern History|volume=19|issue=2|pages=193–215|doi=10.2307/2955013}}</ref> The region's economy remained predominantly agrarian during this time, however.

=== Business and industry ===
Major companies and businesses headquartered in East Tennessee include [[Pilot Flying J]], the Baptist Hospital system, [[Regal Cinemas]] in Knoxville, and [[BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee]], U.S. Xpress, [[Covenant Transport]], and [[Unum]] in Chattanooga, and Eastman Chemical in Kingsport.

A variety of goods are manufactured in East Tennessee, including chemicals, foods and drinks, automotive components, and electronics. The largest manufacturer in the region is [[Eastman Chemical]] in Kingsport, with more than 10,000 employees, and other chemical companies operate several other chemical manufacturing facilities in the region. [[Volkswagen]] operates an [[Volkswagen Chattanooga Assembly Plant|assembly plant]] in Chattanooga, and several automotive parts manufacturers, including [[Denso]], operate plants in East Tennessee. [[Coca-Cola]] was first produced in Chattanooga in 1899, and many well-known food and drink brands originated and are made in East Tennessee, including [[Mayfield Dairy]] products, [[Moon Pie]], [[McKee Foods#Little Debbie|Little Debbie]], [[Mountain Dew]], [[Bush's Beans]], and [[M&M's]]. The region has emerged in recent years as one of the top locations for the legal production of [[moonshine]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Guttman |first=Amy |title=Moonshine As Moneymaker? Eastern Tennessee Will Drink To That |url=https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2013/06/27/196218491/moonshine-as-moneymaker-eastern-tennessee-will-drink-to-that |work=NPR |location=Washington, D.C. |date=June 27, 2013 |access-date=June 6, 2021}}</ref> East Tennessee is a top location where boats are manufactured, with companies such as [[Sea Ray]], [[MasterCraft]], and [[Malibu Boats]], operating facilities in the region.<ref>{{cite news|last=Gaines |first=Jim|date=May 30, 2019|title=Tennessee boat industry thriving as buyers seek sport and luxury|url=https://www.knoxnews.com/story/money/business/2019/05/27/tennessee-boat-business-growing-watersports-luxury-leading-way/1206684001/|work=Knoxville News Sentinel|access-date=June 6, 2021}}</ref> Other important products produced in East Tennessee include [[consumer electronics]], electrical equipment, and fabricated metal products.

[[Oak Ridge National Laboratory]] (ORNL) and [[Y-12 National Security Complex]] in Oak Ridge are two of the largest employers in East Tennessee. ORNL conducts scientific research in [[materials science]], [[nuclear physics]], energy, [[supercomputer|high-performance computing]], [[systems biology]], and [[National security of the United States|national security]],<ref>{{cite web |title=Solving Big Problems |url=https://www.ornl.gov/sites/default/files/solving_big_problems_130514.pdf |publisher=Oak Ridge National Laboratory |access-date=May 28, 2021 |date=June 2013}}</ref> and is also the largest [[United States Department of Energy national laboratories|national laboratory]] in the [[United States Department of Energy|Department of Energy]] (DOE) system by size, and has the third highest budget.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.energy.gov/sites/prod/files/2019/03/f60/doe-fy2020-laboratory-table.pdf |title=Department of Energy FY 2020 Congressional Budget Request |date=March 2019 |publisher=Department of Energy |access-date=September 30, 2020}}</ref> Both ORNL and Y-12 also support many jobs through contracting firms in the area. Since the 1990s, the geographical area between Oak Ridge and Knoxville has been known as the Tennessee Technology Corridor, with more than 500 high-tech firms located in the region.<ref name="sherman">{{cite web |last1=Sherman |first1=Erik |title=Tennessee's Tech Corridor |url=https://www.computerworld.com/article/2596132/tennessee-s-tech-corridor.html |website=[[Computerworld]] |access-date=May 27, 2021 |date=July 27, 2000}}</ref> With the expanded smart grid in Chattanooga, and the fastest internet in the Western Hemisphere,<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://chattanoogagig.com/|title=Chattanooga Gig: Your Gig is Here.|website=chattanoogagig.com}}</ref> Chattanooga has begun to grow its technical and financial sectors with its burgeoning start-up scene.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/02/04/technology/fast-internet-service-speeds-business-development-in-chattanooga.html|title=Fast Internet Is Chattanooga's New Locomotive|first=Edward|last=Wyatt|newspaper=The New York Times|date=February 3, 2014}}</ref> 

The town of [[Erwin, Tennessee|Erwin]], located in the Tri-Cities area, is home to [[Nuclear Fuel Services]], which operates a manufacturing and [[uranium enrichment]] facility converting [[Cold War]]-era weapons uranium into commercially usable reactor fuel for power plants around the United States, and is the largest supplier of uranium fuel for the [[United States Navy]] since 1960.<ref name="mansfield">{{cite news| url=https://www.theguardian.com/worldlatest/story/0,,-6863800,00.html| title=Tenn. Nuclear Fuel Problems Kept Secret| date=August 20, 2007| first=Duncan| last=Mansfield| accessdate=2007-08-21 |archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20071030125346/http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,,-6863800,00.html <!-- Bot retrieved archive --> |archivedate = 2007-10-30| location=London| work=The Guardian}}</ref><ref name="campbell">{{cite web |last1=Campbell |first1=Paige |title=Nuclear Confusion |url=https://appvoices.org/2012/02/21/nuclear-confusion/ |website=The Appalachian Voice |access-date=January 19, 2022 |date=February 21, 2012}}</ref>

===Energy===
[[File:Watts Bar-4.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|[[Watts Bar Nuclear Plant]] in [[Rhea County, Tennessee|Rhea County]] is home to the newest operating nuclear reactors in the United States.<ref>{{cite news |last=Blau |first=Max |url=http://www.cnn.com/2016/10/20/us/tennessee-nuclear-power-plant/index.html |title=First new US nuclear reactor in 20 years goes live |work=CNN |publisher=Cable News Network. Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. |date=October 20, 2016 |access-date=2016-10-20 }}</ref>]]
The [[Tennessee Valley Authority]] (TVA) has its administrative operations headquartered in Knoxville and power operations headquartered in Chattanooga, and provides nearly all of East Tennessee's electricity. TVA operates the [[Sequoyah Nuclear Plant|Sequoyah]] and [[Watts Bar Nuclear Plant|Watts Bar]] nuclear plants in [[Soddy-Daisy, Tennessee|Soddy-Daisy]] and [[Rhea County, Tennessee|Rhea County]], respectively, the [[Kingston Fossil Plant|Kingston]] and [[Bull Run Fossil Plant|Bull Run]] coal-fired plants, the latter of which is near Oak Ridge, the John Sevier [[combined cycle power plant|combined cycle]] natural gas-fired plant near [[Rogersville, Tennessee|Rogersville]], the [[Raccoon Mountain Pumped-Storage Plant]] near Chattanooga, a [[Wind power in Tennessee#Buffalo Mountain|wind-powered facility near Oak Ridge]], and several [[hydroelectric power in the United States|hydroelectric]] dams in East Tennessee.

The two newest civilian [[Nuclear reactor|nuclear power reactors]] in the United States are located at the Watts Bar Nuclear Plant. Unit 1 began operation in 1996 and Unit 2 started operating in 2016, making it the only new nuclear power reactor to begin operation in the United States in the 21st century.<ref>{{cite news|last=Mooney|first=Chris|date=June 17, 2016|title=It's the first new U.S. nuclear reactor in decades. And climate change has made that a very big deal|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/energy-environment/wp/2016/06/17/the-u-s-is-powering-up-its-first-new-nuclear-reactor-in-decades/|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|access-date=June 4, 2020}}</ref> Officials at Oak Ridge National Laboratory and the TVA are studying advancements in nuclear power as an energy source in a joint effort, including [[small modular reactor]]s.<ref name="smallmodreactor">{{cite web |title=ORNL, TVA sign agreement to collaborate on advanced reactor technologies |url=https://www.ornl.gov/news/ornl-tva-sign-agreement-collaborate-advanced-reactor-technologies |website=[[Oak Ridge National Laboratory]] |access-date=October 7, 2020 |date=February 19, 2020}}</ref>

===Mining===
The Ridge-and-Valley region of East Tennessee is home to several of the largest deposits of [[zinc]] in the United States, including the Mossy Creek deposits in [[Jefferson County, Tennessee|Jefferson County]] and the [[Grainger County, Tennessee|Grainger]] and [[Hancock County, Tennessee|Hancock]] counties' deposits, respectively.<ref name="zincdeposits">{{cite journal |last1=Thompson |first1=Tommy |title=Zinc Deposits in East Tennessee |journal=Society of Economic Geologists Guidebook Series |date=January 1, 1992 |volume=14 |url=https://pubs.geoscienceworld.org/segweb/books/book/2115/chapter/114712631/Itinerary |access-date=January 5, 2022 |publisher=Society of Economic Geologists |doi=10.5382/GB.14.Ch1 |isbn=9781934969670}}</ref>

[[Tennessee marble]], a rare crystalline form of [[limestone]], is found only in several deposits in the East Tennessee region in the entire world. Its strong resemblance to true marble when polished has made it a popular construction material found in several structures and monuments around the United States.<ref name=powell>{{cite web |first1=Wayne G |last1=Powell |url=http://academic.brooklyn.cuny.edu/geology/powell/613webpage/NYCbuilding/TennesseeMarble/TennesseeMarble.htm |title=Tennessee Marble |access-date=November 20, 2011}}</ref> The stone occurs in belts of [[Ordovician]]-period rocks known as the [[Holston Formation]],<ref name=powell /> Tennessee marble achieved such popularity in the late-19th century that [[Knoxville, Tennessee|Knoxville]], the stone's primary finishing and distribution center, became known as "The Marble City."<ref>"Ask Doc Knox," "[https://web.archive.org/web/20100703020837/http://blogs.metropulse.com/ask_dr_knox/2010/05/whats-with-all-this-marble-cit.html What's With All This 'Marble City' Business?]"  ''Metro Pulse'' May 10, 2010.  Accessed at the Internet Archive, October 5, 2015.</ref>

===Tourism===
[[File:Thunderhead (Dollywood) 03.JPG|thumb|upright=1.1|Riders aboard the roller coaster [[Thunderhead (roller coaster)|Thunderhead]] at [[Dollywood]], one of the nation's most popular theme parks.<ref name="rhodes">{{cite web |last1=Rhodes |first1=Elizabeth |last2=Romano |first2=Andrea |title=These Are the Best Theme Parks in the United States |url=https://www.travelandleisure.com/attractions/amusement-parks/tripadvisor-best-theme-parks-in-america |website=[[Travel + Leisure]] |access-date=January 30, 2021}}</ref>]]
While the mountain springs of East Tennessee and the cooler upper elevations of its mountainous areas have long provided a retreat from the region's summertime heat, much of East Tennessee's tourism industry is a result of land conservation movements in the 1920s and 1930s. The [[Great Smoky Mountains National Park]], established in 1934, led to a tourism boom in Sevier and Blount counties, effectively converting the tiny mountain hamlets of [[Gatlinburg, Tennessee|Gatlinburg]] and [[Pigeon Forge, Tennessee|Pigeon Forge]] into resort towns. Great Smoky Mountains National Park is the most visited national park in the United States, receiving more than 14 million visitors annually. The park also anchors a massive tourism industry in nearby Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge, and [[Sevierville, Tennessee|Sevierville]], which is the third largest in the state.<ref>{{cite report|author=<!--Not stated-->|date=August 2020|title=2019 Economic Impact of Travel on Tennessee|url=https://industry.tnvacation.com/sites/industry/files/component/pod/2019%20Economic%20Impact.pdf|publisher=Tennessee Department of Tourist Development|access-date=2021-04-18}}</ref> Attractions include [[Dollywood]] (the most visited ticketed attraction in Tennessee), [[Ober Gatlinburg]], and Ripley's Aquarium of the Smokies.

Other tourist attractions maintained by the [[National Park Service]] are [[Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area]] and [[Cumberland Gap National Historical Park]], both in the Cumberland Mountains, [[Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park]], [[Overmountain Victory National Historic Trail]], [[Trail of Tears#Landmarks and commemorations|Trail of Tears National Historic Trail]], and the [[Manhattan Project National Historical Park]]. East Tennessee is home to several scenic roadways including the [[Foothills Parkway]], the [[East Tennessee Crossing Byway]], the [[U.S. Route 441 in Tennessee|Norris Freeway]], [[Tennessee State Route 63|Cumberland National Scenic Byway]], the [[U.S. Route 129 in Tennessee|Tail of the Dragon]], the [[Cherohala Skyway]], and the [[Ocoee Scenic Byway]].<ref name="scenicbyway">{{cite web |title=Tennessee Byways |url=https://nsbfoundation.com/blog/tennessee-byways/ |website=National Scenic Byway Foundation |access-date=September 13, 2020 |date=March 25, 2020}}</ref>

The [[Appalachian Trail]], one of the world's most well-known hiking trails, was built in the mid-1930s and passes along the Tennessee-North Carolina border. The Cherokee National Forest was established during the same period and preserves most of the Blue Ridge Mountains in Tennessee that are not part of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The [[Ocoee River]] in Polk County attracts thousands of whitewater rafters each year and is the most rafted river in the nation. The nearby gentler Hiwassee River is also a top attraction in East Tennessee.<ref>{{cite news|last=Coco|first=Claudia|date=June 6, 2019|title=Rafting on the Ocoee River brings millions in revenue for Polk County|url=https://www.wrcbtv.com/story/40606983/rafting-on-the-ocoee-river-brings-millions-in-revenue-for-polk-co|work=[[WRCB-TV]]|location=Chattanooga, Tennessee|access-date=2020-06-29}}</ref> Reservoirs created in the aftermath of the TVA's hydroelectric projects in the upper East Tennessee region, including [[Cherokee Lake|Cherokee]], [[Douglas Lake|Douglas]], [[Fort Loudoun Lake|Fort Loudoun]], and [[Norris Lake (Tennessee)|Norris]] provide recreational opportunities on and along the shores via water sports, boating, fishing, and [[Holiday cottage|"second-home" development]].<ref name="TVA99">{{cite journal |title=Supporting a Thriving River System |journal=Tennessee Valley Authority Annual Report |date=1999 |page=14 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=uFq_VeUhdIIC |access-date=October 7, 2021}}</ref>

Attractions in Chattanooga include the [[Tennessee Aquarium]], the nation's largest freshwater aquarium, and [[Rock City (roadside attraction)|Rock City]], and [[Ruby Falls]] on Lookout Mountain, the latter two of which are perhaps best known for their unique advertisements painted on barn roofs across the southeast.<ref>Gary Jenkins, [http://tennesseeencyclopedia.net/entry.php?rec=808 Lookout Mountain].  ''Tennessee Encyclopedia of History and Culture'', 2002.  Retrieved: August 18, 2009.</ref> The Tennessee Aquarium coincided with the revitalization of Chattanooga's riverfront, which helped to bolster the downtown districts.<ref>{{cite web|last=Morrison|first=Chloe|url=http://www.nooga.com/167888/hamilton-county-expected-to-bring-in-1-billion-in-tourism-revenue/|title=Hamilton County expected to bring in $1 billion in tourism revenue|date=September 24, 2014|work=Nooga.com}}</ref> The city has become an outdoor sports mecca, being heralded as the "Best Town Ever" by [[Outside (magazine)|''Outside'']] magazine.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.outsideonline.com/adventure-travel/best-towns/Sweet-HomeChattanooga.html|title=America's Best Towns 2011|date=August 29, 2011}}</ref>