Putnam County, Tennessee
Selected Statistical Information
I.  Geography & Demographics Tennessee Putnam County County Rank Percent of State
Total Land Area (sq. mi.)                 41,217                401 58th  1.0%
Farmland (2007)          
Acres of Farmland            10,969,798         103,679  47th   0.9%
Number of Farms                 79,280             1,069  25th   1.3%
Average Size of Farms (Acres)                     138                 97  75th   70.3%
Population            
2008 Estimate 6,214,888 71,160 18th  1.1%
2000 Census 5,689,283 62,315 19th  1.1%
1990 Census 4,877,203 51,373 19th  1.1%
Gain (1990 to 2000) 812,080 10,942 20th  1.3%
Growth Rate (1990 to 2000) 16.7% 21.3% 33rd  127.9%
Population Density (per sq. mi.)         Comparison to State Figure
2008 Estimate                   150.8             177.4 18th  117.7%
2000 Census                   138.0             155.4 20th  112.6%
1990 Census                   118.3             128.1 19th  108.3%
Urban Population         Percent of State
2000 Census            3,618,968           37,816 18th  1.0%
1990 Census            2,969,948           24,303 18th  0.8%
Growth Rate (1990 to 2000) 21.9% 55.6% 17th  254.4%
Percent of Population in Urban Areas
2000 Census 63.6% 60.7% 15th  95.4%
1990 Census 60.9% 47.3% 21st  77.7%
Median Age            
2000 Census 36 34 89th  95.8%
1990 Census 34 32 89th  96.1%
Population Percentages by Age Bracket        
2000 Census
under 18 24.6% 22.3% 77th 
18-24 9.6% 14.7% 2nd 
25-44 30.2% 27.9% 63rd 
45-64 23.2% 21.9% 84th 
65 & over 12.4% 13.2% 62nd 
1990 Census
under 18 25.1% 22.0% 92nd 
18-24 10.9% 17.0% 1st 
25-44 31.8% 28.8% 58th 
45-64 19.6% 19.2% 80th 
65 & over 12.6% 12.9% 68th 
Population Growth by Age Bracket, 1990 to 2000  
Population Percentages by Race/Ethnicity (2000 Census)  
Tennessee Putnam County County Rank* Comparison to State Figure
Males per 100 Females (2007) 95.4 98.6 8th  103.4%
Marriages Recorded per 1,000 Population in 2006 10.7 7.4 79th  69.2%
Divorces Recorded per 1,000 Population in 2006 4.7 4.5 39th  95.7%
*A rank of 1 indicates the best condition.
II.  Income & Poverty Tennessee Putnam County County Rank* Comparison to State Figure
Per Capita Personal Income          
2006 $32,172 $26,459 38th  82.2%
2000 $26,097 $22,875 26th  87.7%
Compound Annual Growth Rate 3.55% 2.46% 84th  69.18%
Median Household Income          
2007 $42,389 $36,131 56th  85.2%
2000 $35,760 $32,360 46th  90.5%
Compound Annual Growth Rate 2.46% 1.59% 72nd  64.54%
2007 Poverty Rate          
All Ages  15.8% 21.6% 80th  136.71%
Related Children Under 18 Years  22.5% 31.4% 84th  139.56%
2000 Census            
All Ages  13.1% 13.9% 38th  105.46%
Related Children Under 18 Years 15.9% 18.8% 54th  117.75%
2007 Food Stamp Recipients (Monthly Average )          
Percent of Households 15.8% 16.3% 41st  103.13%
Percent of Individuals 14.1% 13.8% 29th  97.55%
2007 Families First           
Percent of Households 2.5% 2.0% 57th  81.18%
Percent of Individuals 2.5% 2.0% 60th  79.17%
*A rank of 1 indicates the best condition.
III.  Health & Healthcare Tennessee Putnam County County Rank* Comparison to State Figure
2007 Pregnancy & Birth Rates           
Live births per 1,000 Population                    14.2               14.4 15th  101.4%
Percent of Live Births to Unmarried Parents 42.8% 38.9% 51st  90.9%
Percent Low Birth Weight 9.4% 7.1% 9th  75.5%
Pregnancies per 1,000 Females Aged 15-44                    80.7               76.2 21st  94.4%
Pregnancies per 1,000 Females Aged 10-17                    13.9               13.9 70th  100.0%
Pregnancies per 1,000 Females Aged 10-14                      1.3                  -   1st  0.0%
* A rank of 1 indicates the best condition.
2007 Mortality Rates           
Number of Deaths per 1,000 Population                      9.3               10.1 34th  108.6%
Number of Deaths per 100,000 Population by Cause of Death
Diseases of the Heart                   233.2             262.5 44th  112.6%
Cancer (Malignant Neoplasm)                   215.3             261.1 68th  121.3%
* A rank of 1 indicates the best condition.
43rd 
62nd 
43rd 
Tennessee Putnam County County Rank Comparison to State Figure
Access to Healthcare          
Medical Doctors per 1,000 (2007)                      1.8                2.0 10th  110.8%
Hospital Beds per 1,000 Population (2006)                      4.2                3.6 32nd  86.2%
Nursing Home Beds per 1,000 Pop. 65 & older (2006)                    49.2               18.4 89th  37.3%
2006 Charity Care--Percent of All Hospital Care  8.5% 2.0% 51st  23.1%
IV.  Employment
Unemployment Rate   Tennessee Putnam County County Rank* Comparison to State Figure
2009 (February) 9.5% 9.4% 21st  98.6%
2000 4.0% 4.5% 43rd  112.3%
2007 Youth Unemployment Rate  15.7% 15.5% 42nd  98.8%
* A rank of 1 indicates the best condition.
2007 Employment Percentages by Major Industry   Tennessee Putnam County County Rank Comparison to State Figure
Total Employment All Industries 2,745,397 32,250 17 1.2%
Natural Resources and Mining 0.4% 0.5% 16 137.5%
Construction 4.9% 5.1% 15 105.8%
Manufacturing 13.8% 18.9% 17 136.8%
Trade, Transportation and Utilities 22.1% 21.4% 17 96.7%
Information 1.8% 1.4% 14 77.2%
Financial Activities 5.2% 3.5% 19 67.8%
Professional and Business Services 11.8% 8.4% 19 71.1%
Education and Health Services 12.4% 8.5% 19 68.4%
Leisure and Hospitality 10.1% 9.8% 16 97.2%
Other Services 2.6% 2.1% 16 82.8%
Government 14.9% 20.4% 9 136.7%
Federal 1.8% 0.8% 21 44.0%
State 3.3% 5.3% 5 162.8%
Local 9.9% 14.3% 10 144.7%
2007 Average Annual Wage by Major Industry         County Rank
46th 
45th 
34th 
31st 
34th 
25th 
44th 
65th 
28th 
34th 
74th 
34th 
30th 
9th 
13th 
V.  Value of Farmland and Agricultural Products Sold
Tennessee Putnam County Rank
Estimated Market Value of Farmland & Buildings   $           467,420  $      403,524 62nd 
(Average Per Farm)
Estimated Market Value of Farmland & Buildings   $               3,378  $         4,161 20th 
(Average Per Acre)
Total Market Value of Agicultural Products Sold   $  2,617,394,000  $ 11,549,000 68th 
VI.  County Government Finance (municipalities' revenue data not available)
2001-2002 Revenue by Source (in thousands)   Tennessee Percent of Total Putnam County Percent of State Total
Grand Total  $         8,062,012 100.0%  $    91,818 100.00%
Total State Revenue  $         2,504,883 31.1%  $    29,603 32.2%
Public Schools            1,949,045 24.2%        25,086 27.3%
All Other               555,838 6.9%         4,518 4.9%
Federal Revenue  $           511,055 6.3%  $      5,456 5.9%
Total Local Revenue  $         5,046,074 62.6%  $    56,759 61.8%
Property Tax            2,720,971 33.8%        21,868 23.8%
Local Sales Tax            1,123,100 13.9%        22,455 24.5%
Other Local             1,202,003 14.9%        12,436 13.5%
 Tax Base (in thousands)   Tennessee Putnam County County Rank Percent of State
2007 Equalized Assessed Property Value  $     131,625,598  $   1,222,272
Tax Base Per Capita $21,179 $17,176 23rd  81.1%
2007 County Property Tax Rate (per $100) $2.57 31st 
2008 Total Taxable Sales   $       69,005,974  $      961,209
Tax Base Per Capita $11,103 $13,508 9th  121.7%
2008 County Sales Tax Rate 2.75% 1st 
VII.  Public Infrastructure Needs Inventory
Estimated Costs, 2007 - 2012 (in thousands)   Tennessee Putnam County County Rank Percent of State
Project  Type
Transportation  $       17,106,712  $      179,477 25th 1.0%
Existing School Improvements            1,899,735           58,341 8th 3.1%
Non K-12 Education            3,015,869           55,790 9th 1.8%
K-12 New School Construction            1,798,581           52,400 11th 2.9%
Water & Wastewater            3,855,355           23,010 41st 0.6%
Law Enforcement            1,826,201           21,890 17th 1.2%
Public Health Facilities               323,093             8,400 8th 2.6%
Business District Development               375,758             8,300 8th 2.2%
Public Buildings               526,288             3,680 19th 0.7%
Industrial Sites & Parks               241,362             2,750 30th 1.1%
Recreation            1,118,527             2,470 51st 0.2%
Housing               100,189             1,650 7th 1.6%
Other Utilities               598,698                650 23rd 0.1%
Libraries, Museums, & Historic Sites               285,785                500 36th 0.2%
Fire Protection               220,725                250 46th 0.1%
Stormwater               371,227                 50 37th 0.0%
Community Development               367,547                    - 50th 0.0%
School System-wide Need                 63,021                    - 16th 0.0%
Solid Waste                 54,314                    - 30th 0.0%
Other Facilities                 32,755                    - 9th 0.0%
Telecommunications                 17,009                    - 5th 0.0%
Property Acquisition                   3,956                    - 8th 0.0%
Grand Total  $       34,202,707  $      419,609 15th 1.2%
VIII.  Adult & Post-secondary Education
Adult Educational Attainment     Tennessee Putnam County County Rank
2000 Census
Percent w/ HS diploma (or equivalent) or better 75.9% 72.6% 28th 
Percent w/ Bachelors Degree or better 19.6% 20.2% 10th 
2008 Estimate
1990 Census
Percent w/ HS diploma (or equivalent) or better 67.1% 63.2% 25th 
Percent w/ Bachelors Degree or better 16.0% 16.8% 9th 
 Number of Post-secondary Institutions (2008)      
Four-year Colleges and Universities 77 1
Public 14 1
Private 63 0
Other Public Institutions 93 1
Community Colleges 13 0
Technology Centers 27 0
Two-Year Private Institutions 20 1
Off-campus Sites 33 1
2007 - 2008 Enrollment (full-time equivalent) at Post-secondary Institutions    
Four-year Colleges and Universities*          214,260              10,799
Public 134,696 10,799
Private 79,564 0
Other Public Institutions* 134,278 852
Community Colleges 80,454 0
Technology Centers 13,939 0
Two-Year Private Insitutions 11,049 252
Off-campus Sites 28,836 600
* Note: By location of instiution, not county of residence of students
IX.  Public School Systems  (Total number of school systems is 136)
Statewide Putnam County    
Number of Students
2007-2008                 944,738                   10,337               
Percent of Statewide 1.1%          
1997-1998                 834,318                    8,979               
Percent of Statewide 1.1%          
Increase/(Decrease)                 110,420 1,358          
Percent Change 13.2% 15.1%          
2007-2008
Free or Reduced-price Meals 54.5% 51.0%
Federal Title 1 39.7% 39.5%
Special Education 14.7% 16.4%
English Language Learners 3.2% 5.5%
Statewide Putnam County    
2007-2008 Accreditation by Southern Association of Colleges and Schools 
Elementary Schools 71.5% 100.0%
Secondary Schools 90.8% 100.0%
Students per Classroom Teacher*
2007-2008                      14.9                      15.7               
1997-1998                      15.8                      16.2               
Increase/(Decrease)                       (0.9)                       (0.5)                    
Progress Through School
Promotion Rate
2007-2008 98.0% 96.1%          
1997-1998 96.6% 95.4%
Dropout Rate
2007-2008 10.1% 9.4%
1997-1998 4.5% 2.6%
*Classroom teachers include art, music and physical education teachers.  Because these auxiliary teachers are
included, ratios of students to classroom teachers do not represent and tend to be lower than actual class sizes.
Statewide Putnam County    
Expenditures per Student
2007-2008 $7,742 $7,183
Percent of Statewide 92.8%          
1997-1998 $5,123 $4,578
Percent of Statewide 89.4%          
Increase/Decrease $2,618 $2,605          
Percent Change 51.1% 56.9%          
Classroom Teachers' Average Salary*
2007-2008 $44,820 $41,256
Percent of Statewide 92.0%
1997-1998 $34,584 $31,283
Percent of Statewide 90.5%
Gain $10,236 $9,973
Percent Change 29.6% 31.9%          
Revenue by Source (percent of total)
2007-2008
State 47.6% 49.5%
Federal 10.8% 11.3%
Local 41.6% 39.3%
System Rank for Percent Local 27th 
2006-2007
State 45.5% 48.4%
Federal 11.0% 11.1%
Local 43.5% 40.5%
System Rank for Percent Local 31st 
Statewide Putnam County County Rank
2008-2009 County Area Fiscal Capacity        
Estimated Local Revenue per Student $2,782 $2,874 10th 
Sources of Information for County Profiles
I. Geography & Demographics
U.S. Bureau of the Census--all data except for marriage and divorce rates.
www.census.gov
U.S. Department of Agriculture - farmland data
http://www.usda.gov/wps/portal/usdahome
TN Dept. of Health - marriage and divorce rates.
http://health.state.tn.us/
II. Income & Poverty
U.S. Bureau of the Census--median household income data & poverty rates.
www.census.gov
TN Dept. of Human Services--Food Stamp data and Families First data.
http://www.tennessee.gov/humanserv/adfam/afs_fsp.htm
http://www.tennessee.gov/humanserv/adfam/afs_tanf.htm
U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis - per capita income data
www.bea.gov
III. Health & Healthcare
TN Dept.of Health, Health Statistics & Research--pregnancy, births, mortality & healthcare access data.
http://health.state.tn.us/statistics/healthdata.htm
IV. Employment
TN Dept. Of Labor and Workforce Development - unemployment data. 
http://www.state.tn.us/labor-wfd/
U.S. Department of Labor - employment data.
ww.bls.gov/lau/home.htm
V. Value of Farmland and Agricultural Product Sold
U.S. Department of Agriculture - farmland data
http://www.usda.gov/wps/portal/usdahome
VI. County Government Finance (municipalities' revenue data not available)
TN County Technical Advisory Service (CTAS), Resource Center--county revenue data.
www.ctas.utk.edu
TN Comptroller of the Treasury, Division of Property Assessment--equalized assessed property values.
http://www.comptroller.state.tn.us/pa/taxaggr.htm
TN Dept. of Revenue--total taxable sales.
www.state.tn.us/revenue/files.htm
VII. Public Infrastructure Needs Inventory
TN Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Relations--all data. 
http://tn.gov/tacir/infrastructure.html
VIII. Adult & Post-secondary Education
U.S. Bureau of the Census--educational attainment.
www.census.gov/population/www/socdemo/educ-attn.html
TN Higher Education Commission--post-secondary institution and enrollment data.
www.state.tn.us/thec
IX. Public School Systems (Total number of school systems is 136)
TN Department of Education--all data except fiscal capacity.
http://www.state.tn.us/education/mdata.shtml
TN Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Relations--education fiscal capacity.
http://tn.gov/tacir/fiscalcapacity.html
Prepared by TACIR