Karns is an unincorporated community in western Knox County

Knox County, Tennessee

Knox County is a county in the U.S. state of Tennessee. Its 2007 population was estimated at 423,874 by the United States Census Bureau. Its county seat is Knoxville, as it has been since the creation of the county. The county is at the geographical center of the Great Valley of East Tennessee...

, Tennessee

Tennessee

Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...

, United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

, about 11 miles (17.7 km) west of the center of Knoxville

Knoxville, Tennessee

Founded in 1786, Knoxville is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Tennessee, U.S.A., behind Memphis and Nashville, and is the county seat of Knox County. It is the largest city in East Tennessee, and the second-largest city in the Appalachia region...

. The United States Geographic Names System classifies Karns as a populated place

Populated place

A populated place is a place or area with clustered or scattered buildings and a permanent human population referenced with geographic coordinates...

.

Geography

Karns is located in Beaver Creek Valley between Beaver Ridge and Copper Ridge. The center of the community is
located at 35°58′55"N 84°06′50"W (35.982, -84.114). Elevation ranges from about 960 to 1000 feet (304.8 m) above sea level. Beaver Creek

Beaver Creek (Tennessee)

Beaver Creek is a tributary of the Clinch River in Knox County in East Tennessee. It drains a watershed area of between Copper Ridge and Black Oak Ridge. It flows from northeast to southwest from the Gibbs High School area, through the Halls, Powell, Karns, Solway, and Hardin Valley communities,...

, a tributary of the Clinch River

Clinch River

The Clinch River rises in Southwest Virginia near Tazewell, Virginia and flows southwest through the Great Appalachian Valley, gathering various tributaries including the Powell River before joining the Tennessee River in East Tennessee.-Course:...

, flows through the community.

History

The community was formerly called Beaver Ridge. However, in 1913 when the first high school

High school

High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....

 building was erected in Karns, the school was named in honor of Professor T.C. Karns, the first Superintendent of Public Instruction for Knox County. Later, in the 1950s, the community voted to officially change its name from Beaver Ridge/Byington to Karns.

Economy

Karns has grown from primarily a farming area to a community with a population of over 19,000. Mixed among the remaining farms and pastures are subdivisions, small businesses, schools, and light industry. Industries in the community include Unitrac Railroad Materials, a manufacturer of railroad components. The Karns schools are part of Knox County Schools

Knox County Schools

Knox County Schools is the school district that operates all public schools in Knox County, Tennessee.- History :Before the 1987-1988 school year, the city of Knoxville and Knox County operated separate school districts...

, and including Karns High School

Karns High School

Karns High School is a public high school in the Karns community of Knox County, Tennessee administered by the Knox County Schools public school district....

, enroll over 3,700 students from Karns, Ball Camp, Hardin Valley, and Solway. Most people commute to work outside of the community.

Education

Karns is the site of several public schools operated by Knox County Schools

Knox County Schools

Knox County Schools is the school district that operates all public schools in Knox County, Tennessee.- History :Before the 1987-1988 school year, the city of Knoxville and Knox County operated separate school districts...

. Public elementary schools in the area are Karns Elementary School,
Ball Camp Elementary School, and Hardin Valley Elementary School. One middle school, Karns Middle School, includes grades 6, 7, and 8. The community's long-time high school is Karns High School

Karns High School

Karns High School is a public high school in the Karns community of Knox County, Tennessee administered by the Knox County Schools public school district....

. A new high school, Hardin Valley Academy, opened in 2008 to reduce pressure on Karns, Farragut

Farragut High School

Farragut High School is a high school located at 11237 Kingston Pike in Farragut, a suburb of Knoxville, Tennessee. It is operated by Knox County Schools, the unified Knox County, Tennessee school district....

, and Bearden High School

Bearden High School

Bearden High School is a Knox County, Tennessee, high school located in the Bearden area in the city of Knoxville.The school was founded in 1939. It was named for the family of Marcus De LaFayette Bearden, a farmer who served as a captain in the Union Army during the Civil War.The current building...

s due to growth in the student population in western Knox County.

In addition, it is the site of Grace Christian Academy, a K-12 school operated as a ministry of Grace Baptist

Baptist

Baptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...

 Church.

Pellissippi State Technical Community College

Pellissippi State Technical Community College

Pellissippi State Community College is one of 13 member community colleges operated by the Tennessee Board of Regents, located in Knoxville, Tennessee. In addition to the primary campus situated several miles west of downtown Knoxville, the school has three satellite campuses in the surrounding area...

 is also located in the Hardin Valley area of Karns.

Public services

Karns is the site of a Knox County public library branch, a branch post office

Post office

A post office is a facility forming part of a postal system for the posting, receipt, sorting, handling, transmission or delivery of mail.Post offices offer mail-related services such as post office boxes, postage and packaging supplies...

, and the Karns Community Club building. The Karns Volunteer Fire Department

Volunteer fire department

See also the Firefighter article and its respective sections regarding VFDs in other countries.A volunteer fire department is a fire department composed of volunteers who perform fire suppression and other related emergency services for a local jurisdiction.The first organized force of...

serves a 65 square miles (168.3 km²) area of western Knox County from four fire stations located in Karns, Ball Camp, Hardin Valley and Solway.