Pleasant Hill, Tennessee
Encyclopedia
Pleasant Hill is a town in Cumberland County, Tennessee
, United States
. The population was 563 at the 2010 census.
According to the United States Census Bureau
, the town has a total area of 1.6 square miles (4.1 km²), of which 1.5 square miles (3.9 km²) is land and 0.64% is water.
(AMA) to educate “mountain boys and girls in Christian education.” Supported by the Congregational Church
, the school operated until 1947.
A medical clinic was established by May Cravath Wharton, an early woman physician from Minnesota
. First serving as the physician at the Academy, Wharton also cared for people in the community. They invited her to stay after the death of her husband Edwin.
She created a small hospital, and with fundraising, added a sanatorium annex for the care of people with tuberculosis
. As no antibiotic was known at the time, rest and good nutrition were the only treatment. The Uplands Sanatorium was adapted as a retirement home when the hospital was relocated to Crossville
, the county seat, where it is known as the Cumberland Medical Center.
Camp Crossville, a site just east of Pleasant Hill, was used as a prisoner of war camp during World War II
, housing German and Italian officers from November 1942 until the end of the war.
of 2000, there were 544 people, 273 households, and 143 families residing in the town. The population density
was 350.0 people per square mile (135.5/km²). There were 314 housing units at an average density of 202.0 per square mile (78.2/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 98.53% White, 0.37% African American, 0.55% Native American, 0.18% Asian, and 0.37% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.18% of the population.
There were 273 households out of which 11.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.2% were married couples
living together, 5.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 47.3% were non-families. 45.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 40.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 1.77 and the average family size was 2.40.
In the town the population was spread out with 11.2% under the age of 18, 2.4% from 18 to 24, 11.2% from 25 to 44, 11.4% from 45 to 64, and 63.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 72 years. For every 100 females there were 64.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 58.9 males.
The median income for a household in the town is $29,554, and the median income for a family was $37,375. Males had a median income of $23,750 versus $20,250 for females. The per capita income
for the town was $21,384. About 7.0% of families and 10.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 30.0% of those under age 18 and 5.5% of those age 65 or over.
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...
. The population was 563 at the 2010 census.
Geography
Pleasant Hill is located at 35°58′37"N 85°12′1"W (35.976915, -85.200229).According to the United States Census Bureau
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the town has a total area of 1.6 square miles (4.1 km²), of which 1.5 square miles (3.9 km²) is land and 0.64% is water.
History
Pleasant Hill was first settled by European-Americans before 1819. In 1884 the Pleasant Hill Academy was established there by a teacher from the American Missionary AssociationAmerican Missionary Association
The American Missionary Association was a Protestant-based abolitionist group founded on September 3, 1846 in Albany, New York. The main purpose of this organization was to abolish slavery, to educate African Americans, to promote racial equality, and to promote Christian values...
(AMA) to educate “mountain boys and girls in Christian education.” Supported by the Congregational Church
Congregational church
Congregational churches are Protestant Christian churches practicing Congregationalist church governance, in which each congregation independently and autonomously runs its own affairs....
, the school operated until 1947.
A medical clinic was established by May Cravath Wharton, an early woman physician from Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
. First serving as the physician at the Academy, Wharton also cared for people in the community. They invited her to stay after the death of her husband Edwin.
She created a small hospital, and with fundraising, added a sanatorium annex for the care of people with tuberculosis
Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis, MTB, or TB is a common, and in many cases lethal, infectious disease caused by various strains of mycobacteria, usually Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs but can also affect other parts of the body...
. As no antibiotic was known at the time, rest and good nutrition were the only treatment. The Uplands Sanatorium was adapted as a retirement home when the hospital was relocated to Crossville
Crossville, Tennessee
Crossville is a city in and the county seat of Cumberland County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 10,795 at the 2010 Census.-Geography:Crossville is located at...
, the county seat, where it is known as the Cumberland Medical Center.
Camp Crossville, a site just east of Pleasant Hill, was used as a prisoner of war camp during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, housing German and Italian officers from November 1942 until the end of the war.
Demographics
As of the censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 544 people, 273 households, and 143 families residing in the town. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 350.0 people per square mile (135.5/km²). There were 314 housing units at an average density of 202.0 per square mile (78.2/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 98.53% White, 0.37% African American, 0.55% Native American, 0.18% Asian, and 0.37% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.18% of the population.
There were 273 households out of which 11.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.2% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 5.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 47.3% were non-families. 45.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 40.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 1.77 and the average family size was 2.40.
In the town the population was spread out with 11.2% under the age of 18, 2.4% from 18 to 24, 11.2% from 25 to 44, 11.4% from 45 to 64, and 63.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 72 years. For every 100 females there were 64.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 58.9 males.
The median income for a household in the town is $29,554, and the median income for a family was $37,375. Males had a median income of $23,750 versus $20,250 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the town was $21,384. About 7.0% of families and 10.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 30.0% of those under age 18 and 5.5% of those age 65 or over.
Notable natives and residents
- Dora Read Goodale (1866–1952), a poet and teacher from Massachusetts, director of the Uplands Sanatorium in the late 1930s through 1941, when she published Mountain Dooryards, poetry incorporating the traditional Appalachian dialect of the area.
- May Cravath Wharton (1873–1959), an early woman physician from MinnesotaMinnesotaMinnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
, who created the first hospital and sanatorium in the area at Pleasant Hill, and later established Cumberland Medical Center in Crossville.
Further reading
- May Cravath Wharton, Doctor Woman of the Cumberlands: the Autobiography of May Cravath Wharton (1953).