Kingsport

History

Kingsport was developed after the Revolutionary War, at the confluence of the North and South Forks of the Holston River. In 1787 it was known as "Salt Lick" for an ancient mineral lick. It was first settled along the banks of the South Fork, about a mile from the confluence. The Long Island of the Holston River is near the confluence, which is mostly within the present-day corporate boundaries of Kingsport. The island was an important site for the Cherokee, colonial pioneers and early settlers, and specifically mentioned in the 1770 Treaty of Lochaber. Early settlements at the site were used as a staging ground for other pioneers who were traveling overland on the Wilderness Road leading to Kentucky through the Cumberland Gap. First chartered in 1822, Kingsport became an important shipping port on the Holston River. Goods originating for many miles around from the surrounding countryside were loaded onto barges for the journey downriver to the Tennessee River at Knoxville. In the Battle of Kingsport (December 13, 1864) during the Civil War, a force of 300 Confederates under Colonel Richard Morgan stopped a larger Union force for nearly two days. An army of over 5,500 troops under command of Major General George Stoneman had left Knoxville to raid Confederate targets in Virginia: the salt works at Saltville, the lead works at Wytheville, and the iron works in Marion. While Col. Morgan's small band held off a main Union force under Major General Cullem Gillem on the opposite side the Holston River, Union Col. Samuel Patton took a force of cavalry to a ford in the river north and came down behind the Confederates. Out-numbered, out-flanked, and demoralized by the bitter winter weather, Col. Morgan surrendered. The Confederates suffered 18 dead, and 84 prisoners of…

Geography

Kingsport is located in western Sullivan County at the intersection of U.S. Routes 11W and 23. Kingsport is the northwest terminus of Interstate 26. The city is bordered to the west by the town of Mount Carmel, to the southeast by unincorporated Colonial Heights, and to the northeast by unincorporated Bloomingdale. The Kingsport city limits extend west into Hawkins County and north to the Virginia border. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which are land and , or 1.86%, are water. Most of the water area is in the South Fork Holston River. Neighborhoods in Kingsport include: * Allandale * Bloomingdale * Borden Village * Carter's Valley * Cliffside * Colonial Heights * Cooks Valley * Downtown * Fairacres * Fort Robinson * Green Acres * Highland Park * Hillcrest * Indian Springs (Fall Creek & Airport) * Litz Manor * Lynn Garden * Malabar Heights * Meadowview * Midtown * Orebank * Preston Forest * Preston Woods * Ridgefields * Riverfront * Riverview * Rock Springs * Sevier Terrace

Largest nearby schools

• Dobyns - Bennett High School
  High · Kingsport · 2,514 students · 15.6:1 ratio
• West Ridge High School
  High · Blountville · 1,683 students · 13.8:1 ratio
• Ross N. Robinson Middle School
  Middle · Kingsport · 955 students · 15.9:1 ratio
• John Sevier Middle School
  Middle · Kingsport · 750 students · 13.4:1 ratio
• Sullivan Heights Middle School
  Middle · Kingsport · 692 students · 14.7:1 ratio
• Holston Elementary
  Elementary · Blountville · 635 students · 11.5:1 ratio
• Sullivan Central Middle School
  Middle · Blountville · 590 students · 13.1:1 ratio
• Ketron Elementary School
  Elementary · Kingsport · 563 students · 12.2:1 ratio