Nolensville, Tennessee

Geography

Nolensville is located at 35°57′24″N 86°40′1″W (35.956786, -86.666967).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 9.5 square miles (25 km²), all land.

History

William Nolen, his wife, Sarah, and their five children were passing through the area in 1797 when their wagon wheel broke. Forced to stop and survey his surroundings, Nolen noted the rich soil and abundance of natural resources, and decided to make Nolensville his home. William Nolen purchased a portion of a land grant to Jason Thompson on which Nolensville was later built. In the early 19th century, a large migration from Rockingham, North Carolina, brought the Adams, Allen, Barnes, Cyrus, Fields, Glenn, Irion, Johnson, Peay, Scales, Taylor, Vernon, Wisener, Williams, and other families to the area. Built along Mill Creek, the town was incorporated in 1839.

Foraging and skirmishing took place here in the Civil War. Gen. John Wharton's Confederate cavalry unit was stationed in town briefly and Gen. Joseph Wheeler's command captured a Union supply train here on December 30, 1862. William A. Clark successfully defended a wagon train a year later in September 1863, earning the Medal of Honor for his actions.

Nolensville was re-incorporated in 1996.

August 1996 Nolensville voted by referendum to re-incorporate. In October 1996 the first election was held, electing the first three-member Nolensville Board of Mayor and Aldermen. The first Mayor of Nolensville was Charles F. Knapper, with the two Aldermen Thomas "Tommy" Dugger, III, and Parman Henry. Holding additional firsts was the hiring of the Town Attorney, Robert J. Notestine, III (as of August 2014 Counsel Notestine remains Nolensville's attorney). The first Town employee was hired in November 1996 working from the Mayor's trunk and the Town Recorder, Cindy Lancaster's (as of August 2014 Ms. Lancaster is still serving as Town Recorder/Finance Director/Office Manager)living room.

In November 2000, Nolensville voted to increase to a five-member Board, a Mayor and four Aldermen that rotated in the election process every two years with each serving a four-year term. Although the 2000 election began with all members having to run; the two members with the least votes would result in their positions becoming vacant and up for election in 2002. In the 2000 election Mayor Charles Knapper was re-elected, and the four Aldermen elected were: Thomas "Tommy" Dugger, III, Larry Felts, Gail Phillips and Joe Rositano. Alderman Joe Rositano died in November 2003 and Mr. Frank Wilson was appointed to fill the vacancy. At the November 2004 election, Mayor Charles Knapper was once again elected, with the Aldermen elected being Jimmy Alexander, Joe Curtsinger and Thomas "Tommy" Dugger. The third vacancy was created after Alderman Rositano's death. Mayor Charles Knapper held the Mayoral title until his resignation March 10, 2006. Vice-Mayor at that time, Thomas (Tommy) Dugger,III, became the Mayor, and served in the Mayor capacity until January 1, 2007. Mrs. Beth Weaver-Lothers was appointed to fill Tommy Duggers vacancy created when moved to Mayor. At the November 2006 election Beth Weaver-Lothers ran and won the Mayor position, with the Aldermen elected being Tommy Dugger and Ken Thomas. The November 2008 election was for Aldermen positions where Larry Felts re-entered the political arena and filled one Alderman position with Alderman Jimmy Alexander remaining on the Board for another term. In July 2009 Alderman Ken Thomas resigned, and Mr. Brian Snyder was appointed as Alderman until the next election. The November 2010 Mayoral election was won by two-term Alderman Jimmy Alexander, with the two Aldermen positions going to Aldermen Beth Lothers and Brian Snyder. Due to a vacancy created by Mayor Jimmy Alexander, Mr. Jason Patrick was appointed in the Alderman position. In the November 2012 election, Aldermen Larry Felts and Jason Patrick held their Aldermen positions. With the resignation of Alderman Beth Lothers in June 2014, Alderman Tommy Dugger was appointed and re-entered the Nolensville Board.

On both sides of Nolensville Road from north of Oldham Drive to the south as far as York/Williams Road are many structures from the 19th century still in use as homes and/or stores. Within this area is a historic area which in the 19th century was the center of Nolensville. Of note is the Waller Funeral Home which has been in existence since 1876, the Nolensville Mill Company from 1890 to 1986 (today housing a store with Amish goods) and the Nolensville Co-Op Creamery from 1921-1957 which made butter known for its excellence throughout the area (now an antique store). The house north of the cemetery today is a veterinary clinic and the Home Place Bed & Breakfast, built in 1820, is still in use.

Growth

Since being re-incorporated in 1996, Nolensville has had sustained growth. New home developments have sprung up around the city including Bent Creek, Winterset Woods, Burkitt Place, Silver Stream, Ballenger Farms, Sunset Farms, Summerlyn and more. As outlined in the recent article in The City Paper, Nolensville has had 290 residential building permits since the 2010 census and touts the lowest property tax rates in Williamson County. Other signs of growth are the new multimillion-dollar town hall, numerous business plazas and new restaurants. Additionally the Williamson County School Board recently purchased 95 acres (38 ha) on the south side of Nolensville for a new high, middle, and elementary schools scheduled to open in the fall of 2016.

Demographics

As of the census of 2010, there were 5,861 people, 1,831 households. The racial makeup of the town is 85.5% White, 5.3% African American, 0.2% Native American, 6.3% Asian, 0.6% from other races, and 2.1% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.8% of the population.

77.1% of households are married couples living together, and 9.6% are non-families. 8.3% of all households are made up of individuals. The average household size is 3.25 and the average family size is 3.45.

In the town, the population is spread out with 41.9% under the age of 18, 1.8% from 18 to 24, 27.3% from 25 to 44, 23.7% from 45 to 64, and 5.3% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 33 years. For every 100 females there are 93.5 males.

The median income for a household in the town is $102,982, and the median income for a family is $105,589. Males have a median income of $71,114 versus $36,190 for females. The per capita income for the town is $33,705. About 4.5% of families and 5.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.7% of those under age 18 and none of those age 65 or over.

Education and schools

Nolensville area schools:

Nolensville Elementary School

Mill Creek Elementary School

Sunset Elementary School

Sunset Middle School

Mill Creek Middle School

Ravenwood High School (Through 2018)

Nolensville High School

Recreation

Nolensville has a variety of different youth sports leagues. The ages range from 4-12 with sports for both boys & girls such as football (tackle and flag), basketball, softball, baseball, and soccer. Most sport fields are located along Mill Creek in proximity to town with the exception of soccer. The soccer club practices at Gregory Park in Nolensville (off Johnson Industrial Boulevard) but plays games at Osburn Park Soccer Complex which is located four miles south of Nolensville off Nolensville Road.