Grainger

Formed April 9, 1796 (12^th county)

Grainger County (22,657), Rutledge (1,122), Bean Station (2,826)

The red brick Art Deco and Modern facility was constructed in 1949.  It is on Main Street at Court Street.  United States Highway 11 West is Main Street in this part of the town.  Bauman & Bauman and Will W. Griffin & Shi G. Goodwyne combined for the building designs.  A Justice Center was added in 2005.  The building features marble interior walls and exterior memorials.  Grainger County was organized on April 9, 1796 from parts of Hawkins and Knox counties as the 12^th county.  There was a 1904 earlier courthouse.  Mitchell Springs was the first county seat until 1801 when Rutledge assumed the seat.  The county is named for Mary Grainger, wife of Governor William Blount.  She is also the namesake for the county seat of Blount County.  Rutledge is named for settler, George Rutledge. 

Grainger County government consists of a sheriff, a County Mayor, and 15 Commissioners.  Five Circuit Court Judges, One Chancery Court Judge, and One General Court Judge serve Grainger, Cocke, Jefferson, and Sevier counties.  The county is in the northeast part of Tennessee.  Knoxville, Tennessee is southwest and Ashville, North Carolina is southeast of the county.  The county center is 1 mile East of Rutledge.  The county is surrounded clockwise by Hancock, Hawkins, Hamblen, Jefferson, Knox, Union, and Claiborne counties. 

The area of the county is 302 square miles.  It is 77 out of 95 in the state.  It ranks 60 out of 95 in population in the state.  It has a density of 75.02 persons per square mile making it 42 out of 95 in the state.  Grainger County has 25.6% of its population in its incorporated areas.  United States Highway 11 West goes northeast to southwest in the county from Hawkins County to Knox County.  United States Highway 25 East comes from the north, Claiborne County, and goes to the south, Hamblen County.  The county looks like a cucumber running northeast to southwest.  Rutledge is located near the center of the county.  Bean Station is in the northeast tip of the county.  Rutledge is the county seat and Bean Station is the largest city.  Rutledge is 5.0% of the county population while Bean Station is 12.5% of the county population.  This county is in the Morristown Metropolitan Statistical Area.