Jackson, TN Summary

Jackson is about 90 miles northeast of Memphis via I-40. It is a college city of nearly 49,000 with an economy based on medical and agricultural industries. In 1819, Jackson was settled by soldiers from Andrew Jackson’s one-time regiment, on what was the ancient tribal land of the Cherokee and Chickasaw Native Americans. After the arrival of the railroad in 1858, Jackson flourished as an agricultural and commercial center. The start of the Civil War saw the town become headquarters to Confederate General P.G.T. Beauregard before the Union army took control of its rail depot. Union troops burned the downtown to the ground.

Jackson’s most noteworthy buildings include the 1950s Greyhound Station and the South Royal Depot, once the center of the railroad industry. One of Jackson’s four colleges, Lambuth University, houses the M.D. Anderson Planetarium.

The most significant building in Jackson is the Madison County Courthouse, where pioneer Congressman Davy Crockett made his famous announcement, following his 1836 re-election defeat, “The rest of you can go to hell, for I am going to Texas.” Jackson was the birthplace of “Blue Suede Shoes” Carl Perkins, and legendary blues artist Sonny Boy Williams. It is also the last home of railroad legend Casey Jones, showcased at the Casey Jones Village, off I-40. The Casey Jones Home and Railroad Museum chronicles the life of the Illinois Central Railroad engineer, John Jones (the “Casey” comes from his hometown of Cayce, Kentucky). It also features Casey Jones’ heroic death, in 1901, when he chose to ride out a track collision in his train to prevent further fatalities. There is other railroad paraphernalia, including the famous ballad of Casey Jones.

Buses, and a regional airport southeast of town, serve Jackson.