Geographic and Cultural Characteristics
The three grand divisions, East, Middle, and West Tennessee, are geographically and culturally distinct.
East Tennessee is dominated by the Appalachian mountain chain, including the Great Smoky Mountains on the eastern border of the state, the ridge-and-valley region where East Tennessee's principal cities (Knoxville, Chattanooga and the Tri-Cities) are located, and the rugged Cumberland Mountains. Nearly all of this region is located in the Eastern Time Zone.
East and Middle Tennessee are separated along the Cumberland Plateau. The boundary between the two grand divisions is close to the line between the Eastern and Central time zones. Middle Tennessee, which includes the state's capital city of Nashville, is dominated by rolling hills and fertile stream valleys.
A portion of the Tennessee River demarcates the boundary between Middle and West Tennessee. West Tennessee's other border is the Mississippi River. Outside the Memphis metropolitan area, the region is mostly agricultural.
Read more about this topic: Grand Divisions Of Tennessee
Famous quotes containing the word cultural:
“To recover the fatherhood idea, we must fashion a new cultural story of fatherhood. The moral of today’s story is that fatherhood is superfluous. The moral of the new story must be that fatherhood is essential.”
—David Blankenhorn (20th century)