Putnam County, Tennessee - Revision history

imported>CyrusTheMediocre: remove outdated population pyramid

2026-01-01T07:57:18Z

remove outdated population pyramid

← Previous revision		Revision as of 07:57, 1 January 2026
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	\| footnote = U.S. Decennial Census<ref>{{cite web\|url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census.html\|title=U.S. Decennial Census\|publisher=United States Census Bureau\|access-date=April 9, 2015}}</ref><br />1790-1960<ref>{{cite web\|url=http://mapserver.lib.virginia.edu/\|title=Historical Census Browser\|publisher=University of Virginia Library\|access-date=April 9, 2015\|archive-date=August 11, 2012\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120811110448/http://mapserver.lib.virginia.edu/\|url-status=dead}}</ref> 1900-1990<ref>{{cite web\|url=https://www.census.gov/population/cencounts/tn190090.txt\|title=Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990\|publisher=United States Census Bureau\|editor-last=Forstall\|editor-first=Richard L.\|date=March 27, 1995\|access-date=April 9, 2015}}</ref><br />1990-2000<ref>{{cite web\|url=https://www.census.gov/population/www/cen2000/briefs/phc-t4/tables/tab02.pdf\|title=Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000\|publisher=United States Census Bureau\|date=April 2, 2001\|access-date=April 9, 2015}}</ref> 2010-2014<ref name="QF"/>		\| footnote = U.S. Decennial Census<ref>{{cite web\|url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census.html\|title=U.S. Decennial Census\|publisher=United States Census Bureau\|access-date=April 9, 2015}}</ref><br />1790-1960<ref>{{cite web\|url=http://mapserver.lib.virginia.edu/\|title=Historical Census Browser\|publisher=University of Virginia Library\|access-date=April 9, 2015\|archive-date=August 11, 2012\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120811110448/http://mapserver.lib.virginia.edu/\|url-status=dead}}</ref> 1900-1990<ref>{{cite web\|url=https://www.census.gov/population/cencounts/tn190090.txt\|title=Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990\|publisher=United States Census Bureau\|editor-last=Forstall\|editor-first=Richard L.\|date=March 27, 1995\|access-date=April 9, 2015}}</ref><br />1990-2000<ref>{{cite web\|url=https://www.census.gov/population/www/cen2000/briefs/phc-t4/tables/tab02.pdf\|title=Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000\|publisher=United States Census Bureau\|date=April 2, 2001\|access-date=April 9, 2015}}</ref> 2010-2014<ref name="QF"/>
	}}		}}
	~~{{Stack\|[[Image:USA Putnam County, Tennessee.csv age pyramid.svg\|thumb\|left\|150px\|Age pyramid Putnam County<ref>Based on 2000 [[census]] data</ref>]]}}~~

	===2020 census===		===2020 census===

imported>WikiOriginal-9: caps

2025-10-31T21:55:43Z

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imported>Panamitsu: add {{Use American English}} template per MOS:TIES

2025-06-08T03:11:13Z

add {{Use American English}} template per MOS:TIES

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	{{short description\|County in Tennessee, United States}}		{{short description\|County in Tennessee, United States}}
			{{Use American English\|date=June 2025}}
	{{Use mdy dates\|date=March 2024}}		{{Use mdy dates\|date=March 2024}}
	{{Infobox U.S. county		{{Infobox U.S. county
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	==Politics==		==Politics==
	Putnam County is extremely [[Republican Party (United States)\|Republican]]-leaning for an [[urban area\|urban]] county anchored by a college town ([[Cookeville, Tennessee\|Cookeville]], the county seat, is home to [[Tennessee Technological University]]); formerly a reliable [[Solid South]] county, Putnam has voted Republican in nearly every presidential election since [[Richard Nixon]] narrowly did so in [[1968 United States presidential election in Tennessee\|1968]], making exceptions for [[Jimmy Carter]] and [[Bill Clinton]] (both of whom are former governors of a neighboring state, namely and respectively [[Georgia, USA\|Georgia]] and [[Arkansas]]).		Putnam County is extremely [[Republican Party (United States)\|Republican]]-leaning for an [[urban area\|urban]] county anchored by a college town ([[Cookeville, Tennessee\|Cookeville]], the county seat, is home to [[Tennessee Technological University]]); formerly a reliable [[Solid South]] county, Putnam has voted Republican in nearly every presidential election since [[Richard Nixon]] narrowly did so in [[1968 United States presidential election in Tennessee\|1968]], making exceptions for [[Jimmy Carter]] and [[Bill Clinton]] (both of whom are former governors of a neighboring state, namely and respectively [[Georgia, USA\|Georgia]] and [[Arkansas]]).

	Though favorite son [[Al Gore]] was just over 2% short of carrying Putnam County in [[2000 United States presidential election in Tennessee\|2000]], he would be the last Democratic presidential candidate to come within a single-digit margin of doing so or even win so much as 40% of the county vote. In [[2008 United States presidential election in Tennessee\|2008]], [[John McCain]] won over 60% of the county's vote. In [[2020 United States presidential election in Tennessee\|2020]], Republican [[Donald Trump]] easily swept Putnam with over 70% of the county vote, while Democrat [[Joe Biden]] racked up less than 28% of the vote. Even the University precinct itself voted for Republican presidential candidates in [[2012 United States presidential election in Tennessee\|2012]], [[2016 United States presidential election in Tennessee\|2016]], 2020 and [[2024 United States presidential election in Tennessee\|2024]], although Phil Bredesen and Karl Dean did carry it handily in the 2018 [[2018 United States Senate election in Tennessee\|federal Senate]] and [[2018 Tennessee gubernatorial election\|gubernatorial]] elections.<ref>https://davesredistricting.org/maps#viewmap::c0ed8258-ce44-4eec-9736-2cc3b86a9d16</ref> Despite this, Putnam was one of only four Tennessee counties Biden lost to [[Bernie Sanders]] in the Democratic primary in 2020, indicating that the few Democrats left in Putnam County are unusually progressive.		Though favorite son [[Al Gore]] was just over 2% short of carrying Putnam County in [[2000 United States presidential election in Tennessee\|2000]], he would be the last Democratic presidential candidate to come within a single-digit margin of doing so or even win so much as 40% of the county vote. In [[2008 United States presidential election in Tennessee\|2008]], [[John McCain]] won over 60% of the county's vote. In [[2020 United States presidential election in Tennessee\|2020]], Republican [[Donald Trump]] easily swept Putnam with over 70% of the county vote, while Democrat [[Joe Biden]] racked up less than 28% of the vote. Even the University precinct itself voted for Republican presidential candidates in [[2012 United States presidential election in Tennessee\|2012]], [[2016 United States presidential election in Tennessee\|2016]], 2020 and [[2024 United States presidential election in Tennessee\|2024]], although Phil Bredesen and Karl Dean did carry it handily in the 2018 [[2018 United States Senate election in Tennessee\|federal Senate]] and [[2018 Tennessee gubernatorial election\|gubernatorial]] elections.<ref>https://davesredistricting.org/maps#viewmap::c0ed8258-ce44-4eec-9736-2cc3b86a9d16</ref> Despite this, Putnam was one of only four Tennessee counties Biden lost to [[Bernie Sanders]] in the Democratic primary in 2020, indicating that the few Democrats left in Putnam County are unusually progressive.

imported>2012Commander: /* State protected areas */

2025-05-25T00:49:59Z

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{{short description|County in Tennessee, United States}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=March 2024}}
{{Infobox U.S. county
| county = Putnam County
| state = Tennessee
| seal =
| logo = Putnam County, TN logo.png
| founded = February 11, 1854
| named for = [[Israel Putnam]]<ref name=tehc>Blythe Semmer, "[http://tennesseeencyclopedia.net/entry.php?rec=1090 Putnam County]," ''Tennessee Encyclopedia of History and Culture''. Retrieved: March 20, 2013.</ref>
| seat wl = Cookeville
| largest city wl = Cookeville
| area_total_sq_mi = 403
| area_land_sq_mi = 401
| area_water_sq_mi = 1.5
| area percentage = 0.4%
| census yr = 2020
| pop = 79854
| pop_est_as_of = 2023
| population_est = 83844 {{gain}}
| density_sq_mi = auto
| area codes = [[Area code 931|931]]
| ZIP codes = 38501, 38502, 38503, 38505, 38506, 38544, 38545, 38548, 39574, 38582
| web = putnamcountytn.gov
| ex image = Putnam-County-Courthouse-tn1.jpg
| ex image cap = Putnam County Courthouse
| time zone = Central
| district = 6th
| leader_title = [[County executive]]
| leader_name = Randy Porter ([[Republican Party (United States)|R]])<ref name="ctas">{{cite web |title=Putnam |url=http://www.ctas.tennessee.edu/county/putnam/ |website=County Technical Assistance Service |publisher=[[University of Tennessee]] |access-date=October 5, 2020 }}</ref><ref name="eighteenresults">{{cite web |title=Putnam County Election Results August 2, 2018 |url=https://putnamcountytn.gov/electionresults/2018-08/ |website=Putnam County, Tennessee |access-date=October 5, 2020}}</ref>
| ex image size = 280 }}

'''Putnam County''' is a [[County (United States)|county]] located in the [[U.S. state]] of [[Tennessee]]. As of the [[2020 United States census|2020 census]], the population was 79,854.<ref name="QF">{{cite web|title=State & County QuickFacts|url=http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/47/47141.html|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=December 7, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110820004337/http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/47/47141.html|archive-date=August 20, 2011|url-status=dead}}</ref> Its [[county seat]] is [[Cookeville, Tennessee|Cookeville]].<ref name="GR6">{{cite web|url=http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx|access-date=June 7, 2011|title=Find a County|publisher=National Association of Counties}}</ref> Putnam County is part of the Cookeville, TN [[Cookeville, Tennessee micropolitan area|Micropolitan Statistical Area]].

==History==

Putnam County is named in honor of [[Israel Putnam]], who was a hero in the [[French and Indian War]] and a general in the [[American Revolutionary War]]. The county was initially established on February 2, 1842, when the Twenty-fourth [[Tennessee General Assembly]] enacted a measure creating the county from portions of [[Jackson County, Tennessee|Jackson]], [[Overton County, Tennessee|Overton]], [[Fentress County, Tennessee|Fentress]], and [[White County, Tennessee|White]] counties.<ref name=tehc />

After the survey was completed by Mounce Gore, the Assembly instructed the commissioners to locate the county seat, to be called "Monticello," near the center of the county. Contending, however, that the formation of Putnam was illegal because it reduced their areas below constitutional limits, Overton and Jackson counties secured an injunction against its continued operation. Putnam officials failed to reply to the complaint, and in the March 1845 term of the Chancery Court at [[Livingston, Tennessee|Livingston]], Chancellor Bromfield L. Ridley declared Putnam unconstitutionally established and therefore dissolved. The 1854 act reestablishing Putnam was passed after Representative Henderson M. Clements of Jackson County assured his colleagues that a new survey showed that there was sufficient area to form the county. [[White Plains (Putnam County, Tennessee)|White Plains]], near modern [[Algood, Tennessee|Algood]], acted as a temporary county seat.<ref name=nrhpnom>Randal William, [http://tn.gov/environment/hist/pdf/whiteplains.pdf National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form for White Plains]{{dead link|date=April 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}. Retrieved: September 27, 2009.</ref>

The act specified the "county town" be named "Cookeville" in honor of Richard F. Cooke, who served in the [[Tennessee Senate]] from 1851 to 1854, representing at various times Jackson, Fentress, Macon, Overton and White Counties. The act authorized Joshua R. Stone and Green Baker from White County, William Davis and Isaiah Warton from Overton County, John Brown and Austin Morgan from Jackson County, William B. Stokes and Bird S. Rhea from DeKalb County, and Benjamin A. Vaden and Nathan Ward from Smith County, to study the Conner survey and select a spot, not more than two and one-half miles from the center of the county, for the courthouse. The first County Court chose a hilly tract of land, then owned by Charles Crook, for the site.

Putnam County was the site of several [[niter|saltpeter]] mines. Saltpeter is the main ingredient of gunpowder and was obtained by leaching the earth from several local caves. Calfkiller Saltpeter Cave, located in the Calfkiller Valley, was a major mining operation, as was Johnson Cave, also located in the Calfkiller Valley. Both caves still contain significant remnants of the mining activity. Several other caves in the county were the site of smaller operations. Most saltpeter mining in [[Middle Tennessee]] occurred during the [[War of 1812]] and the [[American Civil War|Civil War]].<ref>Thomas C. Barr, Jr., "Caves of Tennessee", Bulletin 64 of the Tennessee Division of Geology, 1961.</ref>

==Geography==
[[File:Farm-gate-putnam-tn1.jpg|alt=|thumb|Farm in rural northern Putnam County]]
[[File:Burgess Falls (935955560).jpg|alt=|thumb|Burgess Falls near the southern border with White County]]
According to the [[U.S. Census Bureau]], the county has a total area of {{convert|403|sqmi}}, of which {{convert|401|sqmi}} is land and {{convert|1.5|sqmi}} (0.4%) is water.<ref name="GR1">{{cite web|url=http://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/maps-data/data/gazetteer/counties_list_47.txt|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=April 9, 2015|date=August 22, 2012|title=2010 Census Gazetteer Files}}</ref>

The county is part of the greater [[Cumberland River]] watershed. The southern part of the county is drained by tributaries of the [[Caney Fork]], the northeastern part by tributaries of the [[Obey River]], and the north-central and northwestern parts of the county drain into the Cumberland's [[Cordell Hull Lake]] impoundment.<ref>Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation, [http://www.tn.gov/environment/watersheds/ Watershed Management Approach] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120417212145/http://www.tn.gov/environment/watersheds/ |date=April 17, 2012 }}. Retrieved: May 10, 2012.</ref> The sources of two tributaries of the Caney Fork, the [[Falling Water River]] and the [[Calfkiller River]], lie near [[Monterey, Tennessee|Monterey]] in the eastern part of the county.

===Adjacent counties===
*[[Overton County, Tennessee|Overton County]] (northeast)
*[[Fentress County, Tennessee|Fentress County]] (northeast)
*[[Cumberland County, Tennessee|Cumberland County]] (east)
*[[White County, Tennessee|White County]] (south)
*[[DeKalb County, Tennessee|DeKalb County]] (southwest)
*[[Smith County, Tennessee|Smith County]] (west)
*[[Jackson County, Tennessee|Jackson County]] (northwest)

===State protected areas===
*[[Burgess Falls State Park]] (part)
*[[Window Cliffs State Natural Area]]

==Demographics==
{{US Census population
| 1860 = 8558
| 1870 = 8698
| 1880 = 11501
| 1890 = 13683
| 1900 = 16890
| 1910 = 20023
| 1920 = 22231
| 1930 = 23759
| 1940 = 26250
| 1950 = 29869
| 1960 = 29236
| 1970 = 35487
| 1980 = 47690
| 1990 = 51373
| 2000 = 62315
| 2010 = 72321
| 2020 = 79854
| estyear = 2023
| estimate = 83844
| estref = <ref name="USCensusEst2023">{{cite web|url=https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/tables/2020-2023/counties/totals/co-est2023-pop.xlsx| title=Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Counties: April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2023|publisher= United States Census Bureau|access-date=March 14, 2024}}</ref>
| align-fn = center
| footnote = U.S. Decennial Census<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census.html|title=U.S. Decennial Census|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=April 9, 2015}}</ref><br />1790-1960<ref>{{cite web|url=http://mapserver.lib.virginia.edu/|title=Historical Census Browser|publisher=University of Virginia Library|access-date=April 9, 2015|archive-date=August 11, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120811110448/http://mapserver.lib.virginia.edu/|url-status=dead}}</ref> 1900-1990<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/population/cencounts/tn190090.txt|title=Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990|publisher=United States Census Bureau|editor-last=Forstall|editor-first=Richard L.|date=March 27, 1995|access-date=April 9, 2015}}</ref><br />1990-2000<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/population/www/cen2000/briefs/phc-t4/tables/tab02.pdf|title=Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000|publisher=United States Census Bureau|date=April 2, 2001|access-date=April 9, 2015}}</ref> 2010-2014<ref name="QF"/>
}}
{{Stack|[[Image:USA Putnam County, Tennessee.csv age pyramid.svg|thumb|left|150px|Age pyramid Putnam County<ref>Based on 2000 [[census]] data</ref>]]}}

===2020 census===
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:right"
|+Putnam County racial composition<ref>{{cite web|title=Explore Census Data|url=https://data.census.gov/cedsci/table?g=0500000US47141&tid=DECENNIALPL2020.P2|access-date=December 27, 2021|website=data.census.gov}}</ref>
!scope="col"| Race
!scope="col"| Number
!scope="col"| Percentage
|-
!scope="row"| [[White (U.S. Census)|White]] (non-Hispanic)
| 66,782
| 83.63%
|-
!scope="row"| [[African American (U.S. Census)|Black or African American]] (non-Hispanic)
| 2,161
| 2.71%
|-
!scope="row"| [[Native American (U.S. Census)|Native American]]
| 161
| 0.2%
|-
!scope="row"| [[Asian (U.S. Census)|Asian]]
| 1,086
| 1.36%
|-
!scope="row"| [[Pacific Islander (U.S. Census)|Pacific Islander]]
| 33
| 0.04%
|-
!scope="row"| [[Race (United States Census)|Other/Mixed]]
| 3,375
| 4.23%
|-
!scope="row"| [[Hispanic (U.S. Census)|Hispanic]] or [[Latino (U.S. Census)|Latino]]
| 6,256
| 7.83%
|}
As of the [[2020 United States census]], there were 79,854 people, 31,778 households, and 19,395 families residing in the county.

===2010 census===
As of the [[census]]<ref name="GR8">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov|publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|access-date=May 14, 2011|title=U.S. Census website}}</ref> of 2010, there were 72,321 people, 28,930 households, and 18,489 families residing in the county. The [[population density]] was {{convert|181|/mi2|/km2|disp=preunit|people |people}}. There were 31,882 housing units at an average density of {{convert|80|/mi2|/km2}}. The racial makeup of the county was 92.0% [[Race (United States Census)|White]], 2.0% [[Race (United States Census)|Black]] or [[Race (United States Census)|African American]], 0.4% [[Race (United States Census)|Native American]], 1.2% [[Race (United States Census)|Asian]], 0.1% [[Race (United States Census)|Pacific Islander]], 2.8% from [[Race (United States Census)|other races]], and 1.5% from two or more races. 5.3% of the population were [[Race (United States Census)|Hispanic]] or [[Race (United States Census)|Latino]] of any race.

There were 28,930 households, out of which 26.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.70% were [[Marriage|married couples]] living together, 9.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.00% were non-families. 27.10% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.41 and the average family size was 2.94.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 22.30% under the age of 18, 14.70% from 18 to 24, 27.90% from 25 to 44, 21.90% from 45 to 64, and 13.20% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.40 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.70 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $33,092, and the median income for a family was $39,553. Males had a median income of $29,243 versus $21,001 for females. The [[per capita income]] for the county was $18,892. About 10.30% of families and 16.40% of the population were below the [[poverty line]], including 15.90% of those under age 18 and 16.10% of those age 65 or over.

According to the US Census for 2013 Putnam County has the highest [[Wealth inequality in the United States|wealth inequality]] of any United States county with a population of over 65,000.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.huffingtonpost.com.au/2014/09/22/most-unequal-counties-in-america_n_5860964.html?ri18n=true|title='Here Are the Most Unequal Counties in America'|last=Cohn|first=Emily|date=September 23, 2014|website=Huffington Post|access-date=October 16, 2019}}{{Dead link|date=June 2020 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>

==Education==
[[File:Laboratory-Science-Commons-se-TTU.jpg|alt=|thumb|The Laboratory Science Commons at [[Tennessee Tech]]]]
Cookeville, the largest town in Putnam County, is the home of [[Tennessee Tech|Tennessee Technological University]], which is known for its College of Education's undergraduate and graduate programs, its Engineering program's rigor, its College of Business alumni success, and the creativity of the College of Arts and Sciences. The largest college at Tennessee Tech is the College of Education. The university student population of 11,800 comprises one fourth of the resident population of Cookeville.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/cookevillecitytennessee |title=U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: Cookeville city, Tennessee |publisher=Census.gov |date= |accessdate=July 20, 2022}}</ref>

The Putnam County school system enrolls approximately 12,000 students in 18 schools throughout the county. All schools are accredited. Cookeville High School is the largest non-metropolitan school in the state and is one of only eight high schools in the state to offer the [[International Baccalaureate]] program.{{Citation needed|date=May 2008}}

==Communities==
[[File:Cookeville-Depot-Cream-City-tn2.jpg|thumb|[[Cookeville, Tennessee|Cookeville]]|alt=]]

===Cities===
*[[Algood, Tennessee|Algood]]
*[[Cookeville, Tennessee|Cookeville]] (county seat)

===Towns===
*[[Baxter, Tennessee|Baxter]]
*[[Monterey, Tennessee|Monterey]]

===Unincorporated communities===
{{div col|colwidth=18em}}
*[[Bangham, Tennessee|Bangham]]
*[[Bloomington Springs, Tennessee|Bloomington Springs]]
*[[Buffalo Valley, Putnam County, Tennessee|Buffalo Valley]]
* [[Grandview, Putnam County, Tennessee|Grandview]]
*[[Post Oak Estates, Tennessee|Post Oak Estates]]
*[[Post Oak, Putnam County, Tennessee|Post Oak]]
* [[Shady Grove, Putnam County, Tennessee|Shady Grove]]
*[[Silver Point, Tennessee|Silver Point]]
*[[Winona, Putnam County, Tennessee|Winona]]
{{div col end}}

==Politics==
Putnam County is extremely [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]]-leaning for an [[urban area|urban]] county anchored by a college town ([[Cookeville, Tennessee|Cookeville]], the county seat, is home to [[Tennessee Technological University]]); formerly a reliable [[Solid South]] county, Putnam has voted Republican in nearly every presidential election since [[Richard Nixon]] narrowly did so in [[1968 United States presidential election in Tennessee|1968]], making exceptions for [[Jimmy Carter]] and [[Bill Clinton]] (both of whom are former governors of a neighboring state, namely and respectively [[Georgia, USA|Georgia]] and [[Arkansas]]).

Though favorite son [[Al Gore]] was just over 2% short of carrying Putnam County in [[2000 United States presidential election in Tennessee|2000]], he would be the last Democratic presidential candidate to come within a single-digit margin of doing so or even win so much as 40% of the county vote. In [[2008 United States presidential election in Tennessee|2008]], [[John McCain]] won over 60% of the county's vote. In [[2020 United States presidential election in Tennessee|2020]], Republican [[Donald Trump]] easily swept Putnam with over 70% of the county vote, while Democrat [[Joe Biden]] racked up less than 28% of the vote. Even the University precinct itself voted for Republican presidential candidates in [[2012 United States presidential election in Tennessee|2012]], [[2016 United States presidential election in Tennessee|2016]], 2020 and [[2024 United States presidential election in Tennessee|2024]], although Phil Bredesen and Karl Dean did carry it handily in the 2018 [[2018 United States Senate election in Tennessee|federal Senate]] and [[2018 Tennessee gubernatorial election|gubernatorial]] elections.<ref>https://davesredistricting.org/maps#viewmap::c0ed8258-ce44-4eec-9736-2cc3b86a9d16</ref> Despite this, Putnam was one of only four Tennessee counties Biden lost to [[Bernie Sanders]] in the Democratic primary in 2020, indicating that the few Democrats left in Putnam County are unusually progressive.

Putnam County's elected officials in the [[Tennessee General Assembly|state legislature]] and at the local level tend to be extremely socially [[far-right]] even by Tennessean standards. In the 1990s, popular [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]] former [[Tennessee Senate|state Senator]] [[Tommy Burks]] supported criminalizing [[abortion]] except to save the life of the mother and opposed teaching [[evolution]] in public schools.<ref>https://www.nashvillescene.com/news/coverstory/the-death-of-a-senator-tommy-burks-and-byron-low-tax-looper/article_7176c605-1c9b-53c6-a607-5422e4840953.html</ref> In the 2020s, Republican [[Tennessee House of Representatives|state Representative]] [[Ryan Williams (American politician)|Ryan Williams]] and Senator [[Paul Bailey (politician)|Paul Bailey]] sponsored a bill that would allow school districts in Tennessee to arm teachers with handguns even without informing parents of students,<ref>https://www.chalkbeat.org/tennessee/2024/04/03/school-teachers-could-carry-handguns-under-tennessee-legislature-bill/</ref> and local [[Sheriff]] Eddie Farris has expressed extremely [[anti-LGBT]] and [[xenophobic]] views, with him and his deputies gaining negative coverage for [[Sexual orientation#Perceptions|profiling]] the [[LGBT+ community]] and its allies right after they were harassed by overtly [[neo-Nazi]] protesters, [[Victim blaming|blaming]] the LGBT+ community for bringing "unwelcome guests" into Cookeville during the aforementioned incident<ref>https://wpln.org/post/neo-nazis-threatened-a-drag-show-at-a-cookeville-bar-now-the-bar-is-facing-eviction/</ref> and later inviting heightened suspicion against people "foreign" to Putnam County after two Greyhound buses from [[Texas]] were seen in Cookeville,<ref>https://fox17.com/news/local/tenn-sheriff-asks-public-to-report-suspicious-activity-from-those-foreign-to-area</ref><ref>https://tennesseestar.com/justice/tennessee-sheriff-asks-citizens-to-report-suspicious-activity-amid-ongoing-border-crisis-growing-homeless-population/tpappert/2024/09/20/</ref> with Farris's response to the latter incident prompting criticism from an [[immigrant]] rights group for fueling "suspicion, hate and fear."<ref>https://fox17.com/news/local/immigrant-rights-group-says-putnam-county-sheriff-misses-the-mark-with-crime-statement</ref>

{{PresHead|place=Putnam County, Tennessee|source=<ref>{{cite web|url=http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS|title=Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections|last=Leip|first=David|website=uselectionatlas.org|access-date=March 12, 2018}}</ref>}}

{{PresRow|2024|Republican|25,554|8,991|552|Tennessee}}
{{PresRow|2020|Republican|23,759|9,185|649|Tennessee}}
{{PresRow|2016|Republican|19,002|6,851|1,359|Tennessee}}
{{PresRow|2012|Republican|17,254|7,802|444|Tennessee}}
{{PresRow|2008|Republican|17,101|9,739|476|Tennessee}}
{{PresRow|2004|Republican|15,637|10,566|239|Tennessee}}
{{PresRow|2000|Republican|11,248|10,785|405|Tennessee}}
{{PresRow|1996|Democratic|9,093|10,047|1,748|Tennessee}}
{{PresRow|1992|Democratic|7,998|10,858|2,626|Tennessee}}
{{PresRow|1988|Republican|9,547|6,606|132|Tennessee}}
{{PresRow|1984|Republican|8,999|7,443|99|Tennessee}}
{{PresRow|1980|Democratic|6,235|8,084|434|Tennessee}}
{{PresRow|1976|Democratic|4,079|8,485|144|Tennessee}}
{{PresRow|1972|Republican|6,038|3,738|223|Tennessee}}
{{PresRow|1968|Republican|3,693|3,541|3,073|Tennessee}}
{{PresRow|1964|Democratic|2,993|6,309|0|Tennessee}}
{{PresRow|1960|Democratic|4,240|4,443|32|Tennessee}}
{{PresRow|1956|Democratic|3,492|4,481|31|Tennessee}}
{{PresRow|1952|Democratic|3,183|4,096|0|Tennessee}}
{{PresRow|1948|Democratic|1,879|3,134|551|Tennessee}}
{{PresRow|1944|Democratic|1,770|2,788|0|Tennessee}}
{{PresRow|1940|Democratic|1,576|2,963|5|Tennessee}}
{{PresRow|1936|Democratic|1,207|2,619|6|Tennessee}}
{{PresRow|1932|Democratic|1,281|2,911|22|Tennessee}}
{{PresRow|1928|Democratic|1,612|2,145|0|Tennessee}}
{{PresRow|1924|Democratic|1,489|2,474|55|Tennessee}}
{{PresRow|1920|Democratic|2,132|2,996|0|Tennessee}}
{{PresRow|1916|Democratic|1,383|2,300|4|Tennessee}}
{{PresFoot|1912|Democratic|923|1,867|391|Tennessee}}

==See also==
*[[National Register of Historic Places listings in Putnam County, Tennessee]]
* [[Putnam County, New York]]
*[[2020 Cookeville tornado]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
*[http://www.putnamcountytn.gov Official site]
*[http://www.pclibrary.org Putnam County Library System]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20181121095413/http://pcsstn.com/ Putnam County Schools]
* [http://www.tngenweb.org/putnam Putnam County, TNGenWeb] - free genealogy resources for the county

{{Geographic Location
|Centre = Putnam County, Tennessee
|North = [[Overton County, Tennessee|Overton County]]
|Northeast = [[Fentress County, Tennessee|Fentress County]]
|East = [[Cumberland County, Tennessee|Cumberland County]]
|Southeast =
|South = [[White County, Tennessee|White County]]
|Southwest = [[DeKalb County, Tennessee|DeKalb County]]
|West = [[Smith County, Tennessee|Smith County]]
|Northwest = [[Jackson County, Tennessee|Jackson County]]
}}

{{Putnam County, Tennessee}}
{{Tennessee}}
{{Authority control}}
{{Coord|36.14|-85.50|display=title|type:adm2nd_region:US-TN_source:UScensus1990}}

[[Category:Putnam County, Tennessee| ]]
[[Category:1854 establishments in Tennessee]]
[[Category:Populated places established in 1854]]
[[Category:Cookeville, Tennessee micropolitan area]]
[[Category:Middle Tennessee]]