View source for Hickory Withe, Tennessee

{{Use American English|date=July 2025}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=March 2024}}
{{Infobox settlement
|official_name            = Hickory Withe, Tennessee
|settlement_type          = [[Unincorporated area#United States|Unincorporated community]]
|nickname                 = 
|motto                    =

<!-- Images -->
|image_skyline            = HWPC-front.jpg
|imagesize                = 
|image_caption            = [[Hickory Withe Presbyterian Church]]
|image_flag               = 
|image_seal               =

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|image_map                = TNMap-doton-HickoryWithe.PNG
|mapsize                  = 250px
|map_caption              = Location of Hickory Withe, Tennessee
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|mapsize1                 = 
|map_caption1             =

<!-- Location -->
|subdivision_type         = Country
|subdivision_name         = United States
|subdivision_type1        = [[U.S. state|State]]
|subdivision_name1        = [[Tennessee]]
|subdivision_type2        = [[List of counties in Tennessee|County]]
|subdivision_name2        = [[Fayette County, Tennessee|Fayette]]

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<!-- Area -->
|unit_pref  =  Imperial
|area_footnotes           = 
|area_magnitude           = 
|area_total_km2           = 73.6
|area_land_km2            = 73.3
|area_water_km2           = 0.3
|area_total_sq_mi         =
|area_land_sq_mi          = 
|area_water_sq_mi         =

<!-- Population -->
|population_as_of         = [[2000 United States census|2000]]
|population_footnotes     = 
|population_total         = 2574
|population_density_km2   = 35.1
|population_density_sq_mi =

<!-- General information -->
|timezone                 = [[North American Central Time Zone|Central (CST)]]
|utc_offset               = -6
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|elevation_footnotes      = 
|elevation_m              = 
|elevation_ft             = 405
|coordinates              = {{coord|35|14|38|N|89|35|19|W|region:US_type:city|display=inline,title}}
|postal_code_type         = 
|postal_code              = 
|area_code                = 
|blank_name               = [[Federal Information Processing Standard|FIPS code]]
|blank_info               = 47-33960<ref name="GR2">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov|publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|accessdate=January 31, 2008|title=U.S. Census website}}</ref>
|blank1_name              = 
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|website                  = {{URL|www.hickorywithe.com}}
|footnotes                = 
}}
'''Hickory Withe''' is an [[Unincorporated area#United States|unincorporated community]] in [[Fayette County, Tennessee|Fayette County]], [[Tennessee]], United States, and is within the [[Memphis metropolitan area]]. For several years it functioned as an incorporated town, and was so treated at the [[2000 United States census|2000 census]], at which time it had a population of 2,574.<ref name="Census 2000">{{Cite web| url=http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/DEC/00_SF1/G001/1600000US4733960| title=Geographic Identifiers: 2010 Demographic Profile Data (G001): Hickory Withe town, Tennessee| publisher=U.S. Census Bureau, American Factfinder| accessdate=August 16, 2016| archive-url=https://archive.today/20200213043143/http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/DEC/00_SF1/G001/1600000US4733960| archive-date=February 13, 2020| url-status=dead}}</ref>

==Geography==
Hickory Withe is located in western Fayette County at {{coord|35|13|N|89|35|W|type:city}} (35.2236, -89.5819),<ref name="GR1">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/geographies/reference-files/time-series/geo/gazetteer-files.html|publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|accessdate=April 23, 2011|date=February 12, 2011|title=US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990}}</ref> within the postal code of the community of [[Eads, Tennessee|Eads]], which is located in eastern [[Shelby County, Tennessee|Shelby County]]. It is bordered to the south and east by the town of [[Oakland, Tennessee|Oakland]]. [[Tennessee State Route 196]] passes through the community, leading north {{convert|6.5|mi}} to [[Gallaway, Tennessee|Gallaway]] and south {{convert|1|mi}} to [[U.S. Route 64]] in the western part of Oakland. Via US 64, downtown [[Memphis, Tennessee|Memphis]] is {{convert|31|mi}} to the west.

According to the [[United States Census Bureau]], the town had a total area of {{convert|28.4|sqmi|km2}}, of which {{convert|28.3|sqmi|km2}} was land and {{convert|0.1|sqmi|km2}}, or 0.38%, was water.<ref name="Census 2000"/>

==Demographics==
As of the [[census]]<ref name="GR2" /> of 2000, there were 2,574 people, 980 households, and 803 families residing in the town. The population density was {{convert|90.9|PD/sqmi|PD/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}. There were 1,016 housing units at an average density of {{convert|35.9|/sqmi|/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}. The racial makeup of the town was 82.32% [[White (U.S. Census)|White]], 16.24% [[African American (U.S. Census)|African American]], 0.08% [[Native American (U.S. Census)|Native American]], 0.19% [[Asian (U.S. Census)|Asian]], 0.04% [[Pacific Islander (U.S. Census)|Pacific Islander]], 0.04% from [[Race (United States Census)|other races]], and 1.09% from two or more races. [[Hispanic (U.S. Census)|Hispanic]] or [[Latino (U.S. Census)|Latino]] of any race were 1.24% of the population.

There were 980 households, out of which 26.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 73.1% were [[Marriage|married couples]] living together, 6.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 18.0% were non-families. 14.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 4.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.63 and the average family size was 2.90.

In the town the population was spread out, with 20.5% under the age of 18, 6.8% from 18 to 24, 27.5% from 25 to 44, 33.8% from 45 to 64, and 11.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43 years. For every 100 females, there were 101.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.9 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $57,292, and the median income for a family was $62,857. Males had a median income of $42,024 versus $28,550 for females. The [[per capita income]] for the town was $26,368. About 2.4% of families and 4.2% of the population were below the [[poverty line]], including 3.0% of those under age 18 and 12.4% of those age 65 or over.

==History==
{{More citations needed section|date=April 2009}}
The community of Hickory Withe was settled in 1834 by families who moved from the region around [[Prosperity, South Carolina]]. 

One of the first acts of these settlers was to form the congregation of Prosperity Presbyterian Church, which was founded on the fourth Sunday of December 1834. This congregation united with another [[Presbyterian]] congregation, Mt. Pleasant Presbyterian Church, in 1907 to form [[Hickory Withe Presbyterian Church]], which is still active today.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.hickorywithepc.org/about/history/history.html|title=Hickory Withe Presbyterian Church-- History|website=www.hickorywithepc.org|access-date=April 10, 2009|archive-date=February 6, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090206051436/http://www.hickorywithepc.org/about/history/history.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> That church, meeting in an historic property on Donelson Drive, is all that remains of what once was "Main Street" of Hickory Withe: Donelson Drive used to be home to a post office, a general store, a [[cotton gin]], and a two-room school house, in addition to the church. The school facility was deeded to the Hickory Withe Presbyterian Church in 1974, and is maintained today; the remaining businesses and buildings have been removed, leaving only residences and the church.<ref name="A Brief History of the Hickory Withe Presbyterian Church">, [http://hickorywithe.tripod.com/hwpcuahistory1.html] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110717102744/http://hickorywithe.tripod.com/hwpcuahistory1.html |date=July 17, 2011 }}</ref>

Efforts to incorporate Hickory Withe led to revisions of Tennessee laws regarding [[municipal corporation|incorporation]] and [[annexation]]. In the mid-1990s supporters of the idea of incorporating Hickory Withe went to [[Lieutenant Governor of Tennessee|Lieutenant Governor]] [[John S. Wilder]], who was from nearby [[Braden, Tennessee|Braden]] and had represented the area in the [[Tennessee Senate]] since 1966, with the idea of sponsoring a bill which would allow Hickory Withe to incorporate, something which could not be accomplished under the then-existing law. Wilder learned that he could not introduce an act allowing only for the incorporation of Hickory Withe as this would be rejected by the courts as [[Constitutionality|unconstitutional]], so it was necessary for any act to help Hickory Withe to incorporate to be worded in a broad enough fashion to allow any similar area in Tennessee which also desired to incorporate to do so as well. The eventual bill which passed was drawn in such a way as to allow almost any previously unincorporated area to incorporate, and several attempted to do so, including, famously, an apartment building near [[Elizabethton, Tennessee|Elizabethton]]. The resulting legislation became known, somewhat derisively, as the "Tiny Towns Bill". Most of the towns which were set up, or were attempted to be set up under the act, seemed primarily to be efforts to prevent areas from being annexed by larger jurisdictions which charged [[property tax]]. The [[Tennessee Supreme Court]] struck down the new legislation on November 19, 1997, less than a year after it entered the books.<ref>See Phil Campbell, [http://www.metropolismag.com/html/content_0198/ja98mem.htm Memphis's Unruly Suburbs] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070624142122/http://www.metropolismag.com/html/content_0198/ja98mem.htm |date=June 24, 2007 }}, ''Metropolis'', December 1997-January 1998, and [[Jesse Walker]], [http://www.reason.com/news/show/30653.html Rebel Yell: Tennesseans fight back against the conquering cities] ''Reason Magazine'', June 1998.</ref> Corrective legislation enacted since has required any new town being set up to have a property tax rate set as a condition of its incorporation (and that rate cannot be "zero"). Towns set up under the "Tiny Town" law, like Hickory Withe, were not automatically dissolved with the act's repeal, although some have subsequently taken this step.

==Community character==
Hickory Withe is predominantly semi-rural and agricultural. The primary agricultural product cultivated in and around the community is [[cotton]]. Horse farming is also a significant agricultural land use.

The community has seen more recent residential development as a result of the eastward expansion of the Memphis urban area and the completion of the [[Tennessee State Route 385|Memphis outer beltway]] (now [[I-269]]) in nearby eastern Shelby County.

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
{{commons category}}
* [http://www.hickorywithe.com/ Hickory Withe Community Association] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100323032553/http://www.hickorywithe.com/ |date=March 23, 2010 }}
* [http://www.hwpca.org Hickory Withe Presbyterian Church]
* [http://www.fbchw.org/ First Baptist Church of Hickory Withe] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091010041000/http://www.fbchw.org/ |date=October 10, 2009 }}

{{Fayette County, Tennessee}}

{{authority control}}

[[Category:Unincorporated communities in Fayette County, Tennessee]]
[[Category:Unincorporated communities in Tennessee]]
[[Category:Memphis metropolitan area]]
[[Category:Populated places in the United States established in 1834]]
[[Category:Former municipalities in Tennessee]]
[[Category:Populated places disestablished in 2004]]
[[Category:1834 establishments in Tennessee]]