To understand the ideas developed by the citizens of Clinton for their future, it is important to understand where they came from. Although the shores of the Clinch River have long been settled and occupied by Native Americans, the first European colonists to enter the area known today as Anderson County were a group of hunters in 1761. Named in honor of their leader, Walden’s Ridge divides present day Anderson County into the mountainous portion and the valley portion, which includes the Cities of Clinton and Oak Ridge.

The Clinch River which was called “Pellisipi” by the Indians, is another important landmark in Anderson County with an interesting story behind the history of its present name. It is told that a group of early explorers, which included one Irishman, was attempting to cross the river one day. Each man was clasping the hand of the man in front and behind forming a chain to keep the current from sweeping an individual away. As they crossed, the Irishman’s hand slipped as he reached center of the river where the current was strongest. Fearing of losing his grip, he began to yell, “Clinch me! Clinch me!” From then on, the beautiful Pellisipi would become known as the Clinch River.

Not long after Tennessee joined the Union in 1796, settlements in and around Walden’s Ridge had increased to the point that the Tennessee General Assembly was petitioned to form a new county. In 1801 the twin counties of Anderson and Gallatin (later Roane) were established. Anderson County was named for Joseph Anderson, a former federal judge and U.S. Senator from Tennessee who became the first Comptroller of the U.S. Treasury. Anderson was also one of the authors of the Tennessee State Constitution.

In 1869 the first train crossed the Clinch River Bridge into Clinton in October adding the railroad to accompany the Clinch River and local roads as another instrument of trade and transportation. In 1890, the City of Clinton was incorporated. From 1895 to 1936, Clinton was listed as one of three towns in the State of Tennessee in marketing pearls and was known across the nation as a center of the pearling industry. Dealers from New York and other cities frequently visited Clinton during the pearling season and Saturdays were trading days for pearl hunters and buyers. In 1900, Clinch River pearls were featured at the Paris France Exposition.

In 1906 the first large industry in Clinton, Magnet Knitting Mills, opened its doors on the bank of the Clinch River in downtown Clinton, Tennessee. In 1929, the Mill was incorporated as Magnet Mills, Inc., and remained a locally owned and operated hosiery mill until it closed in 1967.

After experiencing a major fire that destroyed 17 businesses and 14 residences in 1908, the first motor car appeared in the city in May of that same year. Two years later in 1910, the first “electric picture theater” opened on November 1, and by 1913 there were a total of 67 schools in Anderson County. The first passenger bus service was available in 1918, and in April 1926 the Courthouse was wired for electric lights.

As the county seat of Anderson County, Clinton has been deeply involved in the county’s economic history as the state’s leading county in timber production and coal mining throughout the late 19th century and to the mid 20th century; as the site of TVA’s first major project with the construction of Norris Dam, the impoundment of Norris Lake, the development of hydroelectric power, an new recreational center and the building of a new town, Norris Tennessee. Of even greater impact and of international significance was the construction of a second new town, Oak Ridge, with the Manhattan Project, originally known as the Clinton Engineer Works, and its contribution to ending World War II and the Cold War.

Clinton made national history in August of 1956, when the school system integrated 12 students from the Green McAdoo School for black children into the all-white Clinton High School. Almost overnight Clinton was transformed from a typical small, quiet, southern town into a town filled with violence and hatred as proponents of segregation, led by John Kasper, came to protest this integration. The National Guard was called in to keep the peace as protests became more violent. Two years later on Sunday, October 5, 1958, Clinton High School was almost completely destroyed by a bomb blast. Despite a Federal investigation, the case remains unsolved to this day, and no one has been charged in the bombing.

Today, Clinton is a thriving town with a population of approximately 9,500 citizens. Clinton is in close proximity to Knoxville and Oak Ridge and has excellent access to Interstate-75 which is why the City has been popular in attracting over 40 new industries in three industrial parks over the last twenty five years. The City of Clinton stands poised on the edge of stepping forward into a new era of growth and development as it moves into the 21st century.