Haywood County, Tennessee
Haywood County is a county located in the U.S. state of Tennessee, in the region known as West Tennessee. As of the 2020 census, the population was 17,864. Its county seat and largest city is Brownsville.[2] It is one of only two remaining counties in Tennessee, along with Shelby County, with a majority African-American population.
Haywood County
United States
1823
Brownsville
David Livingston
534 sq mi (1,380 km2)
533 sq mi (1,380 km2)
0.9 sq mi (2 km2) 0.2%
17,864 
17,328
35/sq mi (14/km2)
History[edit]
Haywood County was created from part of Madison County in 1823–24, and was named for Tennessee judge and historian John Haywood. The state legislature designated Brownsville as the county seat.[3] Haywood County was later reduced in size, both in 1835 when a western portion was ceded to help form Lauderdale County, and in 1870 when all Haywood County territory north of the Forked Deer River, save one small district, was given to the newly formed Crockett County.[4]
For much of the county's history, agriculture, primarily cotton production, was the basis of the local economy, as it was throughout western Tennessee. Before the Civil War, this was accomplished by a plantation system based on the use of enslaved African-American workers.
After Emancipation in 1865, many planters hired freedmen as tenant farmers and sharecroppers to produce the still-important cotton crops.[5] The largely rural county continues to have a majority-black population.
Whites lynched three African-Americans in the county, most at the county seat of Brownsville, in the period following Reconstruction and into the early 20th century.[6]
On June 20, 1940, Elbert Williams, an African-American, was murdered in Brownsville for "attempting to qualify to vote" and "an interest in Negro affairs." His body was thrown into the Hatchie River, and was later recovered.[7] He had organized a local chapter of the NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People). He was the last recorded lynching victim in the state.[8] Like other southern states, Tennessee had raised voter registration barriers at the turn of the century to disenfranchise blacks.
Economy[edit]
The largest industry in Haywood County is agriculture. Haywood County grows more cotton that any other county in Tennessee and produced 189,000 bales in 2003 on 103,000 acres (420 km2). Soybeans were the county's secondary crop, followed by corn. Agriculture and other related businesses contributed more than $130 million to the Haywood County economy in 2004. By 2017, grains, oilseeds, drybeans, drypeas and tobacco drew the most income, but Haywood County still grew the most cotton in the state.[19]
In 2009, under the leadership of Tennessee Governor Phil Bredesen and Haywood County Mayor Franklin Smith, a 3,836-acre (1,552 ha) tract in southwestern Haywood County near Stanton was designated for a state-supported industrial megasite, intended for a large-scale industrial or business development such as an automobile assembly plant. In September 2009, Tennessee's State Building Commission authorized spending of $40 million for purchase of the land.[20] On September 27, 2021, it was announced that Ford and SK Innovation would construct a complex at the megasite called "Blue Oval City" to manufacture electric vehicles and batteries. The facility, which is expected to be operational in 2025, will cost approximately $5.6 billion, making it the most expensive single investment in state history, and employ approximately 5,700.[21][22]
One of Haywood County's most notable residents was Sleepy John Estes, a blues guitarist songwriter and vocalist. Born in 1899 or 1900 in Ripley, Tennessee, he lived most of his life in Brownsville.[23] He died on June 5, 1977, in Brownsville.[24][25][26] Sleepy John is buried at Elam Baptist Church Cemetery in Durhamville, Lauderdale County.[26]
Other notable county residents include: