In honor of the many Ole Miss students, athletes and fans who call the Bluff City home, this week’s HottyToddy Hometown goes to the largest metropolitan area to Oxford that’s just a hop across the state line: Memphis, Tennessee.
Fresh air, sunny days, quick commutes and friendly people — what more could you want in a hometown. More? Great food, original music, professional sports, arts for days, and affordable. Memphis has one of the lowest urban cost-of-living expenses in the nation.
Memphis is located on the southwest corner of Tennessee within Shelby County, the core county of the Memphis metropolitan statistical area. The Memphis MSA also includes Crittenden County in Arkansas; Benton, DeSoto, Marshall, Tate and Tunica counties in Mississippi; plus Fayette and Tipton counties in Tennessee.
The city is along the Mississippi and Wolf rivers and is on the fourth Chickasaw Bluff. Memphis is 330.3 square miles with a lattitude of 35.149534N and a longitude of -90.04898W. The Mississippi River can often be seen with a number of large riverboats taking people on tours of the riverside landscape or hosting a party with a beautiful sunset view of the Hernando DeSoto Bridge.
History
In 1541, Hernando De Soto encountered the Chickasaw Indians living in the Memphis area. By the 18th century, both the French and later the Spanish controlled the Memphis area. In 1797, the U.S. finally gained control of the area and erected Fort Adams.
In 1818, the Chickasaw signed a treaty called the Jackson Purchase giving West Tennessee to the United States. Memphis was founded on May 22, 1819, by investors General Andrew Jackson (who would later become the seventh President of the United States), General James Winchester, and Judge John Overton. Memphis was named after the ancient capital of Egypt on the Nile River. On May 22, 1819, Memphis was surveyed and designed. Memphis was incorporated on December 19, 1826.
The city is known for producing many musical icons, including Elvis Presley and B.B. King, as well as its strong arts scene in both downtown and midtown. The eclectic collection of neighborhoods includes the Cooper Young district, which is home to many artists and theatre-goers, a stone’s throw away from the more commercial downtown business district.
Moving to Memphis
Whatever you need to know about moving to Memphis is on the Moving to Memphis page. From the Memphis Library to education, we have a list of services that will help ease your move to the “Bluff City.” Did you know:
- According to the quarterly ACCRA cost of living index the Memphis cost of living 14% lower than the national average.
- In 2011, Memphis ranked 2nd on Forbes’ “Best Places For Bargain Retirement Homes.”
- In 2010, Memphis was named as one of Living It Up: The Top 100 Fun Cities by Portfolio.com.
- In 2010, Memphis ranked third in the nation on Coldwell Banker Real Estate’s “The Most Affordable College Towns” study.
- In 2009, Memphis ranked #35 out of 100 large U.S. metro areas as one of the “Best Bang for the Buck Cities” by Forbes.
- Bartlett was named as one of Relocate-America’s™ Top 100 Places to Live in 2009.
- In 2009, Memphis ranked 35th as one of Forbes “Best City for Singles.”
For more about Memphis’ rankings and assets, take a look at the Memphis Bragging Rights page.
Information courtesy of the Greater Memphis Chamber of Commerce
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