Carter County, Tennessee

Carter County is a county in Tennessee, United States, tucked into the state’s northeastern corner against the North Carolina line. It had a population of 56,356 at the 2020 census and covers 348 square miles (900 km2), of which 341 square miles are land and 6.4 square miles are water, centred near 36°18′N 82°7′W.

Elizabethton is the county seat, and its postal code is 37643. The county has one incorporated city, one incorporated town, seven census-designated places, and roughly a dozen unincorporated communities. Carter County sits in the Eastern time zone.

Towns & Villages in Carter County

Elizabethton is the only full city and the seat of government; Watauga is the county’s single incorporated town, straddling the line with neighboring Washington County. The western edge of Johnson City, whose main body sits in Washington County, also reaches a short distance into Carter County. Below that are seven Census Bureau-recognized places (CDPs) and a set of long-standing unincorporated communities. Population figures are shown where the 2020 census reports them separately; places counted inside another jurisdiction’s total are marked with —.

A few older place names circulating for Carter County — Bemberg, Buladeen, Cove Creek, Sinking Creek, Watauga Point and similar — are historic neighborhoods, ridge names or rural crossroads within the places above rather than separately mapped communities, and are folded into their parent place rather than listed on their own.

ZIP Codes

• 37643 — Elizabethton (standard delivery)
• 37644 — Elizabethton (PO Box only)
• 37658 — Hampton
• 37682 — Milligan (PO Box only)
• 37687 — Roan Mountain
• 37694 — Watauga

Elizabethton’s two ZIP codes cover the large majority of the county’s population; smaller communities such as Butler and Stoney Creek are served by the nearest post office town rather than a ZIP code of their own.

Geography

Carter County lies in the ridge-and-valley country of upper East Tennessee, where the Iron Mountains and the Roan Highlands rise along the North Carolina state line to the southeast. The Watauga and Doe rivers run through the county and feed Watauga Lake, a reservoir impounded by the Tennessee Valley Authority in the 1940s that draws boaters and anglers each summer. Part of the Cherokee National Forest, including the high-elevation balds of Roan Mountain, lies within the county’s eastern half.

Carter County borders Sullivan County to the north, Johnson County to the northeast, Avery County, North Carolina, to the southeast, Mitchell County, North Carolina, to the south, Unicoi County to the southwest, and Washington County to the west.

Demographics

Carter County’s population was 56,356 at the 2020 census, concentrated around Elizabethton and the Watauga River valley, with smaller clusters at Hampton and Roan Mountain further east. The county’s median household income runs well below the Tennessee median of $67,631, reflecting its rural, mountain-valley economy. Population density works out to roughly 165 people per square mile of land area.

Economy & Local Life

Elizabethton grew up around textiles: the North American Rayon Corporation and Bemberg Corporation built rayon plants and worker housing there in the late 1920s, and the mill town of Bemberg still carries that name. Manufacturing has since diversified, but factory work, healthcare and county government remain the county’s largest employers. Milligan University, a private liberal-arts college founded in 1866, sits at Milligan just southeast of Elizabethton. Tourism tied to Watauga Lake, Roan Mountain State Park and the Appalachian Trail, which crosses the county’s eastern ridges, is a growing part of the local economy, and Roan Mountain’s Rhododendron Festival each June is the county’s best-known annual event.

History

Carter County was organized in 1796, the year Tennessee became a state, and named for Landon Carter, who had chaired the court of the Watauga Association a generation earlier. Elizabethton, the county seat, takes its name from his wife, Elizabeth MacLin Carter. The Watauga settlement here is often cited as the site of the Watauga Association of 1772, an early frontier compact sometimes called the first majority-rule government in what became the United States. Nearby Sycamore Shoals was the muster point in September 1780 for the Overmountain Men before their march to the Battle of Kings Mountain during the Revolutionary War. A narrow-gauge line, the East Tennessee and Western North Carolina Railroad, carried freight and passengers through the county’s mountains until the line was cut back in 1950.

Getting There

US 19E and US 321 are the county’s main highways, both running through Elizabethton; State Routes 37, 67, 91, 143, 159, 173, 359, 361 and 362 fill in the secondary road network.

• Johnson City — 12 miles west
• Bristol — 30 miles north
• Boone, North Carolina — 35 miles southeast
• Asheville, North Carolina — 75 miles south

The nearest commercial airport is Tri-Cities Airport (TRI) in Blountville, Sullivan County, roughly a 30-minute drive from Elizabethton.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is Carter County, Tennessee?
It is in the state’s northeastern corner, on the North Carolina border, part of the Johnson City metropolitan area.

What is the population of Carter County?
56,356 people, according to the 2020 census.

How big is Carter County?
348 square miles (900 km2), of which 341 square miles are land.

What is the county seat of Carter County?
Elizabethton is the county seat.

How many towns are in Carter County?
One city (Elizabethton), one town (Watauga), seven census-designated places and about a dozen unincorporated communities.

What ZIP codes are in Carter County?
37643 and 37644 (Elizabethton), 37658 (Hampton), 37682 (Milligan), 37687 (Roan Mountain) and 37694 (Watauga).

What was the rayon industry in Carter County?
Two rayon manufacturers, North American Rayon and Bemberg Corporation, built plants and worker housing near Elizabethton in the late 1920s; the community of Bemberg still bears that name.

More counties in this state: Towns and villages in Tennessee.