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Who’s Coming When You Call 9-1-1?
The Kingsport Fire Department released its Annual Report, and it brought back memories of my days in city government when we were explaining the benefits of living inside the city. Annexation discussions forced us to explain why city services matter. And, not to worry, Tennessee ended unilateral annexation of existing residential areas over a decade…
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The Case for Grounded Growth
There is a line on the population map that Northeast Tennessee should pay attention to. The map tracks net domestic migration—Americans moving from one part of the country to another—between 2020 and 2024. Green counties gained residents through migration. Purple counties lost them. Northeast Tennessee is on the green side, but just barely. Most maps…
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Milton DeVault and Team Kingsport
I recently visited what our guide called a “museum of stories.” Rather than focusing mainly on artifacts, it sought to preserve the lives of ordinary people. Many visitors were descendants trying to piece together their family histories. That experience reminded me of a conversation. My niece introduced me to a friend in Knoxville who mentioned…
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Sullivan 250 | William Blount and the Business of Building a Territory
Eighth in a 12-part monthly series to commemorate Sullivan County’s role in the 250th birthday of the United States of America August 2026 | 8 of 12 When William Blount was appointed governor of the Territory South of the River Ohio in 1790, the task before him was immense. The Revolution was over, but order…
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Where Americans Moved in 2025
You may have seen this pop-up in your feed recently. Though many will jump to political conclusions or shout we’re being overrun by newcomers, neither is entirely true. The graphic shows net domestic migration in 2025 per 10,000 inhabitants. That means the numbers are not percentages and not total headcounts. They show whether a state…
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A City Is Something We Build. A Community Is Something We Create.
I can’t tell you how many times people stopped me during Fun Fest to say “thank you” and express how they felt about living in a place like Kingsport. They did not necessarily mean the City of Kingsport. They meant the Kingsport community. They were not really thanking me personally. I happened to be a…
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Lexington & Concord–and Kingsport
We all learned in school about “the shot heard ’round the world.” I like to examine parallel history. What was happening here at that same time? How would locals know the Revolutionary War had begun? A war so significant it wrote a new chapter in modern world history. On the morning of April 19, 1775,…
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The County Line Doesn’t Divide Us
Miss Tennessee 2026 recently posted a photo of herself standing in front of Allandale Mansion. She joked that she had come to crown Miss Kingsport and Miss Sullivan County, only to discover that she was standing in the Hawkins County portion of Kingsport. She invited readers to weigh in on Kingsport’s unusual two-county status. It…
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Population Is More Than a Scoreboard
Tennessee’s 2026 certified population figures offer more than another round of “who is bigger?” comparisons. They reveal how Northeast Tennessee is organized—and point to one of the most consequential challenges facing the region’s future growth. Kingsport’s certified population includes 54,660 residents in Sullivan County and 2,870 in Hawkins County, for a combined total of 57,530.…
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Why Kingsport Is Called the Model City
Kingsport’s municipal election is underway, with early voting through August 1 and Election Day on August 6. This is a good time to remember why we are called the Model City. The name is often associated with Kingsport’s physical plan—Church Circle, an orderly street system, and a balanced layout for businesses, neighborhoods, parks, and schools.…
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Kingsport Spirit 