Tennessee is geographically diverse. It divides naturally into three "grand divisions" - upland, often mountainous, East Tennessee, Middle Tennessee with its foothills and basin, and the low plain of West Tennessee. These geographical "grand divisions" correspond to distinctive political and economic cultures of the state’s three regions. The three stars on the state flag represent the three grand divisions of east, middle, and west Tennessee.
Other smaller regions have been defined for the purpose of listing sites relevant to these regions.
The Cumberland Plateau rises to an altitude of roughly 2000 feet between Nashville and Knoxville. It is large and thinly populated, but a steady stream of new residents attracted to the mild climate is changing the demographics. There is an abundance of very large parks, recreational areas, and resorts. Visitors enjoy horseback riding, whitewater rafting, hiking (one long and skinny state park is devoted to hiking), golf, fishing, swimming, boating, hunting, and exploring.
The easternmost part of Tennessee is marked by the Smoky (also, in Tennessee, properly Smokey) Mountains. Going west, the mountains give way to foothills then a lower area cut by ridges around Knoxville and Oak Ridge. The "Tricities" of Bristol, Kingsport, and Johnson City are in the northeasternmost corner. West of Knoxville, the terrain rises again to the Cumberland Plateau. At the southeast corner of the Tennessee part of the plateau is Chattanooga. One can argue that the plateau separates east and middle Tennessee, but the plateau is large, and deciding exactly where the line should be drawn is not well agreed upon (even though the three stars on the state flag are for east, middle, and west Tennessee). I prefer to think of east Tennessee as the mountains, and I include the plateau.
One of the three grand divisions of the state, Middle Tennessee extends from the Cumberland Plateau in the east westward to the Highland Rim and the Tennessee River Valley. Much of the region lies in the Central
Basin — once a rolling, fertile countryside, now dotted with cities. Nashville is the largest city of the region.
This category is for topics, businesses and services related to Middle Tennessee.
Made up of the following counties: Johnson, Carter, Sullivan, Unicoi, Washington, Hawkins, Greene and Hancock.
Includes the Tri-Cities (Johnson City, Kingsport and Bristol)
One of the state's three grand divisions, West Tennessee is characterized by low hills and alluvial plains. The city of Memphis and its metropolitan area are in the southwestern corner of the region. Much of the remainder of the region is still predominantly agricultural.