Elizabethton, Tennessee

Elizabethton
Downtown Elizabethton, July 4 parade (2008)
Nickname: 
The City of Power
Location of Elizabethton in Carter County, Tennessee.
Elizabethton
Map spot for Elizabethton, Tennessee
Elizabethton
Elizabethton (the United States)
Coordinates: 36°20′11″N 82°14′21″W / 36.33639°N 82.23917°W / 36.33639; -82.23917
Country United States
State Tennessee
CountyCarter
Explored1759
Settled1769
Founded1799
Incorporated:May 13, 1905
Named afterElizabeth MacLin Carter
Government
 • TypeCouncil Manager
 • MayorWilliam E. "Bill" Carter
 • Mayor Pro TemMike Simerly
 • City ManagerDaniel Estes
Area
 • Total
9.70 sq mi (25.11 km2)
 • Land9.55 sq mi (24.74 km2)
 • Water0.15 sq mi (0.38 km2)
Elevation
1,526 ft (465 m)
Population
 (2020)
 • Total
14,546
 • Density1,523.0/sq mi (588.02/km2)
Time zoneUTC−5 (EST)
 • Summer (DST)UTC−4 (EDT)
ZIP codes
37643-37644
Area codes423 and 729
FIPS code47-23500
GNIS feature ID1328127
Websitewww.elizabethton.org

Elizabethton (/əˈlɪzəbɛθtən/) is a city in, and the county seat of Carter County, Tennessee, United States. Elizabethton is the historical site of the first independent American government (known as the Watauga Association, created in 1772) located west of both the Eastern Continental Divide and the original Thirteen Colonies.

The city is also the historical site of the Transylvania Purchase (1775), a major muster site during the American Revolutionary War for both the Battle of Musgrove Mill (1780) and the Battle of Kings Mountain (1780). It was within the secessionist North Carolina "State of Franklin" territory (1784–1788).

The population of Elizabethton was enumerated at 14,546 during the 2020 census.