Buffalo Valley, Tennessee

Last updated

Buffalo Valley, Tennessee
USA Tennessee location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Buffalo Valley, Tennessee
Usa edcp location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Buffalo Valley, Tennessee
Coordinates: 36°08′29″N85°47′12″W / 36.14139°N 85.78667°W / 36.14139; -85.78667
Country United States
State Tennessee
County Putnam
Elevation
518 ft (158 m)
Time zone UTC-6 (Central (CST))
  Summer (DST) UTC-5 (CDT)
ZIP code
38548
Area code 931
GNIS feature ID1278920 [1]

Buffalo Valley is an unincorporated town in far western Putnam County, Tennessee, United States. [1] The zipcode is: 38548. [2] The town could be described as a ghost town. [3]

Contents

History

There was much activity in Buffalo Valley at an early date. There was a grist mill before 1803. At its height, Buffalo Valley was a transportation hub with three grist mills, four general stores, a pole and timber yard, several livestock dealers, a produce dealer, a bank and two blacksmith shops. [4] Evidence of such activity is still present today.

Flooding was a major cause of the town's decline. [4] In the early 20th century, Buffalo Valley suffered one flood that swept a railroad bridge away and another that devastated the entire town. [4] In the late 1990s, a scene for the movie The Green Mile was filmed in Buffalo Valley. The film utilized a railway bridge which crosses the Caney Fork River for a scene involving John Coffey (Michael Clarke Duncan). [5]

As of 2019, the old Buffalo Valley School turned 90 years old. [3] What remains of the flood-prone town are some houses, [6] an active church, [6] an abandoned church, [7] a post office downtown, [4] a few abandoned stores [8] [9] and the old school building (now a community center and library). [4]

Geography and Environment

Topography and Hydrology

The southwest end of town is located at the confluence of the Caney Fork River and Big Indian Creek, with the rest of the town being along the creek. [10] [4] The area near town has abundant streams, rolling hills and large green pastures. [4]

Flora and Fauna

Long before settlement was made, there was a huge canebrake of Arundinaria gigantea (River Cane) in the area. [4] American bison would descend from the nearby Highland Rim to the valley to graze in the winter; the town was named when a particularly large one was killed. [4]

Climate

Buffalo Valley's climate is humid subtropical (Köppen Cfa, Trewartha Cf), giving the area mild winters and hot, humid summers. Precipitation is generally highest in spring and lowest in August to October, although a secondary peak does occur in December. On average, there are 208 sunny days, 37.4 days of highs over 90 °F (32 °C), 76.9 days of sub-freezing lows, 0.3 days of lows below 0 °F (-18 °C) and 106.8 days with at least 0.1 inches of precipitation. [11]

Climate data for Buffalo Valley, Tennessee [11]
MonthJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecYear
Average high °F (°C)46.8
(8.2)
51.4
(10.8)
60.7
(15.9)
70.2
(21.2)
77.8
(25.4)
85.6
(29.8)
88.9
(31.6)
88.5
(31.4)
82.6
(28.1)
71.9
(22.2)
61.7
(16.5)
49.9
(9.9)
69.7
(20.9)
Daily mean °F (°C)37.15
(2.86)
40.70
(4.83)
48.95
(9.42)
57.90
(14.39)
66.30
(19.06)
74.80
(23.78)
78.45
(25.81)
77.45
(25.25)
70.90
(21.61)
59.70
(15.39)
50.50
(10.28)
40.10
(4.50)
58.60
(14.78)
Average low °F (°C)27.5
(−2.5)
30.0
(−1.1)
37.2
(2.9)
45.6
(7.6)
54.8
(12.7)
64.0
(17.8)
68.0
(20.0)
66.4
(19.1)
59.2
(15.1)
47.5
(8.6)
39.3
(4.1)
30.3
(−0.9)
47.5
(8.6)
Average precipitation inches (mm)4.4
(110)
4.4
(110)
4.6
(120)
4.0
(100)
5.4
(140)
4.4
(110)
4.8
(120)
3.7
(94)
3.6
(91)
3.3
(84)
4.4
(110)
5.3
(130)
52.3
(1,319)
Average snowfall inches (cm)2.0
(5.1)
1.4
(3.6)
0.4
(1.0)
0.0
(0.0)
0.0
(0.0)
0.0
(0.0)
0.0
(0.0)
0.0
(0.0)
0.0
(0.0)
0.0
(0.0)
0.0
(0.0)
0.5
(1.3)
4.3
(11)
Source: "Climate in Zip 38548". BestPlaces . BestPlaces . Retrieved May 8, 2020.

Notes

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Putnam County, Tennessee</span> County in Tennessee, United States

Putnam County is a county located in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 census, the population was 79,854. Its county seat is Cookeville. Putnam County is part of the Cookeville, TN Micropolitan Statistical Area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Musselshell River</span> River in Golden Valley and Wheatland County, Montana

The Musselshell River is a tributary of the Missouri River, 341.9 miles (550.2 km) long from its origins at the confluence of its North and South Forks near Martinsdale, Montana to its mouth on the Missouri River. It is located east of the Continental divide entirely within Montana in the United States. Counting its pre-confluence tributaries, it measures 425–500 miles (684–805 km) in length.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cumberland River</span> River in Kentucky and Tennessee, United States

The Cumberland River is a major waterway of the Southern United States. The 688-mile-long (1,107 km) river drains almost 18,000 square miles (47,000 km2) of southern Kentucky and north-central Tennessee. The river flows generally west from a source in the Appalachian Mountains to its confluence with the Ohio River near Paducah, Kentucky, and the mouth of the Tennessee River. Major tributaries include the Obey, Caney Fork, Stones, and Red Rivers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Calfkiller River</span> River in Tennessee, United States

The Calfkiller River is a 42.4-mile-long (68.2 km) stream in the east-central portion of Middle Tennessee in the United States. It is a tributary of the Caney Fork, and is part of the Cumberland, Ohio, and Mississippi watersheds. The river is believed to be named for a Cherokee chief who once lived in the area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Collins River</span> River in Tennessee, United States

The Collins River is a 67-mile-long (108 km) stream in the east-central portion of Middle Tennessee in the United States. It is a tributary of the Caney Fork, and is part of the Cumberland, Ohio and Mississippi watersheds. The river drains the scenic Savage Gulf area, located just below the river's source, and empties into Great Falls Lake at Rock Island State Park.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Falling Water River</span> River in Tennessee, United States

The Falling Water River is a 46.8-mile-long (75.3 km) stream in the east-central portion of Middle Tennessee in the United States. It rises just west of Monterey at the edge of the Cumberland Plateau, and traverses the Eastern Highland Rim before dropping off to the Nashville Basin and emptying into Center Hill Lake along the Caney Fork. The river is noted for the 136-foot (41 m) Burgess Falls, which it spills over near the end of its course.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Caney Fork River</span> River in Tennessee, United States

The Caney Fork River is a river that flows through central Tennessee in the United States, draining a substantial portion of the southwestern Cumberland Plateau and southeastern Highland Rim regions. It is a major tributary of the Cumberland River, and is part of the Cumberland, Ohio and Mississippi basins. The river is 143 miles (230 km) long, and its watershed covers 1,771 square miles (4,590 km2) in eleven counties. Monterey, Baxter, Sparta, Smithville, McMinnville, Altamont, Spencer and Gordonsville are among the towns that are at least partially drained by the river.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fall Creek Falls State Park</span> State park in Tennessee, United States

Fall Creek Falls State Resort Park is a state park in Van Buren and Bledsoe counties, in the U.S. state of Tennessee. The over 30,638-acre (123.99 km2) park is centered on the upper Cane Creek Gorge, an area known for its unique geological formations and scenic waterfalls. The park's namesake is the 256-foot (78 m) Fall Creek Falls, the highest free-fall waterfall east of the Mississippi River.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Burgess Falls State Park</span> Protected area in Tennessee, US

Burgess Falls State Park is a state park and state natural area in Putnam County and White County, Tennessee, located in the southeastern United States. The park is situated around a steep gorge in which the Falling Water River drops 250 feet (76 m) in elevation in less than a mile, culminating in a 136-foot (41 m) cataract waterfall.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rock Island State Park (Tennessee)</span> Park in Warren and White Counties, Tennessee, United States

Rock Island State Park is a state park in Warren County and White County, Tennessee, located in the Southeastern United States. The park is named after the community of Rock Island, Tennessee, which in turn received its name from an island on the Caney Fork upstream from the Collins River confluence and Great Falls Dam. Rock Island State Park is centered on a peninsula created by the confluence of these two rivers and extends downstream to the headwaters of Center Hill Lake.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New Caney, Texas</span> Unincorporated community in Texas, United States

New Caney is an unincorporated community in Montgomery County, Texas, United States within the Houston–The Woodlands–Sugar Land metropolitan area. As of 2010, the population of the New Caney area is 19,987.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Beulah, Colorado</span> Unincorporated community in Pueblo County, Colorado, United States

Beulah is an unincorporated community and a post office located within the Beulah Valley census-designated place in Pueblo County, Colorado, United States. The Beulah Post Office has the ZIP code 81023. Beulah is a part of the Beulah Valley CDP. Beulah lies along State Highway 78 about 21 miles southwest of Pueblo, in the foothills of the Wet Mountains.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Great Falls Dam (Tennessee)</span> United States historic place

Great Falls Dam is a hydroelectric dam on the Caney Fork, straddling the county line between White County and Warren County in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the only dam outside the Tennessee River watershed owned and operated by the Tennessee Valley Authority. The dam impounds the 1,830-acre (740 ha) Great Falls Lake, and its tailwaters feed into Center Hill Lake. The completion of Great Falls Dam in late 1916 was an engineering triumph, marking the first successful attempt to impound the volatile and flood-prone Caney Fork. The dam is also notable for its design, utilizing a mostly underground conduit to carry water from the reservoir via a tributary to the Power House 0.75 miles (1.21 km) downstream from the dam.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Scott's Gulf</span> Canyon in Tennessee

Scott's Gulf is a canyon situated along the Caney Fork River in White County, Tennessee, in the southeastern United States. The canyon stretches for approximately 18 miles (29 km) as the Caney Fork drops from the top of the Cumberland Plateau down to the eastern Highland Rim. This remote section of the river is home to a wilderness area consisting of a largely undisturbed deciduous forest, numerous waterfalls, caves and other geological formations, and Class IV and Class V whitewater rapids.

Tuckasegee, named after the historic Cherokee town of that name located near here, is an unincorporated community in Jackson County, North Carolina, United States. It followed the earlier Cherokee town as developing on the upper Tuckaseegee River, at the confluence of its East and West forks.

Stephensport is an unincorporated community in Breckinridge County, Kentucky, United States.

Temperance Hall is an unincorporated community in northern DeKalb County, Tennessee, United States. It is located approximately 4 miles (6.4 km) west-southwest of Center Hill Dam. It was established in 1798 by Stephen Robinson Sr., one of the first four settlers of DeKalb County.

The Smith Fork Creek is a large stream that flows through Middle Tennessee in the United States, draining much of the southwestern Upper Cumberland region. It is a major tributary of the Caney Fork River, and is part of the Cumberland, Ohio and Mississippi basins. The creek is approximately 39 to 40 miles long, and its watershed covers parts of four counties as a subset of the Caney Fork watershed. The small towns and communities of Statesville, Auburntown, Gassaway, Liberty, Dowelltown, Temperance Hall, and Lancaster are drained by the creek, which empties into the Caney Fork 4.1 miles (6.6 km) southeast of Gordonsville.

Indian Creek, also known as Big Indian Creek, is a large stream in western Putnam County, Tennessee. It is a tributary of the Caney Fork River.