Kevin McKenzie

Memphis Commercial Appeal

The largest city in Tennessee is officially no longer Memphis. New Census figures pass that crown to Nashville.

Census population estimates released Thursday show Nashville was home to 660,388 people in 2016. Memphis had 652,717 residents, falling 7,671 short of Nashville.

The growth in Middle Tennessee wasn’t limited to Nashville, which rises a notch to replace Memphis as the nation’s 24th largest city. Memphis steps back to 25th.

Murfreesboro, roughly 35 miles southeast of Nashville, is for a second year one of the nation’s 15 fastest-growing large cities.

With 4.7 percent growth to a population of 131,947, Murfreesboro was the only Tennessee city on the fastest-growing list by percentage growth that included six cities in Texas and two in Florida.

An asterisk for Nashville's population

It's taken decades, but population growth in Nashville has been gaining on Memphis, where gains have been halting, at best. Census estimates show that Memphis had a population loss of 1,737 from 2015 to 2016. Nashville gained 6,310.

However, Nashville's real boost in the race to become Tennessee's largest city came on June 28, 1962. That's when voters in what were then the city of Nashville and Davidson County approved the consolidation of city and county governments to form the nation's first fully metropolitan government.

With the consolidation of local governments, the Census counts not only the population of what was the city of Nashville, but also Davidson County's population except for six remaining "satellite cities," officials said.

In 1960, before metro government, the Census listed a population of 497,524 for Memphis and 170,874 for Nashville. In 1970, following metro government, Nashville jumped to 448,003 while Memphis rose to 623,530.

In 1960, Memphis was the nation's 22nd largest city and Nashville was 73rd. In 1970, Memphis had climbed to 17th, but Nashville catapulted to 30th.

Growth also can be measured in square miles. In 1960, Memphis claimed 128 square miles compared with 29 square miles for Nashville. By 1970, Memphis had spread to 217 miles while Nashville exploded to 507, according to Census figures.

In fact, the Census includes an asterisk with what is considered Nashville's population among cities. It is technically listed as "Nashville-Davidson metropolitan government (balance)."

Census nuts and bolts

In East Tennessee, Knoxville's estimated population for 2016 was 186,239, compared with 185,196 in 2015, while Chattanooga's was 177,571 for 2016, compared with 176,220 for 2015.

In West Tennessee, the city of Jackson's population for 2016 was 67,005 compared with 66,914 in 2015.

Overall, population growth is generally driven by births, migration within the United States and international immigration, said Amel Toukabri, a Census demographer in the nation's capital. Even IRS records of people moving one place to another are tapped to produce the estimates.

Because the Census divides the country into four regions, including Texas in the South, 10 of the 15 fastest-growing cities are in the South for 2016.

"The population estimates are important because they are used in federal funding allocations and as indicators of recent demographic changes," Toukabri said. "Also, while local governments use these estimates to allocate resources and provide services, the private sector uses this data to actually guide business decisions.

Population estimates for Shelby County cities, 2016 and change from 2015

Arlington: 11,566, -26

Bartlett: 58,622, +170

Collierville: 49,177, +427

Germantown: 39,056, -89

Memphis: 652,717, -1,737

Millington: 10,974, -30

