reverie

Reverie, Tennessee

Reverie is an unincorporated community in Tipton County, Tennessee, United States. In 2001, the population was 11.

Due to topographic changes caused by the New Madrid earthquakes in 1811 and 1812, part of what is now Tipton County was cut off the state of Tennessee by a change in the course of the Mississippi River. The earthquake changed the course of the Mississippi River. The old riverbed is west of Reverie. The current river is east of Reverie. This puts Reverie on the Arkansas side, while most of the area of Tipton County is located east of the Mississippi River, the Tennessee side.

In 1900, a prehistoric mastodon skeleton was discovered 3 mi (4,8 km) east of Reverie.

In the first half of the 20th century, archeological artifacts from an aboriginal village dated AD 1400-1650 were found about 4 mi (6.4 km) northeast of Reverie, at the Nodena Site.

Demographics

According to the United States Census, in 2000 the total population of the Reverie voting precinct was 11. The entire population was non-Hispanic white at that time.

Education

The state of Tennessee pays for the children in the population to attend schools in Arkansas.

Economy

Agriculture is the dominant source of income in the area surrounding Reverie, especially the cultivation of cotton.

After the abolition of slavery, sharecropping was the primary means of income for low income families in the area. Mostly for the cultivation of cotton, land would be used by sharecroppers in return for a share of the crop to the landowner.

Modern machines such as the cotton picker have made the manual cultivation obsolete over time as they took over the work from the hand laborers.

In 2007, there are no industries in Reverie.

History

Founded in the 1800s, Reverie is one of the early settlements in Tipton County. In 1883, a U.S. Post office was opened that in 2007 is no longer in existence.

Prehistoric Mastodon skeleton

Mastodons are members of the prehistoric, extinct genus Mammut, they resemble modern elephants. Native to North America they are said to have lived on the North American continent from almost 4 million years ago until their eventual disappearance about 10,000 years ago.

In 1900, archaeologist Dr. James K. Hampson documented the find of skeletal remains of a mastodon on Island No. 35 of the Mississippi River, approximately 3 mi (4.8 km) east of Reverie and 23 mi (37 km) south of Blytheville, Arkansas.

In 1957, the site was reported as destroyed.

Aboriginal village AD 1400-1650

About 4 mi (6.4 km) northeast of Reverie, at the Nodena Site, archeological artifacts from a 15 acre (60,703 m²) aboriginal village dated AD 1400-1650 were found in the first half of the 20th century.

A collection of these artifacts is on display at the Hampson Museum State Park in Wilson, Arkansas.

In 1964, the Nodena Site was declared a National Historic Landmark. In 1966 it was added to the National Register of Historic Places.

1811 and 1812 earthquakes

In 1811 and 1812, several earthquakes spreading out from the New Madrid Seismic Zone caused a tectonic shift which changed the course of the Mississippi River.

The earthquakes cut off a meander (or horseshoe bend) of the Mississippi River with the western tip of what is now Tipton County, Tennessee, placing the settlement of Reverie west of the Mississippi River, on the Mississippi County, Arkansas side.

Reelfoot Lake, a shallow lake about 40 mi (65 km) north of Reverie, was also created during the earthquake activity in 1811 and 1812. Reelfoot Lake is the only large natural lake in Tennessee, and is the namesake of Lake County, Tennessee, in which it is primarily located.

Tennessee/Arkansas stateline

The political border between Tennessee and Arkansas was established in the "Treaty of Frienship, Limits, and Navigation" on October 27 1795 following the "middle of the channel or bed of the Mississippi River" as of that time. After the earthquakes of 1811 and 1812 the riverbed of the Mississippi River had moved about 3.5 mi (5.6 km) southeast from its former location, straightening a bend and shortening the river about 3 mi (4.8 km).

The Arkansas and Tennessee stateline remained unchanged by the tectonic events of 1811 and 1812, still marking the middle of the Mississippi River as it was in 1795. The Tennessee/Arkansas state line near Reverie in 2007 is 3.5 miles (5.6 km) northwest of the Mississippi River.

Geography

Location and landscape

Reverie is located at 35.53806 North, -89.99 West. The coordinates mark the location of the historical post office. The elevation above sea level is 239.44 ft (73 m).

The landscape is dominated by the Mississippi River flood plains, fields and few trees.

Mississippi River Island No. 35

Along and parallel to the Tennessee/Arkansas state line, the former course of the Mississippi River as it was before the earthquakes in 1811 and 1812 is still visible in the landscape almost 200 years after the events, following the state border in the middle of the river as of 1795, when the border between Tennessee and Arkansas was established.

The former riverbed has shrunk to small side arms of the Mississippi River which, dependent on the water level and precipitation, are still partly connected to the river. The bed of the Mississippi River as of 2007 in the southeast and small side arms following the pre-earthquake riverbed as of 1795 in the northwest surround the Reverie area by water of the the Mississippi River.

Although the sidearms are only partially connected most of the time, Reverie is located on what topologically is Island No. 35 of the Mississippi River.

County seat Covington, Tennessee

The direct distance between Reverie and the county seat, Covington, Tennessee, is only 18 miles (29 km).

In 2007, the road trip to Covington requires to go via Memphis, Tennessee and is longer than 83 miles (134 km).

Postal

Postal address and ZIP code for the community used to be Reverie TN, AR 72395. The ZIP code is cross referenced with Wilson, Arkansas. United States Postal Service recommends using Wilson, AR 72395 for Reverie.

References

Notes

Areal views of the Reverie area with superimposed state borders illustrate the course of the Mississippi River in this area before and after the 1811 and 1812 earthquakes. The state line is following the pre-earthquake riverbed as of 1795. In 2007, the Mississippi River was located about 3.5 miles (5,6 km) southeast of the Tennessee/Arkansas state border near Reverie.