Greeneville is a town in Greene County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 15,198 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Greene County. The town was named in honor of Revolutionary War hero Nathanael Greene. Incidentally, it is the only town with this spelling in the United States, although there are numerous U.S. towns named Greenville. The town was the capital of the short-lived State of Franklin in the 18th-century history of the Tennessee region.

Greeneville is notable as the town where President Andrew Johnson (1808–1875) began his political career when elected from his trade as a tailor. He and his family lived there most of his adult years (except for his residency in political service in capitals). It was an area of strong abolitionist and Unionist views and yeomen farmers, an environment which influenced Johnson's outlook.

The U.S. Navy Los Angeles-class submarine USS Greeneville (SSN-772) was named in honor of this town.

The town officially hosts the Greeneville Astros baseball club of the Appalachian League, though the club actually plays in nearby Tusculum.

Geography

Greeneville is located at 36°10′6″N 82°49′21″W / 36.16833°N 82.8225°W / 36.16833; -82.8225 (36.168240, -82.822474)[4]. It lies in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains. These hills are part of the Appalachian Ridge-and-Valley Province, which is characterized by fertile river valleys flanked by narrow, elongate ridges. Greeneville is located roughly halfway between Bays Mountain to the northwest and the Bald Mountains— part of the main Appalachian crest— to the southeast. The valley in which Greeneville is situated is part of the watershed of the Nolichucky River, which passes a few miles south of the town.

Several federal and state highways now intersect in Greeneville, as they were built to follow old roads and trails. U.S. Route 321 follows Main Street through the center of the town and connects Greeneville to Newport to the southwest. U.S. Route 11E (Andrew Johnson Highway), which connects Greeneville with Morristown to the west, intersects US-321 in Greeneville and the merged highway proceeds northeast to Johnson City. Tennessee State Route 107, which also follows Main Street, connects Greeneville to Erwin to the east and to the Del Rio area to the south. Tennessee State Route 70 (Rogersville Road) connects Greeneville with Interstate 81, which passes several miles to the northwest.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 14.0 square miles (36.4 km²), all of it land.