Memphis close to surrendering title as state’s largest city
MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) – A census estimates that Memphis is on the verge of losing its title as Tennessee’s largest city to fast-growing Nashville.
The Commercial Appeal reports the figures, which were released Thursday, show that as of July 1, 2015, Memphis’ population was 655,770 and Nashville’s was 654,610.
However, that 1,160-person gap closed as Memphis lost 712 residents and Nashville gained 9,881.
John Gnuschke, director of the Sparks Bureau of Business and Economic Research at the University of Memphis, says that if the latest figures, which cover municipalities and other “sub-county” areas, show Memphis is not growing, they also confirm that the city’s population is not in rapid decline.
Memphis became the state’s largest city with the 1900 Census, when its population rose to 102,320 compared to 80,865 for Nashville.
