Tennessee was founded by a Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto in 1540. It is located in central region of US and is geographically divided into three regions, i.e. Mississippi and the Tennessee Rivers form the western region, the streams and the rolling hills of the central region, and the Great Smoky Mountains on the eastern region. On June 1, 1796, Tennessee became the 16th state of the United States. Nashville is the capital of Tennessee, while Memphis is its largest city. The first governor of this state was John Sevier and Andrew Jackson was the first congressman. Its nickname, "The Volunteer State", originated during the War of 1812 fought between the US and Great Britain, when many Tennesseans volunteered as soldiers. Interesting Facts The first building built by whites in Tennessee was Fort Prudhomme in 1682. Between 1838 and 1839, as many as 17,000 Cherokees (native Americans), were forced to march to an Indian territory, west of Arkansas. This march is known as the "Trail of Tears" because of the fact that around 4,000 Cherokees died in this march. A couple of decades later, Tennessee was to become a battleground of various civil wars. On September 21, 1807, Kingston, a city in Tennessee, was named the state capital for a day. Andrew Johnson, the first congressman from this state, was elected as the President of America after the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. Iroquois, a horse bred in Nashville was the first American horse to win the English Derby in 1881. Samuel Powhatan Carter, who served as both an Admiral in the Navy and General in the Army, belongs to Tennessee. The "New Madrid Earthquake", the largest earthquake in the history of America, occurred in northwestern Tennessee. As a result of this earthquake, Reelfoot Lake was formed. Did you know the Tennessee Aquarium has 7,000 animals and 300 species of birds, reptiles, amphibians, fish, and mammals? Oak Ridge is the "Energy Capital" of the world, because this place was instrumental in the development of the atomic bomb. The birthplace of country music is Bristol in Tennessee. The National Civil Rights Museum, Memphis, is at the Lorraine Motel. In 1968, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., was slain in this motel. McKissack and McKissack, the oldest African-American architectural firm in the US, is located in Nashville, Tennessee. The oldest African-American financial institution of the US, Citizens Savings Bank and Trust Company, is located in Tennessee. The first African-American millionaire, Robert R.Church, Sr., belongs to Tennessee. The Lost Sea, the largest American underground lake, is in Sweetwater, Tennessee. Are you aware of the fact that Coca-Cola was first bottled at a plant in Chattanooga, Tennessee, in 1899? One of the most visited national parks in the US is the Great Smoky Mountain National Park, and the maximum number of the visitors visit "Graceland". This is the home of Elvis Presley. The state of Tennessee has rich history and culture. There are many notable landmarks worth seeing. Among them is the Sequoyah Birthplace Museum dedicated to a Cherokee silversmith, Sequoyah. The museum exhibits the history, tradition, and culture of Native Americans.