Vintage

Chattanooga, the 4th largest city in the state, is located in southeast Tennessee near the border of Georgia at the junction of four interstate highways. The city has received national recognition for the renaissance of its beautiful downtown and redevelopment of its riverfront. Chattanooga was one of the first US cities to effectively use a citizen visioning process to set specific long-range goals to enrich the lives of residents and visitors. In Chattanooga, citizens like to get involved, and they like to show off their accomplishments.

The first inhabitants of the Chattanooga area were Native American Indians with sites dating back to the Upper Paleolithic period, showing continuous occupation through the Archaic, Woodland, Mississippian (900-1650 AD), Muskogean and Cherokee (1776 - 1838 AD) periods. The name 'Chattanooga' is based on the Muskogean term for rock, cvto (chatta), and may refer to Lookout Mountain, which, when viewed from Moccasin Bend, appears as a "rock rising to a point".

The city is known for the 1941 big-band swing song "Chattanooga Choo Choo" by Glenn Miller, but it has grown significantly since its days as a railroad hub and industrial center. Bessie Smith, a famous blues singer, was also born in Chattanooga.

In recent years, private and governmental resources have been invested in transforming the city and to gain recognition for a metamorphosis of its downtown and riverfront areas. An early cornerstone of this project was the restoration of the historic Walnut Street Bridge. The Walnut Street Bridge is the oldest surviving bridge of its kind in the southeastern United States. Efforts to improve the city include the "21st Century Waterfront Plan" - a $120 million redevelopment of the Chattanooga waterfront and downtown area.