About This Place
Bristol is a city in Sullivan County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 24,821 at the 2000 census. It is the twin city of Bristol, Virginia, which lies directly across the state line between Tennessee and Virginia. The boundaries of both cities run parallel to each other along State Street located in their common downtown district. Bristol is a principal city of Kingsport–Bristol–Bristol, TN-VA Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is a component of the Johnson City–Kingsport–Bristol, TN-VA Combined Statistical Area – commonly known as the "Tri-Cities" region.
Bristol is probably best known for being the site of some of the first commercial recordings of country music, showcasing Jimmie Rodgers and the Carter Family, and later a favorite venue of the mountain musician Uncle Charlie Osborne. Congress recognized Bristol as the Birthplace of Country Music in 1998. Bristol is the birthplace of Tennessee Ernie Ford.
Bristol is the site of Bristol Motor Speedway a NASCAR short track that routinely sells out more than 160,000 seats twice annually.