Home of Jack Daniel’s ranks near bottom in TN tourism

by cc-admin · August 20, 2015

LYNCHBURG, TN (WSMV) –

Out of 95 counties in Tennessee, Moore County ranked 94th in the state for tourism.

Officials said they are surprised because Moore County is the home of Jack Daniel’s and the quaint city of Lynchburg.

“I don’t know why we are 94th,” said Steve May, director of the Lynchburg Homeplace. “I mean, everybody wonders. But I can tell you this, I know we are driving a lot of economic activity here in Tennessee.”

2014 was a record-breaking year for tourism in Tennessee, with $17.7 billion in total tourism expenditures. Davidson County led the way with $5 billion in direct tourist dollars.

Jack Daniel’s said it broke its record for tours last year with 269,000 people. They expect to break the record again this year.

“Now that we can do sampling tours, people are coming here to sample the history, the man, the brand, the town and the whiskey,” May said. “We will break the record again in 2015 and we have just set records three months in a row.”

The state said the tourism numbers are accurate, scrutinized and delivered by the nationwide industry leader.

Maybe most noteworthy is the fact that the Jack Daniel’s tour is free. Many people come to Lynchburg, tour the distillery and leave.

Moore County has a small hotel and a couple of bed and breakfasts, but no major hotel chains. The city is also past the distillery.

Jack Daniel’s recently decided to drive its tour bus around the town square before dropping off visitors.

“We want every single guest to see this cool, small town before they get to their cars,” May said. “I also wanted to mention we give $3.50 of every bottle of Jack Daniel’s we sell in our gift shop to Moore County government, and that was a quarter of million dollars. We are proud of that.

Next year is the 150th anniversary of Jack Daniel’s.

Source: NASHVILLE, TN (WSMV) Channel 4
Home of Jack Daniel’s ranks near bottom in TN tourism