Cannon County, Tennessee
A shallow water table limits basements on 28% of Cannon County's mapped land. Shrink-swell clay limits houses without basements on 17%.
100% of the county is in drought on the October 13, 2026 Drought Monitor map. FEMA's flood data list 33 flood losses here since 2016, 4% of them in buildings with basements. 39% of homes were built before 1980, against 50% nationally; the median home dates from 1990.
Data as of October 13, 2026 · sources
expansive clay: shrink-swell limits slab homes
high water table: limits basements
in drought, October 13, 2026
of homes built before 1980
Soil under Cannon County
| Expansive clay (limits slab homes) | 16.9% |
| High water table (limits basements) | 28.3% |
| Septic fields very limited | 91.6% |
| Clay swell (LEP, by area) | 4.0% |
| High-swell land (LEP 6%+) | 17.4% |
| Mapped soil | 170,000 acres |
| Soil series | Share here | Series nationally: high water table |
|---|---|---|
| Hawthorne | 13% | n/a |
| Dickson | 10% | n/a |
| Dellrose | 10% | n/a |
| Mountview | 7% | n/a |
| Barfield | 6% | n/a |
| Gladdice | 5% | n/a |
How we count · survey areas TN015 (2025-08-28)
What the numbers mean here
Clay swell averages a linear extensibility of 4.0% by land area here, and 17% of the land reaches USDA's high class (6% or more). Clay like that swells when wet and shrinks when dry, under 17% of the mapped land.
Clay shrinks as it dries: 100% of the county is in drought on the latest map, and 17% of Cannon County's mapped land has shrink-swell clay.
On 28% of Cannon County's mapped land, soil stays saturated within about 6 feet of the surface for part of the year, which is basement depth.
Rain over the 12 months to August 2026: 46.15 in, 11.01 in below the 1991-2020 average year of 57.16 in.
USDA rates 92% of the land very limited for septic absorption fields.
Drought
100% of the county is in drought (D1 or worse) on the October 13, 2026 map. Part of the county was in drought in 24 of the last 52 weeks; the most was 100% of its area, in 15 weeks, most recently on the October 13, 2026 map.
| Category, October 13, 2026 | Share of county |
|---|---|
| D0 abnormally dry or worse | 100% |
| D1 moderate drought or worse | 100% |
| D2 severe or worse | 32.4% |
| D3 extreme or worse | 0% |
| D4 exceptional | 0% |
Flood losses since 2016
33 flood losses since 2016, $1.3 million paid. The worst year was 2024, with 11. Foundations of the buildings, where recorded: 4% basements, 13% slabs, 50% crawl spaces, 33% elevated. Median water depth outside the building: 20.5 in.
| Year | Flood losses |
|---|---|
| 2016 | 0 |
| 2017 | 5 |
| 2018 | 0 |
| 2019 | 4 |
| 2020 | 7 |
| 2021 | 4 |
| 2022 | 1 |
| 2023 | 0 |
| 2024 | 11 |
| 2025 | 1 |
| 2026 to date | 0 |
Rain
| Average year, 1991-2020 | 57.16 in |
| 12 months to August 2026 | 46.15 in (-11.01) |
| 2025 | 59.17 in (+2.01) |
| Wettest year since 1895 | 1973: 74.32 in |
| Driest year since 1895 | 2007: 35.96 in |
| Days with 1 inch or more, normal at WOODBURY 1 WNW (3 mi away) | 16.9 |
Homes
| Housing units | 6,453 |
| Median year built | 1990 |
| Built before 1980 | 39% |
| Built 2000 or later | 28% |
| Owner-occupied | 78% |
| Median value, owner-occupied | $252,000 |
| Single-family detached | 80% |
What repairs cost
Published ranges from cost guides, not quotes. More sources, and where they disagree.
Nearby counties
| Place | Distance | Expansive clay | High water table |
|---|---|---|---|
| DeKalb County, TN | 18 mi | 13% | 19% |
| Warren County, TN | 18 mi | under 1% | 26% |
| Rutherford County, TN | 20 mi | 21% | 14% |
| Coffee County, TN | 21 mi | 2% | 45% |
| Wilson County, TN | 27 mi | 16% | 14% |
| Bedford County, TN | 29 mi | 33% | 23% |
| Smith County, TN | 33 mi | 41% | 3% |
| Grundy County, TN | 35 mi | 2% | 5% |
Sources: USDA SSURGO (August 28, 2025) · US Drought Monitor (October 13, 2026) · FEMA NFIP v3 (September 9, 2026) · NOAA (August 2026) · Census ACS 2020-2024. Methods · Data status