Dickson County, Tennessee
USDA's soil survey flags shrink-swell clay on under 1% of Dickson County's mapped land and a shallow water table under basements on 12%, both below the national shares of 15% and 29%. 100% of the county is in drought on the October 13, 2026 Drought Monitor map.
FEMA's flood data list 28 flood losses here since 2016. 37% of homes were built before 1980, against 50% nationally; the median home dates from 1988.
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 Dickson County
| Expansive clay (limits slab homes) | under 0.1% |
| High water table (limits basements) | 11.8% |
| Septic fields very limited | 70.3% |
| Clay swell (LEP, by area) | 2.9% |
| High-swell land (LEP 6%+) | 1.6% |
| Mapped soil | 314,500 acres |
| Soil series | Share here | Series nationally: expansive clay |
|---|---|---|
| Sengtown | 53% | n/a |
| Hawthorne | 7% | n/a |
| Mountview | 5% | n/a |
| Armour | 5% | n/a |
| Saffell | 4% | n/a |
| Lax | 4% | n/a |
How we count · survey areas TN043 (2025-08-28)
What the numbers mean here
Rain over the 12 months to August 2026: 41.15 in, 11.13 in below the 1991-2020 average year of 52.28 in.
USDA rates 70% of the land very limited for septic absorption fields.
With shrink-swell clay on under 1% and a shallow water table on 12% of the land, the soil survey points to neither problem across most of Dickson County; conditions still vary lot by lot.
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 29 of the last 52 weeks; the most was 100% of its area, in 20 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 | 95.6% |
| D3 extreme or worse | 2.7% |
| D4 exceptional | 0% |
Flood losses since 2016
28 flood losses since 2016, $2.5 million paid. The worst year was 2021, with 9. Median water depth outside the building: 19.5 in.
| Year | Flood losses |
|---|---|
| 2016 | 0 |
| 2017 | 2 |
| 2018 | 3 |
| 2019 | 7 |
| 2020 | 2 |
| 2021 | 9 |
| 2022 | 1 |
| 2023 | 0 |
| 2024 | 1 |
| 2025 | 3 |
| 2026 to date | 0 |
Rain
| Average year, 1991-2020 | 52.28 in |
| 12 months to August 2026 | 41.15 in (-11.13) |
| 2025 | 48.12 in (-4.16) |
| Wettest year since 1895 | 1979: 72.28 in |
| Driest year since 1895 | 1941: 34.10 in |
| Days with 1 inch or more, normal at DICKSON (5 mi away) | 16.4 |
Homes
| Housing units | 23,657 |
| Median year built | 1988 |
| Built before 1980 | 37% |
| Built 2000 or later | 30% |
| Owner-occupied | 80% |
| Median value, owner-occupied | $306,400 |
| Single-family detached | 79% |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheatham County, TN | 17 mi | under 1% | 19% |
| Houston County, TN | 21 mi | 0% | 13% |
| Hickman County, TN | 24 mi | 1% | 10% |
| Montgomery County, TN | 25 mi | 1% | 25% |
| Humphreys County, TN | 25 mi | 0% | 24% |
| Williamson County, TN | 31 mi | 8% | 17% |
| Davidson County, TN | 32 mi | 14% | 8% |
| Stewart County, TN | 32 mi | under 1% | 27% |
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