About three in ten adults aged 25 to 54 in Lewis County, Tennessee, are not working
In Lewis County, 30.2% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is higher than in 89% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 69% of U.S. counties.
What drives Lewis County's score
In Lewis County, jobs weigh most: the score for jobs is 82.9. Income and the safety net comes next, at 68.7.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Lewis County: jobs, late payments on loans, income and the safety net, collections and bankruptcy, and housing costs. Each part is scored from 0 to 100, and a higher score means worse off than other counties.
Lewis County does better than most counties on two measures: rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (19.1%, fiscal year 2027) and renters paying half their income or more in rent (15.6%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 82.9 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.8% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202675th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working30.2% · 2020 to 202489th percentile
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- 68.7 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line14.1% · 202457th percentile
- Children below the poverty line18.4% · 202457th percentile
- People with a disability19.7% · 2020 to 202478th percentile
- People without health insurance14.3% · 2020 to 202487th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$62,426 · 202462nd percentile
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- 66.4 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector27.0% · August 202563rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people176 · 202568th percentile
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- 54.8 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.4% · August 202549th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.0% · August 202547th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score45.2% · second quarter of 202667th percentile
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- 34.0 of 100
Housing costs
Renters, 2020–24 Census survey; HUD's fair market rents, fiscal year 2027
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent15.6% · 2020 to 202434th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.1% · fiscal year 202733rd percentile
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Sources: Urban Institute, Debt in America; Equifax via the St. Louis Fed; Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, Table F-5A; U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey; U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Fair Market Rents and Census income; U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics; Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates. County Distress Index by American Default Research, from data through Sep 2026.
Where the money in Lewis County comes from
Benefit checks are Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid paid on people's behalf, veterans' benefits, and food and income support, so a high share usually means an older population, low pay, or both. In Lewis County, 20.6% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Lewis County
Tennessee
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Lewis County had its largest rise, from 29.9% in 2004 to 38.0% in 2009.
In Lewis County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 29.2% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Lewis County, Tennessee, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 29.2%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Lewis County getting SNAP food aid fell most sharply on the way to its 2015 low, from 21.7% in 2014 to 17.3% in 2015.
The share of households in Lewis County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2012 and has since fallen by about a third
Low on the chart: 17.3% in 2015. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Lewis County, Tennessee.
How Lewis County has changed
Lewis County's population doubled to 13,418, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1974 to 1979, reaching 9,513. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Lewis County, Tennessee.
The number of jobs located in Lewis County fell most sharply after its 1995 high, from 3,329 in 1995 to 2,442 in 2000.
The number of jobs located in Lewis County fell to its lowest on the chart in 2000, then climbed past the 1990 level
Low on the chart: 2,442 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Lewis County, Tennessee.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 8.1% | 2025 4.2% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 19.3% | 2024 14.1% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $18,455 | 2024 $62,426 |
The table uses 4.2% for 2025; the score uses 4.8% for the latest year (Oct 2025 to Sep 2026), both from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Lewis County's history
1894
Swiss immigrants founded New Switzerland, later merged with Hohenwald. Wikipedia
1991
A tornado in March 1991 did $25 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 12,582, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1975
24 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Lewis County, 15 of them for flooding. FEMA
Lewis County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Lewis County, one scores higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Lewis County ranks 4th of the six; Perry County is highest, at 35.5%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Perry County, TN | 75 | 15.9% | 35.5% |
| Lewis County, TN | 69 | 14.1% | 29.2% |
| Wayne County, TN | 66 | 18.8% | 34.6% |
| Lawrence County, TN | 65 | 13.9% | 31.4% |
| Maury County, TN | 52 | 8.7% | 21.4% |
| Hickman County, TN | 42 | 13.2% | 27.7% |
Distress score: American Default Research, County Distress Index, data through Sep 2026; each county scored against all 3,144. Poverty rate: Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates, 2024. Benefit checks: Bureau of Economic Analysis, 2024. Neighbors share a border, from Census county maps.
Is Lewis County the poorest county in Tennessee?
No, Lewis County's poverty rate was 14.1% in 2024, 52nd highest of 95 in Tennessee (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Lake County, at 31.2%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Lewis County ranks 41st of 95 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Lewis County
Housing counselors approved by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development work at nonprofit agencies. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau describes free foreclosure-avoidance counseling, including help with mortgage-company conversations and available options Source CFPB.
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Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee and the Cumberlands
Legal aid
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Tennessee Justice Center
Legal aid
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HUD-approved housing counselors
Our help directory lists 1,010 agencies approved for foreclosure counseling, by state.
The score, its 14 measures and their sources, in one file. Free to use with credit to American Default Research.
Sources and method
- American Default Research · County Distress Index Data through Sep 2026, built from Urban Institute, Debt in America; Equifax via the St. Louis Fed; U.S. Courts, Table F-5A; Census Bureau, American Community Survey; HUD Fair Market Rents and Census income; Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics; Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates. The County Distress Index is American Default Research's own calculation; the Urban Institute does not produce or endorse it. Our methodology
- Urban Institute · Debt in America Breno Braga, Signe-Mary McKernan, Samantha Atherton, and Kassandra Martinchek, "Debt in America," last updated November 20, 2025, https://datacatalog.urban.org/dataset/debt-america-2025. Licensed under ODC-By 1.0.
- Rent on a two-bedroom and household income The rent share compares HUD fair market rent for fiscal year 2027 with Census Bureau median household income for 2024. The page calls this the typical household's income.
- U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Economic Accounts (CAINC4) · income shares Where the money in Lewis County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.