The City of Columbia is located approximately 45 miles south of Nashville in the heart of Maury County. Our city offers something for everyone, whether your interest is historical homes, sports, antiques, shopping, or mules. Did someone say mules?

That's right! A week in April is devoted entirely to the four-legged animal that played such an instrumental role in the settlement of our community. The annual Mule Day Parade attracts over two hundred thousand spectators from throughout the United States and abroad.

Recently, Columbia has undergone a classy 'face lift' and the upscale downtown district combines old world southern architecture with modern amenities. Restaurants abound, as do sidewalk cafes, delis, specialty shops, boutiques, antique stores, coffee and candy shops, and a diverse mix of museums, theaters and performing arts centers.

The Duck River is one of North America's richest rivers in variety of animal species, containing more species of fish than are found in all the rivers of Europe combined and more fish varieties per mile than any other river in North America. Overall the Duck supports a remarkable diversity of life in its waters, including 151 species of fish, 55 freshwater mussel species, and 22 species of aquatic snails. Among the rare species living in the Duck are mussels such as the birdwing pearlymussel and the Tennessee clubshell, and fish such as the barrens topminnow and the pygmy madtom. In addition, the river harbors a number of larger mammals, reptiles, and birds, including otters, beavers, mink, hawks, osprey, and herons.

Residents enjoy outdoor recreation ranging from water skiing and fishing to golf. A true sense of community spirit is evident in the city's many special events, including the Mule Day Parade, Bikes, Blues and BBQ, Jailbreak Triathlon, Meriwether Lewis Crafts Fair, Confederate Christmas Ball, Columbia Main Street Christmas Parade, Cruisin' the Square and Sunset Symphonies.

Columbia is a blossoming city with a diverse economy. The expansion and continued development of commercial and industrial parks is luring more Fortune 500 companies to the area. Combine these companies with the already long list of private and family-owned businesses and it is easy to see why living in Columbia affords residents a tremendous opportunity to find employment within minutes of their home.

Some of the large corporations operating in Columbia include American Bank Note, Columbia Machine Works, Inc., Glen Springs Holding, Industrial Door Contractors, PSC Fabricating Corp., Trader Publishing, Thyssenn Krupp Budd Systems and UCAR Carbon Company. In addition, the General Motors Saturn Plant is less than two miles from the Columbia City limits.

Although there is plenty of manmade beauty, that's not what makes Columbia so attractive. It's the stunning backdrop of waterways, flourishing foliage and enormous expanses of greenery. The changing of the seasons and the many colors that fill this town throughout the year are lovely to view. With orange plumes of light shimmering off of golden brown leaves, this city is filled with natural beauty. The Duck River runs through Columbia and in addition to the city's several small lakes and bodies of water, makes for an excellent place to splash and play during the year's warmer months.

Housing Cost

Real estate ranges from single-family detached homes in Columbia to lovely Victorians. And the prices are the best part! A single-family home can start below $100,000. Those large, lovely Victorian homes with fireplaces can be purchased in the mid-$100,000's. Grand, newly built estate properties with spacious lots of considerable acreage and private spas are priced from the mid-$200,000s to more than $1 million for spectacular, expansive, luxury estates with private swimming pools and spacious lots of more than 10 acres. A limited selection of condominiums and townhouses range in the $100,000s. An excellent selection of land and lots are also available in Columbia for custom development.

Estimated median house or condo value in 2007: $122,536

Demographics

Population in July 2007: 33,983. Columbia covers 29.6 square miles. It sits at an elevation of 637 feet above sea level.

Zip codes: 38401, 38402 - Area code: 931

Weather

Columbia, TN climate is warm during summer when temperatures tend to be in the 70's and very cold during winter when temperatures tend to be in the 30's.

The warmest month of the year is July with an average maximum temperature of 88.50 degrees Fahrenheit, while the coldest month of the year is January with an average minimum temperature of 25.00 degrees Fahrenheit.

Temperature variations between night and day tend to be moderate during summer with a difference that can reach 23 degrees Fahrenheit, and moderate during winter with an average difference of 22 degrees Fahrenheit.

The annual average precipitation at Columbia is 56.13 Inches. Rainfall in is fairly evenly distributed throughout the year. The wettest month of the year is March with an average rainfall of 6.25 Inches.

Information provided by idcide.com and city data.com