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Gay marriage, one year later: Tennessee still divided over same-sex unions

Rev. James Ramsey stands in front of the Hamilton County Courthouse Monday, June 20, 2016. Ramsey has performed approximately 25 same-sex marriages since the Supreme Court ruling last year.
Rev. James Ramsey stands in front of the Hamilton County Courthouse Monday, June 20, 2016. Ramsey has performed approximately 25 same-sex marriages since the Supreme Court ruling last year. Rev. James Ramsey stands in front of the Hamilton County Courthouse Monday, June 20, 2016. Ramsey has performed approximately 25 same-sex marriages since the Supreme Court ruling last year.

By Emmett Gienapp 6 min read

In the year since the United States Supreme Court made a landmark decision legalizing gay marriage nationwide, the Technicolor wedding bells haven’t stopped ringing – and the debate has kept raging.

Approximately 120,000 same-sex couples have said “I do” since the ruling came down, according to a recent Gallup poll. Out of that number, 141 were wed here in Hamilton County.

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Susie Holloway, a business manager in the county clerk’s office, said her office has been keeping track of gay marriages in the county since the ruling.

“To be honest, I didn’t know what to expect,” she said. “The first week the ruling came down, there were a few days we’d have four or five, and there was one day we had six.”