The city name was derived from its location at the junction of two railroads, with one running roughly east–west and the other roughly north–south.
Geography
Union City is located at . According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of, all land. The mayor, appointed by his fellow city councilors since 1988, is Terry Hailey.
Demographics
As of the census of 2000, the population density was 1,020.1 people per square mile. There were 5,013 housing units at an average density of 470.2 per square mile. The racial makeup of the city was 75.44% White, 21.29% African American, 0.22% Native American, 0.29% Asian, 0.13% Pacific Islander, 1.59% from other races, and 1.04% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.41% of the population. There were 4,568 households out of which 29.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.6% were married couples living together, 15.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.4% were non-families. 32.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.30 and the average family size was 2.89. In the city, the population was spread out with 23.6% under the age of 18, 9.6% from 18 to 24, 26.8% from 25 to 44, 22.6% from 45 to 64, and 17.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every hundred females there were 87.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 81.4 males. The median income for a household in the city was $29,399, and the median income for a family was $40,737. Males had a median income of $35,801 versus $19,694 for females. The per capita income for the city was $18,787. About 12.5% of families and 16.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 26.4% of those under age 18 and 14.6% of those age 65 or over.
Economy
The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company operated a plant in the city from 1969 to 2011. On February 10, 2011, Goodyear announced that the Union City plant would shut down by the end of the year. On June 11, 2011, production ceased at the plant. Darling International operates a rendering plant. Union City is also home to the Discovery Park of America. It features exhibits and activities on local history, nature, military history, art and science.
Union City is served by the newspaper The Messenger,.
Historic landmarks
Masquerade Theatre - located in the former Capital Theater on South First Street. The theatre is a historic landmark and has been standing since the early 1900s.
