Franklin is a village in Oakland County in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

. A northern suburb of Detroit, Franklin is located within Southfield Township, roughly northwest of

downtown Detroit Downtown Detroit is the central business district and a Neighborhoods in Detroit, residential area of the city of Detroit, Michigan, United States. Locally, "downtown" tends to refer to the 1.4 square mile region bordered by M-10 (Michigan high ...

. As of the 2020 census, the village had a population of 3,139. The community is known for large, estate-style homes. The downtown was designated as a

historic district A historic district or heritage district is a section of a city which contains historic building, older buildings considered valuable for historical or architectural reasons. In some countries or jurisdictions, historic districts receive legal p ...

, the first in Michigan, and listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

in 1969. The Franklin Cider Mill is a visitor attraction.

History

The community was founded in 1825 by Elijah Bullock and other European-American settlers; it was named after

Benjamin Franklin Benjamin Franklin (April 17, 1790) was an American polymath: a writer, scientist, inventor, statesman, diplomat, printer, publisher and Political philosophy, political philosopher.#britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Wood, 2021 Among the m ...

, a

Founding Father The following is a list of national founders of sovereign states who were credited with establishing a state. National founders are typically those who played an influential role in setting up the systems of governance, (i.e., political system ...

of the United States, in 1831. By 1830, a business district formed. The village has a unique collection of historical structures in original condition that is unusual for suburban

Detroit Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

. The village was incorporated in 1953.

Historical markers

In 1960 a historical marker was erected that reads:

FRANKLIN VILLAGE Founded in 1824–1825, Franklin received its present name in 1828. First postmaster was Dr. Ebenezer Raynale, state legislator and physician. The William Huston store, opened in 1830, was the forerunner of a business center that later included the famous Broughton Wagon Shop, the Van Every Mills, now Ye Olde Cider Mill; several taverns, two distilleries, and two churches. The village also was a station on the
Underground Railroad The Underground Railroad was an organized network of secret routes and safe houses used by freedom seekers to escape to the abolitionist Northern United States and Eastern Canada. Enslaved Africans and African Americans escaped from slavery ...
. Franklin still has the appearance and atmosphere of an early Michigan village.

Another marker was installed in front of Franklin Village School:

Franklin Village School – Michigan's Territorial Council passed a law in 1827 requiring every township with fifty or more inhabitants to establish a school. Thus the following year, the first school in Southfield Township was erected in Franklin Village. Sophie Gotie taught twenty-nine students in a log schoolhouse located near the still extant house of early settler Daniel Broughton. Franklin village built a new school in 1845 at the foot of School Hill on property deeded by Winthrop Worthings. On this site in 1869 a third school was constructed on land given by wealthy postmaster A.A. Rust. After that building burned in 1922, the village erected the present school on this same location. The Franklin School District No. 3, Southfield Township, joined the Birmingham Public Schools in 1945.

This building closed as a public school in 1979. In 1988, members of Metro Detroit's

Muslim community ' (; ) is an Arabic word meaning Muslim identity, nation, religious community, or the concept of a Commonwealth of the Muslim Believers ( '). It is a synonym for ' (, lit. 'the Islamic nation'); it is commonly used to mean the collective comm ...

bought the building and adapted it as Huda School and Montessori, a K-8 Islamic

parochial school A parochial school is a private school, private Primary school, primary or secondary school affiliated with a religious organization, and whose curriculum includes general religious education in addition to secular subjects, such as science, mathem ...

. On Saturdays the building houses the related Dar-al-Huda

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

ic Saturday school. In 2006, the Muslim community raised $3.6 million (~$ in ) to fund renovation and expansion of the school. In the summer of 2007, the Monahan Construction Company renovated the school. In September 2007, the community raised another $1 million to continue the project's second phase, which was completed in 2008. Franklin also the hometown Farmbrook Free Press, a small publication.

Geography

According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the village has a total area of , all land.

Government

Federal, state, and county legislators

Demographics

2010 census

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2010, there were 3,150 people, 1,118 households, and 903 families living in the village. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...

was . There were 1,177 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the village was 86.2%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 6.6%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.1% Native American, 4.8% Asian, 0.1%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 0.5% from other races, and 1.7% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 1.3% of the population. There were 1,118 households, of which 39.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 74.1% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 4.3% had a female householder with no husband present, 2.4% had a male householder with no wife present, and 19.2% were non-families. 15.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.82 and the average family size was 3.17. The median age in the village was 45.4 years. 28.4% of residents were under the age of 18; 4.7% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 16.5% were from 25 to 44; 34.4% were from 45 to 64; and 16.2% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the village was 50.5% male and 49.5% female.

2000 census

As of the

of 2000, there were 2,937 people, 1,073 households, and 866 families living in the village. The population density was . There were 1,118 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the village was 89.79%

, 5.07%

, 0.10% Native American, 3.58% Asian, 0.34% from other races, and 1.12% from two or more races.

or Latino of any race were 0.85% of the population. There were 1,073 households, out of which 38.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 75.3% were

living together, 3.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 19.2% were non-families. 15.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.73 and the average family size was 3.06. In the village, the population was spread out, with 28.3% under the age of 18, 2.9% from 18 to 24, 25.6% from 25 to 44, 29.5% from 45 to 64, and 13.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females, there were 105.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 99.3 males. The median income for a household in the village was $124,014, and the median income for a family was $139,339. Males had a median income of $100,000 versus $61,500 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the village was $71,033. About 0.5% of families and 1.0% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 0.4% of those under age 18 and 1.0% of those age 65 or over.

Arts and culture

Points of interest

Franklin is known for the Franklin Cider Mill, just north of the village's borders in neighboring Bloomfield Township. The Franklin Cider Mill was established as a gristmill in 1837, the year Michigan became a state. It was converted to a cider mill in 1949. Franklin's current firehouse was built in 1959. The village employs one firefighter and a chief; the rest of the force is volunteer. The station was built on the site of the former community hall, which burned down in 1958. Because of its many original mid-19th century properties, Franklin was designated as Michigan's first

on November 11, 1969, and listed on the

that year. The boundaries of the district have been expanded to include more contributing properties.

Notable people

* Max Fisher, businessman, died at his home in Franklin * Ashley Johnson, actress and voice actress, spent part of her childhood in Franklin * Jeff Katz, film producer and comic book author, grew up in Franklin

References

External links

Village of Franklin
*https://web.archive.org/web/20070929125253/http://www.mcgi.state.mi.us/hso/advancematch.asp?ctype=any&cname=Franklin&cnty=Oakland * * {{authority control Villages in Oakland County, Michigan Villages in Michigan Metro Detroit Populated places established in 1825 1825 establishments in Michigan Territory