Franklin is a city in

Heard County Heard County is a county located in the west central portion of the U.S. state of Georgia. At the 2020 census, the population was 11,412, down from 11,834 in 2010. The county seat is Franklin. The county was created on December 22, 1830. Hear ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

, United States. The population was 993 at the 2010 census, up from 902 at the 2000 census. Franklin is the

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US st ...

of Heard County. The city is named after

Benjamin Franklin Benjamin Franklin ( April 17, 1790) was an American polymath who was active as a writer, scientist, inventor, statesman, diplomat, printer, publisher, and political philosopher. Encyclopædia Britannica, Wood, 2021 Among the leading inte ...

History

Franklin was settled in 1770, and was designated seat of the newly formed Heard County in 1831. The town was hit by a

tornado A tornado is a violently rotating column of air that is in contact with both the surface of the Earth and a cumulonimbus cloud or, in rare cases, the base of a cumulus cloud. It is often referred to as a twister, whirlwind or cyclone, altho ...

just before midnight on March 25, 2021, with multiple areas in downtown being heavily damaged with the most severe damage being rated high-end EF2. The tornado later became violent and hit nearby Newnan, Georgia to the east at EF4 strength, indirectly killing one person.

Geography

Franklin is located in central Heard County at , along the

Chattahoochee River The Chattahoochee River forms the southern half of the Alabama and Georgia border, as well as a portion of the Florida - Georgia border. It is a tributary of the Apalachicola River, a relatively short river formed by the confluence of the Chatta ...

. U.S. Route 27 passes through the east side of the city on a bypass, leading north to Carrollton and south to LaGrange.

Georgia State Route 34 State Route 34 (SR 34) is a state highway that travels west-to-east through portions of Heard and Coweta counties in the west-central part of the U.S. state of Georgia. The highway connects the Alabama state line southwest of Frankl ...

passes through the center of Franklin, leading northeast to

Newnan Newnan is a city in Metro Atlanta and the county seat of Coweta County, Georgia, about southwest of Atlanta. Its population was 42,549 at the 2020 census, up from 33,039 in 2010. History Newnan was established as county seat of Coweta Coun ...

and southwest to the

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County, Al ...

border.

Georgia State Route 100 State Route 100 (SR 100) is a state highway that travels south-to-north through portions of Meriwether, Troup, Heard, Carroll, Haralson, Polk, Floyd, and Chattooga counties in the northwestern part of the U.S. state of Georgi ...

joins SR 34 for part of its path through Franklin, but leads northwest to

Ephesus Ephesus (; grc-gre, Ἔφεσος, Éphesos; tr, Efes; may ultimately derive from hit, 𒀀𒉺𒊭, Apaša) was a city in ancient Greece on the coast of Ionia, southwest of present-day Selçuk in İzmir Province, Turkey. It was built in t ...

and southeast 14 miles to Hogansville. According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...

, Franklin has a total area of , of which are land and , or 4.00%, are water.

Demographics

2000 census

As of the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses incl ...

of 2000, there were 902 people, 349 households, and 203 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 398 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 69.07%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White o ...

, 29.93%

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 0.11% Native American, 0.33% from

other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...

, and 0.55% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to Vic ...

Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...

of any race were 1.11% of the population. There were 349 households, out of which 31.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 30.1% were married couples living together, 25.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 41.8% were non-families. 37.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 22.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.27 and the average family size was 3.03. 24.7% of the population of Franklin were under the age of 18, 8.1% were from 18 to 24, 24.6% from 25 to 44, 18.4% from 45 to 64, and 24.2% were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females, there were 77.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 68.9 males. The median income for a household in the city was $19,125, and the median income for a family was $23,571. Males had a median income of $29,583 versus $20,724 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the city was $14,142. About 27.8% of families and 28.3% 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 t ...

, including 33.3% of those under age 18 and 29.4% of those age 65 or over.

2020 census

As of the

2020 United States census The United States census of 2020 was the twenty-fourth decennial United States census. Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2020. Other than a pilot study during the 2000 census, this was the first U.S. census to of ...

, there were 950 people, 421 households, and 215 families residing in the city.

Education

Heard County School District

The Heard County School District holds pre-school to grade twelve, and consists of three elementary schools, a middle school, and a high school. The district has 132 full-time teachers and over 2,278 students.School Stats
Retrieved June 19, 2010.
Heard Elementary SchoolHeard County Middle SchoolHeard County Comprehensive High School

Old Heard County Jail

Pauly Jail Company of

built the jail in 1912 for $7,500, using plans by Manly Jail Works of

Dalton Dalton may refer to: Science * Dalton (crater), a lunar crater * Dalton (program), chemistry software * Dalton (unit) (Da), the atomic mass unit * John Dalton, chemist, physicist and meteorologist Entertainment * Dalton (Buffyverse), minor ch ...

. It replaced an older jail built in 1880 that had become unfit. The jail housed up to 16 prisoners upstairs. The Heard County Sheriff (there were eight sheriffs from 1912–1964) and his family lived downstairs. In the 1930s, two prisoners cut the window bars and escaped. Death row prisoners were held here, but the jail's gallows were never used. In 1964, a new county jail opened on the Franklin Square and the old jail closed. The jail was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

on January 27, 1981. In 1987 it was completely restored by the Heard County Historical Society. It now serves as a museum and historical center.

Gallery

File:Franklin, Georgia Court Square.JPG, Franklin Court Square File:Franklin, Georgia City Hall.JPG, Franklin City Hall File:Franklin, Georgia Post Office (30217).JPG, Franklin Post Office ( ZIP code: 30217) File:Heard County Comprehensive High School (Franklin, Georgia).JPG, Heard County Comprehensive High School File:Heard County School System.JPG, Heard County School System

References

External links

Franklin Baptist Church
historical marker
Franklin Methodist Church
historical marker
Heard County Jail
historical marker {{authority control Cities in Georgia (U.S. state) Cities in Heard County, Georgia County seats in Georgia (U.S. state) Georgia populated places on the Chattahoochee River