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Franklin County is a
county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...
in
Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the O ...
. As of the 2010 census, the population was 18,125. The county has two
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 ...
s, Charleston and Ozark. The county was formed on December 19, 1837, and named for
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 int ...
, American statesman. To the north of the
Arkansas River The Arkansas River is a major tributary of the Mississippi River. It generally flows to the east and southeast as it traverses the U.S. states of Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Arkansas. The river's source basin lies in the western United ...
, which bisects Franklin County, the county is wet and alcohol is sold in liquor stores, bars and local
vineyard A vineyard (; also ) is a plantation of grape-bearing vines, grown mainly for winemaking, but also raisins, table grapes and non-alcoholic grape juice. The science, practice and study of vineyard production is known as viticulture. Vineyard ...
s. To the south of the Arkansas River, the county is dry.


History

Franklin County was carved out of Crawford County in December 1837. At that time, Franklin was significantly larger than it is at present, encompassing part of present-day Logan County which was formed in 1871. Initially, the county had a single courthouse at Ozark. To promote economic growth in the county, federal land grants were made in 1853 to incentivize the construction and operation of the
Little Rock and Fort Smith Railroad The Little Rock and Fort Smith Railroad was a railroad that operated in the state of Arkansas between 1853 and 1875. It came to national prominence when its bonds were the subject of a scandal involving Republican presidential candidate James G. ...
. From receivership in 1875 after a railroad debt crisis, it was reorganized as the Little Rock and Fort Smith Railway.Map of Franklin County, Arkansas; showing the land grant of the Little Rock & Fort Smith Railway.
United States. General Land Office. Little Rock & Fort Smith R.R. Co. Published: Washington, 1893. Accessed 3 February 2022.
A number of towns were established in the 1890s on the north bank of the river along its right of way. Many farmers purchased land that had been owned by the railway. After complaints about how difficult it was to cross the river at times, a second courthouse was established at Charleston for citizens in the settlements south of the river, sometime in the 1890s, probably after 1892 since "Charleston" did not appear in an 1893 railroad map in all capital letters as "OZARK" did. In 1906 the railway was acquired by the
St. Louis, Iron Mountain and Southern Railway The St. Louis, Iron Mountain and Southern Railway (St. L., I. M. & S.), commonly known as the Iron Mountain, was an American railway company that operated from 1874 until 1917 when it was merged into the Missouri Pacific Railroad. History The Iro ...
. In 1917 the line became a backbone of the MoPac, which merged into the
Union Pacific Railroad The Union Pacific Railroad , legally Union Pacific Railroad Company and often called simply Union Pacific, is a freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Paci ...
in 1982. The reality television show, The Simple Life, starring
Nicole Richie Nicole Camille Richie (; born September 21, 1981) is an American television personality, fashion designer, socialite, and actress. She came to prominence after appearing in the reality television series '' The Simple Life'' (2003–2007), in whi ...
and
Paris Hilton Paris Whitney Hilton (born February 17, 1981) is an American media personality, businesswoman, socialite, model, and entertainer. Born in New York City, and raised there and in Beverly Hills, California, she is a great-granddaughter of Conrad ...
was filmed in
Altus Altus or ALTUS may refer to: Music * Alto, a musical term meaning second highest musical or vocal type * Altus (voice type), a vocal type also known as countertenor Places * Altus, Arkansas, US ** Altus AVA, a wine-growing region near Altus, Ark ...
in 2003.


Geography

According to the
U.S. 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 ...
, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (1.7%) is water.


Major highways

*
Interstate 40 Interstate 40 (I-40) is a major east–west Interstate Highway running through the south-central portion of the United States. At a length of , it is the third-longest Interstate Highway in the country, after I-90 and I-80. From west to ea ...
*
U.S. Highway 64 U.S. Route 64 (US 64) is an east–west United States highway that runs for 2,326 miles (3,743 km) from Nags Head in eastern North Carolina to just southwest of the Four Corners in northeast Arizona. The western terminus is at U.S. Route ...
* Highway 22 * Highway 23 * Highway 41 * Highway 60 * Highway 96


Adjacent counties

* Madison County (north) * Johnson County (east) * Logan County (southeast) * Sebastian County (southwest) * Crawford County (west)


National protected area

*
Ozark National Forest The Ozarks, also known as the Ozark Mountains, Ozark Highlands or Ozark Plateau, is a physiographic region in the U.S. states of Missouri, Arkansas, Oklahoma and the extreme southeastern corner of Kansas. The Ozarks cover a significant port ...
(part)


Demographics


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 off ...
, there were 17,097 people, 6,723 households, and 4,537 families residing in the county.


2000 census

As of the 2000 census, there were 17,771 people, 6,882 households, and 4,961 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 7,673 housing units at an average density of 13 per square mile (5/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 96.17%
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 ...
, 0.62%
Black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white ha ...
or
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 ...
, 0.80% Native American, 0.26% Asian, 0.06%
Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/ racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subregions of O ...
, 0.74% from other races, and 1.35% from two or more races. 1.74% of the population were
Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, 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 viceroyalties for ...
or Latino of any race. There were 6,882 households, out of which 32.40% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.20% were
married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between ...
living together, 8.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.90% were non-families. 24.60% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.40% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.51 and the average family size was 2.99. In the county, the population was spread out, with 25.80% under the age of 18, 8.50% from 18 to 24, 26.70% from 25 to 44, 23.20% from 45 to 64, and 15.80% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.80 males. The median income for a household in the county was $30,848, and the median income for a family was $36,189. Males had a median income of $27,907 versus $18,822 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 county was $14,616. About 10.60% of families and 15.20% 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 16.20% of those under age 18 and 15.70% of those age 65 or over.


Government

Over the past few election cycles, Franklin County has trended heavily towards the GOP. The last Democrat (as of 2020) to carry this county was Arkansas native Bill Clinton in 1996.


Communities


Cities

*
Altus Altus or ALTUS may refer to: Music * Alto, a musical term meaning second highest musical or vocal type * Altus (voice type), a vocal type also known as countertenor Places * Altus, Arkansas, US ** Altus AVA, a wine-growing region near Altus, Ark ...
*
Branch A branch, sometimes called a ramus in botany, is a woody structural member connected to the central trunk of a tree (or sometimes a shrub). Large branches are known as boughs and small branches are known as twigs. The term '' twig'' usuall ...
* Charleston (county seat) * Ozark (county seat) * Wiederkehr Village


Town

* Denning


Unincorporated communities

*
Alix ''Alix'', or ''The Adventures of Alix'', is a Franco-Belgian comics series drawn in the ligne claire style by Jacques Martin (comics), Jacques Martin. The stories revolve around a young Gallo-Roman man named Alix in the late Roman Republic. Al ...
* Cecil *
Peanut The peanut (''Arachis hypogaea''), also known as the groundnut, goober (US), pindar (US) or monkey nut (UK), is a legume crop grown mainly for its edible seeds. It is widely grown in the tropics and subtropics, important to both small an ...


Ghost towns

* Sub Rosa


Townships

* Alix (part of Wiederkehr Village) * Barham * Black Oak * Boston * Cobb * Cravens * Donald (most of
Branch A branch, sometimes called a ramus in botany, is a woody structural member connected to the central trunk of a tree (or sometimes a shrub). Large branches are known as boughs and small branches are known as twigs. The term '' twig'' usuall ...
) * Grover * Hogan (
Altus Altus or ALTUS may refer to: Music * Alto, a musical term meaning second highest musical or vocal type * Altus (voice type), a vocal type also known as countertenor Places * Altus, Arkansas, US ** Altus AVA, a wine-growing region near Altus, Ark ...
, Denning, part of Wiederkehr Village) * Hurricane * Ivy * Limestone * McIlroy * Middle * Mill Creek * Miller * Morgan * Mountain * Mulberry * Prairie ( Charleston, small part of
Branch A branch, sometimes called a ramus in botany, is a woody structural member connected to the central trunk of a tree (or sometimes a shrub). Large branches are known as boughs and small branches are known as twigs. The term '' twig'' usuall ...
) * Shores * Six Mile * Walker * Wallace * Watalula * Weaver * White Oak ( Ozark, most of Wiederkehr Village) * White Rock * Wittich


See also

* List of lakes in Franklin County, Arkansas *
National Register of Historic Places listings in Franklin County, Arkansas __NOTOC__ This is a list of the National Register of Historic Places listings in Franklin County, Arkansas. This is intended to be a complete list of the properties and districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Franklin County, ...
* Gary Stubblefield * Bill Gossage


References


Further reading

* Shropshire, Lola. ''Franklin County, Arkansas: Images of America'', Arcadia Publishing, 128 pages, Aug 2000 {{authority control 1837 establishments in Arkansas Populated places established in 1837 Fort Smith metropolitan area