Franklin County is a nongovernmental

county A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...

in the northwestern part of the U.S. state of

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

. At the 2020 census, the population was 71,029, which made it the least populous county on the Massachusetts mainland, and the third least populous county in the state. Its traditional

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

and most populous city is Greenfield. Its largest town by area is New Salem. Franklin County comprises the Greenfield Town, MA Micropolitan Statistical Area, which is included in the Springfield–Greenfield Town, MA Combined Statistical Area.

History

Franklin County was created on June 24, 1811, from the northern third of Hampshire County. It was named for

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 ...

. Franklin County's government was abolished by the state government in 1997, at the county's request.

Law and government

Like several other Massachusetts counties, Franklin County exists today only as a geographic region and has no county government. The Franklin County Commission voted itself out of existence, and all former state-mandated county functions were assumed by state agencies in 1997. The sheriff and some other regional officials with specific duties are still elected locally to perform duties within the county region. Counties in Massachusetts and New England generally are historically weak governmental structures. The primary subdivision of the Commonwealth is the municipal town. Communities are permitted to form regional compacts for sharing services. The municipalities of Franklin County have formed the Franklin Regional Council of Governments. The regional council provides various services on a regional basis, and a majority of the county's towns are members of the Franklin County Solid Waste Management District, which provides municipal waste disposal and recycling services to its members. Public transportation throughout the county and in the North Quabbin area of northwestern Worcester County is provided by the Franklin Regional Transit Authority.

Politics

Voter registration

Geography and climate

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land, and (3.5%) is water. Central and southern Franklin County is dominated by the northern end of the Pioneer Valley, with steep hills rising on either side of the

Connecticut River The Connecticut River is the longest river in the New England region of the United States, flowing roughly southward for through four states. It rises 300 yards (270 m) south of the U.S. border with Quebec, Canada, and discharges into Long Isl ...

. The high point of Franklin County is Crum Hill, , located in the town of Monroe.

Climate

The climate in Franklin County is typically cool temperate. The area is also somewhat maritime, with relatively high year-round precipitation. Summers are warm and humid with frequent evening storms, and winters are cool to cold with frequent snow and subfreezing (below 31 °F) temperatures.

Protected areas

* Silvio O. Conte National Fish and Wildlife Refuge (part) * Paul C. Jones Working Forest (privately owned with conservation easement) around Brushy Mountain, Shutesbury Various Department of Conservation & Recreation properties.

Demographics

2000 census

At the 2000 census there were 71,535 people, 29,466 households, and 18,416 families in the county. The population density was . There were 31,939 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 95.40%

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 ...

, 0.89%

Black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...

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 ...

, 0.29% Native American, 1.04% Asian, 0.03%

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 ...

, 0.75% from other races, and 1.61% from two or more races. 1.99%. were

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. 16.2% were of English, 12.2% Irish, 12.0% Polish, 10.2% French, 7.0%

French Canadian French Canadians, referred to as Canadiens mainly before the nineteenth century, are an ethnic group descended from French people, French colonists first arriving in Canada (New France), France's colony of Canada in 1608. The vast majority of ...

, 6.7% German, 6.1% Italian and 6.0%

American ancestry In the demography of the United States, some people self-identify their ancestral origin or descent as "American", rather than the more common officially recognized racial and ethnic groups that make up the bulk of the American people. The ...

according to Census 2000. Most of those claiming to be of "American" ancestry are actually of English descent, but have family that has been in the country for so long, in many cases since the early seventeenth century that they choose to identify simply as "American". 94.5% spoke English and 1.8% Spanish as their first language. Of the 29,466 households 29.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.9% were married couples living together, 10.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.5% were non-families. 29.0% of households were one person and 10.9% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.38 and the average family size was 2.95. The age distribution was 23.5% under the age of 18, 7.8% from 18 to 24, 28.5% from 25 to 44, 25.9% from 45 to 64, and 14.2% 65 or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females, there were 93.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.5 males. The median household income was $40,768 and the median family income was $50,915. Males had a median income of $36,350 versus $27,228 for females. The per capita income for the county was $20,672. About 6.5% of families and 9.4% 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 10.5% of those under age 18 and 8.8% of those age 65 or over.

2010 census

At the 2010 census, there were 71,372 people, 30,462 households, and 18,317 families in the county. The population density was . There were 33,758 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 94.2% white, 1.3% Asian, 1.1% black, 0.3% American Indian, 1.0% from other races, and 2.1% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 3.2% of the population. The largest ancestry groups were: *20.0% English *19.8% Irish *15.9% French *12.6% Polish *12.0% German *9.1% Italian *7.2%

*4.5% Scottish *3.9% American *2.1% Swedish *2.0% Scotch-Irish *1.8% Puerto Rican *1.5% Russian *1.3% Dutch *1.3% Portuguese *1.3% Lithuanian *1.0% Welsh Of the 30,462 households, 26.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.8% were married couples living together, 10.7% had a female householder with no husband present, 39.9% were non-families, and 30.5% of households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.29 and the average family size was 2.85. The median age was 44.2 years. The median household income was $52,002 and the median family income was $65,760. Males had a median income of $45,480 versus $37,309 for females. The per capita income for the county was $27,544. About 7.7% of families and 11.3% of the population were below the

, including 14.8% of those under age 18 and 7.5% of those age 65 or over. Franklin County MA population density

Demographic breakdown by town

Income

The ranking of unincorporated communities that are included on the list are reflective if the census designated locations and villages were included as cities or towns. Data is from the 2007-2011 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates.

Transportation

Franklin County is served by buses run by the Franklin Regional Transit Authority. Southeastern Franklin County is also served by the Pioneer Valley Transit Authority, with transportation to destinations in neighboring Hampshire County.

Major highways

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

Notable person

* David Dunnels White,

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest Awards and decorations of the United States Armed Forces, military decoration and is awarded to recognize American United States Army, soldiers, United States Navy, sailors, Un ...

nominee for capturing Major General Custis Lee, son of

Robert E. Lee Robert Edward Lee (January 19, 1807 – October 12, 1870) was a general officers in the Confederate States Army, Confederate general during the American Civil War, who was appointed the General in Chief of the Armies of the Confederate ...

, at the Battle of Sailors Creek, Virginia, April 6, 1865. He was born in Cheshire, Massachusetts, in 1844, and was buried in the Bozrah Cemetery in East Hawley, Massachusetts, in 1924.

Communities

City

* Greenfield (traditional county seat)

Towns

* Ashfield * Bernardston * Buckland * Charlemont * Colrain *

Conway Conway may refer to: Places United States * Conway, Arkansas * Conway County, Arkansas * Lake Conway, Arkansas * Conway, Florida * Conway, Iowa * Conway, Kansas * Conway, Louisiana * Conway, Massachusetts * Conway, Michigan * Conway Townshi ...

* Deerfield * Erving *

Gill A gill () is a respiration organ, respiratory organ that many aquatic ecosystem, aquatic organisms use to extract dissolved oxygen from water and to excrete carbon dioxide. The gills of some species, such as hermit crabs, have adapted to allow r ...

* Hawley * Heath * Leverett *

Leyden Leiden ( ; ; in English and archaic Dutch also Leyden) is a city and municipality in the province of South Holland, Netherlands. The municipality of Leiden has a population of 127,046 (31 January 2023), but the city forms one densely connecte ...

* Monroe * Montague * New Salem * Northfield * Orange * Rowe * Shelburne * Shutesbury *

Sunderland Sunderland () is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is a port at the mouth of the River Wear on the North Sea, approximately south-east of Newcastle upon Tyne. It is the most p ...

* Warwick * Wendell * Whately

Census-designated places

* Deerfield * Millers Falls * Northfield * Orange * Shelburne Falls * South Deerfield * Turners Falls

Other unincorporated communities

* Lake Pleasant * Satans Kingdom * Zoar

References

External links

National Register of Historic Places listing for Franklin Co., Massachusetts

Map of cities and towns of Massachusetts

Franklin Regional Council of Governments website

Franklin Regional Transit Authority website

Franklin County Chamber of Commerce website
* Wall & Gray. 1871
Franklin County map
* Beers, D.G. 1872. ''Atlas of Essex County'
Map of Massachusetts Plate 5
Click on the map for a very large image.
US Census Bureau map
of cities, towns, Native American reservations, and census-designated places {{coord, 42.58, -72.59, display=title, type:adm2nd_region:US-MA_source:UScensus1990 Massachusetts counties Springfield metropolitan area, Massachusetts 1811 establishments in Massachusetts Populated places established in 1811 1997 disestablishments in Massachusetts Populated places disestablished in 1997