Franklin Township is a

township A township is a form of human settlement or administrative subdivision. Its exact definition varies among countries. Although the term is occasionally associated with an urban area, this tends to be an exception to the rule. In Australia, Canad ...

in Lycoming County,

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

, United States. The population was 901 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Williamsport Metropolitan Statistical Area.

History

Franklin Township, 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 ...

, was formed from part of Moreland Township in 1822. It included what is now Jordan Township until that was formed 32 years later. Another portion of Franklin Township was cut away in 1828 to form Penn Township. The earliest settlers to Franklin Township were farmers. They arrived in the early 19th century and cleared the hills and valleys. Many of the farms established by these early settlers are still thriving today. Other important business ventures in Franklin Township included a large tannery on Little Muncy Creek just south of Lairdsville and the lumber industry which swept throughout north central Pennsylvania during the mid-to-late 19th century. Thousands of acres of

old-growth forest An old-growth forest or primary forest is a forest that has developed over a long period of time without disturbance. Due to this, old-growth forests exhibit unique ecological features. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Natio ...

s were stripped to the ground. The logs were floated down the streams to one of the many sawmills that were spread along the banks of Little Muncy Creek. Today the forests of Franklin Township have regrown, providing an excellent

habitat In ecology, habitat refers to the array of resources, biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species' habitat can be seen as the physical manifestation of its ...

for

white-tailed deer The white-tailed deer (''Odocoileus virginianus''), also known Common name, commonly as the whitetail and the Virginia deer, is a medium-sized species of deer native to North America, North, Central America, Central and South America. It is the ...

, black bear and

turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

. Enos Hawley, born in Chester County, was one of the first citizens in Lycoming County publicly to state an opposition to

slavery Slavery is the ownership of a person as property, especially in regards to their labour. Slavery typically involves compulsory work, with the slave's location of work and residence dictated by the party that holds them in bondage. Enslavemen ...

. He was a member of the

Religious Society of Friends Quakers are people who belong to the Religious Society of Friends, a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations. Members refer to each other as Friends after in the Bible, and originally, others referred to them as Quakers ...

. The Quakers were firmly against slavery and were noted for the assistance they provided the abolitionist movement in the years preceding the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

. Hawley was raised in Franklin Township in the vicinity of Lairdsville, which is the only village in the township. Hawley went on to serve as

postmaster A postmaster is the head of an individual post office, responsible for all postal activities in a specific post office. When a postmaster is responsible for an entire mail distribution organization (usually sponsored by a national government), ...

in the nearby

borough A borough is an administrative division in various English language, English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History ...

of Muncy.

Geography

Franklin Township is in southeastern Lycoming County and is bordered by Sullivan County to the north, Jordan Township to the east, Montour County to the south, Moreland Township to the southwest, and Penn Township to the northwest. Lairdsville is in the center of the township, along Pennsylvania Route 118, which leads west to Hughesville and east-northeast to

Dallas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

. Williamsport, the Lycoming

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 ...

, is west of Franklin Township via PA 118 and U.S. Route 220. 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 township has a total area of , of which are land and , or 0.56%, are water. The township is drained by Little Muncy Creek and its tributaries, flowing west to Muncy Creek and then the West Branch Susquehanna River near the borough of Muncy.

Demographics

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 2000, there were 915 people, 346 households, and 271 families residing in the township. The population density was . There were 396 housing units at an average density of 16.2/sq mi (6.3/km²). The racial makeup of the township was 99.56%

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 ...

, 0.11%

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 ...

, 0.22% Native American, and 0.11% from two or more races. There were 346 households, out of which 31.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 67.1% 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, 7.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 21.4% were non-families. 17.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.64 and the average family size was 2.98. In the township the population was spread out, with 23.5% under the age of 18, 8.5% from 18 to 24, 29.2% from 25 to 44, 27.2% from 45 to 64, and 11.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 104.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 101.7 males. The median income for a household in the township was $37,500, and the median income for a family was $43,250. Males had a median income of $29,231 versus $21,523 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 township was $16,584. About 5.1% of families and 8.7% 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 10.0% of those under age 18 and 8.4% of those age 65 or over.

References

{{Lycoming County, Pennsylvania Townships in Lycoming County, Pennsylvania Populated places established in 1772 1772 establishments in Pennsylvania