Franklin, Georgia

Not to be confused with Franklin County, Georgia.

City in Georgia, United States

Franklin, Georgia

City

The old Heard County gas station was built in 1938 and features a vintage, hand-painted Coca-Cola advertisement.

Location in Heard County and the state of Georgia

Coordinates: 33°16′47″N 85°5′54″W﻿ / ﻿33.27972°N 85.09833°W﻿ / 33.27972; -85.09833
Country| United States
State| Georgia
County| Heard
Named after| Benjamin Franklin
Government

• Mayor| Joel Rogers
Area

[1]

• Total

| 3.35 sq mi (8.68 km2)
• Land| 3.21 sq mi (8.31 km2)
• Water| 0.14 sq mi (0.36 km2)
Elevation

| 663 ft (202 m)
Population

(2020)

• Total

| 950
• Density| 295.95/sq mi (114.26/km2)
Time zone| UTC-5 (Eastern (EST))
• Summer (DST)| UTC-4 (EDT)
ZIP code|

30217

Area code| 706
FIPS code| 13-31292[2]
GNIS feature ID| 0314347[3]
Website| www.franklingeorgia.com

Franklin is a city in Heard County, Georgia, United States. The population was 950 in 2020. Franklin is the county seat of Heard County.[4] The city is named after Benjamin Franklin.[5]

## History

[edit]

Franklin was settled in 1770, and was designated seat of the newly formed Heard County in 1831.[6] The town was hit by a tornado 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.[7][8]

## Geography

[edit]

Franklin is located in central Heard County at 33°16′47″N 85°05′54″W﻿ / ﻿33.279788°N 85.098403°W﻿ / 33.279788; -85.098403,[9] along the Chattahoochee River. U.S. Route 27 passes through the east side of the city on a bypass, leading north 23 miles (37 km) to Carrollton and south 19 miles (31 km) to LaGrange. Georgia State Route 34 passes through the center of Franklin, leading northeast 20 miles (32 km) to Newnan and southwest 12 miles (19 km) to the Alabama border. Georgia State Route 100 joins SR 34 for part of its path through Franklin, but leads northwest 14 miles (23 km) to Ephesus and southeast 14 miles to Hogansville.

According to the United States Census Bureau, Franklin has a total area of 3.5 square miles (9.0 km2), of which 3.4 square miles (8.7 km2) are land and 0.2 square miles (0.4 km2), or 4.00%, are water.[10]

## Demographics

[edit]

Historical population | Census| Pop.| Note| %±

|
|
|

1880| 269| | —
1890| 250| | −7.1%
1900| 218| | −12.8%
1910| 340| | 56.0%
1920| 317| | −6.8%
1930| 312| | −1.6%
1940| 390| | 25.0%
1950| 425| | 9.0%
1960| 603| | 41.9%
1970| 749| | 24.2%
1980| 711| | −5.1%
1990| 876| | 23.2%
2000| 902| | 3.0%
2010| 993| | 10.1%
2020| 950| | −4.3%
U.S. Decennial Census[11]
Franklin racial composition as of 2020[12] | Race  | Num.  | Perc.

|
|

White (non-Hispanic)  | 625  | 65.79%
Black or African American (non-Hispanic)  | 217  | 22.84%
Native American | 3  | 0.32%
Asian | 20  | 2.11%
Other/Mixed | 64  | 6.74%
Hispanic or Latino | 21  | 2.21%

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 950 people, 421 households, and 215 families residing in the city.

## Education

[edit]

### Heard County School District

[edit]

The Heard County School District holds pre-school to grade twelve, and consists of three elementary schools, a middle school, and a high school.[13] The district has 132 full-time teachers and over 2,278 students.[14]

## Old Heard County Jail

[edit]

Old Heard County Jail in 2012

Pauly Jail Company of Alabama built the jail in 1912 for $7,500, using plans by Manly Jail Works of Dalton, Georgia. 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 to 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 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

[edit]

* Franklin Court Square

* Franklin City Hall

* Franklin Post Office (ZIP code: 30217)

* Heard County Comprehensive High School

* Heard County School System

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved December 18, 2021.
2. ^ "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
3. ^ "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. October 25, 2007. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
4. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on May 31, 2011. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
5. ^ Gannett, Henry (1905). The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States. Govt. Print. Off. p. 131.
6. ^ Hellmann, Paul T. (May 13, 2013). Historical Gazetteer of the United States. Routledge. p. 230\. ISBN 978-1135948597. Retrieved November 30, 2013.
7. ^ National Weather Service Weather Forecast Office in Peachtree City, Georgia (March 31, 2021). NWS Damage Survey for March 25-26, 2021 Tornado and Severe Weather Event Update #5 (Report). Iowa Environmental Mesonet. Retrieved March 31, 2021.
8. ^ "ArcGIS Web Application". apps.dat.noaa.gov. Retrieved March 26, 2021.
9. ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. February 12, 2011. Retrieved April 23, 2011.
10. ^ "Geographic Identifiers: 2010 Demographic Profile Data (G001): Franklin city, Georgia". American Factfinder. U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved May 18, 2017.[dead link]
11. ^ "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
12. ^ "Explore Census Data". data.census.gov. Retrieved December 18, 2021.
13. ^ Georgia Board of Education [permanent dead link]. Retrieved June 19, 2010.
14. ^ School Stats. Retrieved June 19, 2010.

## External links

[edit]

* Franklin Baptist Church historical marker
* Franklin Methodist Church historical marker
* Heard County Jail historical marker

* v
* t
* e

Municipalities and communities of Heard County, Georgia, United States

County seat: Franklin

Cities|

* Ephesus
* Franklin

Map of Georgia highlighting Heard County

Town|

* Centralhatchee

CDP|

* Glenn

Other
unincorporated
communities|

* Cooksville
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Ghost town|

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Footnotes|

‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties

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