Franklin County, Arkansas
Franklin County is a county in Arkansas. As of the 2020 census, the population was 17,097. The county has two county seats, Charleston and Ozark. The county was formed on December 19, 1837, and named for Benjamin Franklin, American statesman. Franklin County is a damp county, with alcohol sales allowed except in Prairie & Alix townships, and limits on liquor sales in the city of Branch.
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. From receivership in 1875 after a railroad debt crisis, it was reorganized as the Little Rock and Fort Smith Railway. 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. In 1917 the line became a backbone of the MoPac, which merged into the Union Pacific Railroad in 1982.
The reality television show, The Simple Life, starring Nicole Richie and Paris Hilton was filmed in Altus in 2003.
Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of, of which is land and is water.Major highways
Adjacent counties
National protected area
Demographics
2020 census
As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 17,097. The median age was 41.7 years. 24.0% of residents were under the age of 18 and 20.0% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 99.4 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 95.3 males age 18 and over.The racial makeup of the county was 89.9% White, 0.5% Black or African American, 1.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0% Asian, 0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 1.1% from some other race, and 6.3% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 2.9% of the population.
<0.1% of residents lived in urban areas, while 100.0% lived in rural areas.
There were 6,706 households in the county, of which 31.4% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 51.6% were married-couple households, 17.5% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 24.2% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 25.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
There were 7,716 housing units, of which 13.1% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 75.0% were owner-occupied and 25.0% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.5% and the rental vacancy rate was 8.2%.
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. The racial makeup of the county was 96.17% White, 0.62% Black or African American, 0.80% Native American, 0.26% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 0.74% from other races, and 1.35% from two or more races. 1.74% of the population were Hispanic 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 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 for the county was $14,616. About 10.60% of families and 15.20% of the population were below the poverty line, including 16.20% of those under age 18 and 15.70% of those age 65 or over.
Government
Government
The county government is a constitutional body granted specific powers by the Constitution of Arkansas and the Arkansas Code. The quorum court is the legislative branch of the county government and controls all spending and revenue collection. Representatives are called justices of the peace and are elected from county districts every even-numbered year. The number of districts in a county vary from nine to fifteen, and district boundaries are drawn by the county election commission. The Franklin County Quorum Court has nine members. Presiding over quorum court meetings is the county judge, who serves as the chief operating officer of the county. The county judge is elected at-large and does not vote in quorum court business, although capable of vetoing quorum court decisions.| Position | Officeholder | Party |
| County Judge | Rickey Bowman | Republican |
| County Clerk | Tammy Sisson | Republican |
| Circuit Clerk | Janice King | Republican |
| Sheriff | Johnny Crocker | Republican |
| Treasurer | Shelly Wilson | Democratic |
| Collector | Margaret Hamilton | Republican |
| Assessor | Rose McKinnon | Republican |
| Coroner | Casey White | Democratic |
The composition of the Quorum Court following the 2024 elections is 6 Republicans, 1 Democrat, and 1 Independent. Justices of the Peace of the Quorum Court following the elections are:
- District 1: Roy Day
- District 2: Freddy Ree
- District 3: David L. Bowles Sr.
- District 4: Vacant
- District 5: Dennis Fisher
- District 6: Brian Lachowski
- District 7: Gary O'Neal
- District 8: Luke Verkamp
- District 9: Lacey Neissl Clark
- Boston: Doug L. Gilliam
- Hogan: H.R. Holloway
- Mill Creek: Wesley Ryan Keeton
- Mountain: Greg Beard
- Prairie: Brandon Hendrix
- White Oak: Orla Larsen
- Wittich: Timothy O'Neal
Politics
Over the past few election cycles, Franklin County has trended heavily towards the GOP. The last Democrat to carry this county was Arkansas native Bill Clinton in 1996.Communities
Cities
Town
Census-designated place
Unincorporated communities
Ghost towns
Townships
- Alix
- Barham
- Black Oak
- Boston
- Cobb
- Cravens
- Donald
- Grover
- Hogan
- Hurricane
- Ivy
- Limestone
- McIlroy
- Middle
- Mill Creek
- Miller
- Morgan
- Mountain
- Mulberry
- Prairie
- Shores
- Six Mile
- Walker
- Wallace
- Watalula
- Weaver
- White Oak
- White Rock
- Wittich