Franklin, Kansas

Franklin is an unincorporated community (and census-designated place) in Crawford County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2010 census it had a population of 375.[2] Franklin is located along U.S. Route 69 1 mile (1.6 km) south of Arma, or 5.9 miles (9.5 km) north of Frontenac. Franklin has a post office with ZIP code 66735.[3]

For the ghost town in Douglas County, see Franklin, Douglas County, Kansas.
Franklin, Kansas
Unincorporated community
Franklin
Location within the state of Kansas
Coordinates: 37°31′35″N 94°42′21″W
CountryUnited States
StateKansas
CountyCrawford
Area
 • Total1.72 sq mi (4.46 km2)
 • Land1.71 sq mi (4.43 km2)
 • Water0.01 sq mi (0.03 km2)
Elevation
988 ft (301 m)
Population
 (2010)
 • Total375
 • Density220/sq mi (84/km2)
Time zoneUTC-6 (CST)
 • Summer (DST)UTC-5 (CDT)
ZIP code
66735
Area code620
GNIS feature ID475147 [1]

History

Franklin began as a mining community in the early 1900s. It is located just off Highway 69 Bypass which is a major corridor between Kansas City and Pittsburg, Ks./Joplin, Mo. Franklin was a shipping point on the Joplin & Pittsburg electric railroad.[4] The first post office in Franklin was established in 1908.[5]

On May 4, 2003, a high-end F4 tornado ripped through Franklin, the path reached over 0.5 miles (0.80 km) wide at points. Franklin was all but destroyed, the U.S. Post Office, community center, and approximately 1/3 of family homes were destroyed. Four deaths and approximately 20 injuries were reported.[6][7][8]

Area attractions

Miners Hall Museum

Opened on May 1, 2012, the Miner’s Hall Museum was established to preserve and present authentic materials and artifacts that document the history of coal mining and its impact on Southeast Kansas.[9] One exhibit is of the "Amazon Army", a 1921 protest in which thousands of wives, daughters, mothers, sisters and sweethearts of striking coal miners halted work in the mines for three days.[10]

Franklin Sidewalk

Constructed in 1936 with federal funding assistance, the Franklin Sidewalk connects two rural mining communities in Crawford County - Arma and Franklin. The 3-foot wide sidewalk begins at the south edge of Arma and stretches south 1.7 miles to the south edge of Franklin. It has become well known as the "longest sidewalk connecting two communities". It runs adjacent to Business 69 Highway also known as "Jefferson Highway" and the "Frontier Military Scenic Byway". The Franklin Sidewalk appeared in the Guinness Book of World Records in the 1950s or 1960s. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places by the United States Department of the Interior March 16, 2007 and on the Kansas Register of Historic Places November 18, 2006. [11]

Notable people

References
  1. "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-25. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
  2. "Geographic Identifiers: 2010 Demographic Profile Data (G001): Franklin CDP, Kansas". U.S. Census Bureau, American Factfinder. Archived from the original on February 12, 2020. Retrieved August 4, 2014.
  3. ZIP Code Lookup
  4. Blackmar, Frank Wilson (1912). Kansas: A Cyclopedia of State History, Embracing Events, Institutions, Industries, Counties, Cities, Towns, Prominent Persons, Etc. Standard Publishing Company. pp. 679.
  5. "Kansas Post Offices, 1828-1961 (archived)". Kansas Historical Society. Archived from the original on October 9, 2013. Retrieved 6 June 2014.
  6. Franklin 2003 tornado stories.
  7. Tornado damage leaves town on brink of non-existence; Chicago Tribune; June 22, 2003.
  8. Public Response to Tornado Warnings: A Comparative Study of the May 4, 2003, Tornados in Kansas, Missouri, Tennessee; University of Colorado - Boulder; November 2003.
  9. "Miners Hall Museum". Miners Hall Museum. Retrieved 13 June 2018.
  10. "An Army of Amazons". An Army of Amazons. Retrieved 13 June 2018.
  11. "Sidewalk - Guinness World Record Holder & Road Projects". The Spirit of Franklin Remains. Retrieved 13 June 2018.
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