Franklin County is a county in Southern Illinois. At the 2020 census, it had a population of 37,804. The largest city is West Frankfort and the county seat is Benton. Franklin County is located in the Metro Lakeland area of Southern Illinois, deep within "Little Egypt".

History Franklin County was established on January 2, 1818, and formed from parts of Gallatin and White counties. It was named for Benjamin Franklin.

Coal mining Coal was mined in Franklin County as early as 1889, at the King Coal Mine, located at Township 5 South, Range 3 East.

The high levels of gas found in Franklin County's coal deposits have resulted in mining disasters and explosions over the years. Between 1905 and 1968, there were eleven mine disasters. In 1905, the Zeigler No. 1 mine, located in Zeigler, had an explosion that killed about fifty people. In 1917, an explosion in Old Ben Mine No. 11, located in Christopher, killed 17. The worst explosion occurred in 1951, in the Orient No. 2 Mine in West Frankfort, in which 119 people died.

The West Frankfort quadrangle of Franklin County is home to 17 coal mines, according to a 2004 report.

Geography According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (5.2%) is water. Wayne Fitzgerrell State Recreation Area is located in this county.

Climate and weather

In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Benton have ranged from a low of in January to a high of in July, although a record low of was recorded in January 1977 and a record high of was recorded in August 2007. Average monthly precipitation ranged from in February to in May.

On April 21, 1912, a tornado destroyed facilities at the Possum Ridge Mine.

On March 18, 1925, Franklin County was among five southern Illinois counties affected by the infamous Tri-State Tornado. The storm cut across the southern edge of the county, hitting West Frankfort and destroying most of the northern side of town, causing significant damage to the town's mining facilities. Farther to the east, the village of Parrish was also struck, and was never rebuilt. The storm killed 192 people in Franklin County, injuring hundreds more and leaving scores of people homeless.

Adjacent counties Jefferson County (north) Hamilton County (east) Saline County (southeast) Williamson County (south) Jackson County (southwest) Perry County (west)

Transit South Central Transit

Major highways

Interstate 57 Illinois Route 14 Illinois Route 34 Illinois Route 37 Illinois Route 148 Illinois Route 149 Illinois Route 154 Illinois Route 184

Demographics

2020 census As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 37,804. The median age was 44.1 years. 21.5% of residents were under the age of 18 and 21.9% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 98.1 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 95.2 males age 18 and over.

The racial makeup of the county was 93.8% White, 0.5% Black or African American, 0.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% Asian, <0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 0.5% from some other race, and 4.6% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 1.7% of the population.

40.8% of residents lived in urban areas, while 59.2% lived in rural areas.

There were 16,251 households in the county, of which 27.2% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 45.3% were married-couple households, 20.3% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 27.1% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 32.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

There were 18,480 housing units, of which 12.1% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 73.2% were owner-occupied and 26.8% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 3.2% and the rental vacancy rate was 11.0%.

Racial and ethnic composition +Franklin County, Illinois – Racial and ethnic compositionRace / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)Pop 1980Pop 1990Pop 2000Pop 2010 Pop 2020% 1980% 1990% 2000% 2010% 2020White alone (NH)42,87939,97938,32338,35335,21099.25%99.16%98.22%96.95%93.14%Black or African American alone (NH)3336571181620.08%0.09%0.15%0.30%0.43%Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)501067692920.12%0.26%0.19%0.23%0.24%Asian alone (NH)4181681221190.09%0.20%0.17%0.31%0.31%Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)x included in the Asian category in the 1980 Censusx included in the Asian category in the 1990 Census334xx0.01%0.01%0.01%Other race alone (NH)307313630.07%0.02%0.01%0.03%0.17%Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)x not an option in the 1980 Censusx not an option in the 1990 Census2393851,512xx0.61%0.97%4.00%Hispanic or Latino (any race)1681102494756420.39%0.27%0.64%1.20%1.70%Total43,20140,31939,01839,56137,804 100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%

2010 census As of the 2010 United States census, there were 39,561 people, 16,617 households, and 10,912 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 18,525 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 97.7% white, 0.3% Asian, 0.3% American Indian, 0.3% black or African American, 0.3% from other races, and 1.1% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 1.2% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 21.8% were German, 18.7% were Irish, 15.9% were English, 9.4% were American, and 5.7% were Italian.

Of the 16,617 households, 30.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.8% were married couples living together, 11.6% had a female householder with no husband present, 34.3% were non-families, and 30.0% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.35 and the average family size was 2.88. The median age was 41.8 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $34,381 and the median income for a family was $43,170. Males had a median income of $39,122 versus $28,950 for females. The per capita income for the county was $18,504. About 14.5% of families and 19.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 30.5% of those under age 18 and 9.9% of those age 65 or over.

Communities Cities

Benton (seat) Christopher Orient Sesser West Frankfort Zeigler

Villages

Buckner Ewing Freeman Spur (mostly in Williamson County) Hanaford Macedonia (partly in Hamilton County) North City Royalton Thompsonville Valier West City

Census-designated place Mulkeytown

Townships Franklin County is divided into twelve townships:

Barren Benton Browning Cave Denning Eastern Ewing Frankfort Goode Northern Six Mile Tyrone

Unincorporated communities

Akin Akin Junction Cleburne Deering City Frisco Kegley Meyer Parrish Pershing Plumfield Rend City Steel City Valier Patch West End Whittington

Education Regional Franklin, Johnson, Massac, and Williamson County Regional Office of Education #21 Franklin, Johnson, Massac, and Williamson County Regional Office of Education #21

Primary and secondary Christopher Unit School District 99 Christopher Unit School District #99 Sesser-Valier Community Unit School District 196 Sesser Unit School District #196 Benton Community Consolidated School District 47 Benton School District #47 Frankfort Community Unit School District 168 Frankfort Community Unit School District #168 Zeigler-Royalton Community Unit School District 188 Zeigler-Royalton Community Unit School District #188 Thompsonville Community Unit School District 174Thompsonville Community Unit School District #174 Ewing-Northern Community Consolidated School District 115 Ewing-Northern Community Unit School District #115

Higher education John A. Logan College Extension Center - West Frankfort

Specialized Franklin & Jefferson County Special Education Cooperative Franklin & Jefferson County Special Education Cooperative

Politics Franklin County voted mostly for Democratic US presidential candidates until 2000. Since then it has voted for Republican presidential nominees.

See also National Register of Historic Places listings in Franklin County, Illinois Ku Klux Klan in Southern Illinois Fourth Franklin County Courthouse

References

United States Census Bureau 2007 TIGER/Line Shapefiles United States Board on Geographic Names (GNIS) United States National Atlas