Franklin County, Washington

Franklin County
County
Franklin County Courthouse in Pasco
Location within the U.S. state of Washington
Washington's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 46°32′N118°54′W / 46.54°N 118.9°W / 46.54; -118.9
Country	United States
State	Washington
Founded	November 28, 1883
Named for	Benjamin Franklin
Seat	Pasco
Largest city	Pasco
Area
• Total	1,265 sq mi (3,280 km2)
• Land	1,242 sq mi (3,220 km2)
• Water	23 sq mi (60 km2)  1.8%
Population  (2020)
• Total	96,749
• Estimate  (2022)	98,678
• Density	71/sq mi (27/km2)
Time zone	UTC−8 (Pacific)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−7 (PDT)
Congressional districts	4th, 5th
Website	www.co.franklin.wa.us

Franklin County is a county located in the U.S. state of Washington. As of the 2020 census, its population was 96,749. ^[1] The county seat and most populous city is Pasco. ^[2] The county was formed out of Whitman County on November 28, 1883, ^[3] and is named for Benjamin Franklin. ^[4]

Franklin County is included in the Tri-Cities metropolitan area. Together, Kennewick, Richland and Pasco comprise Washington's Tri-Cities.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,265 square miles (3,280 km²), of which 1,242 square miles (3,220 km²) is land and 23 square miles (60 km²) (1.8%) is water. ^[5]

Geographic features

• Columbia River
• Hanford Nuclear Reservation
• Juniper Dunes Wilderness
• Snake River

Major highways

• SR 260
• Interstate 182
• U.S. 12
• U.S. 395

Adjacent counties

• Adams County - north
• Whitman County - east
• Walla Walla County - southeast
• Columbia County - southeast
• Benton County - southwest
• Grant County - northwest

National protected areas

• Hanford Reach National Monument (part)
• Saddle Mountain National Wildlife Refuge (part)

Demographics

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1890	696		—
1900	486		−30.2%
1910	5,153		960.3%
1920	5,877		14.1%
1930	6,137		4.4%
1940	6,307		2.8%
1950	13,563		115.0%
1960	23,342		72.1%
1970	25,816		10.6%
1980	35,025		35.7%
1990	37,473		7.0%
2000	49,347		31.7%
2010	78,163		58.4%
2020	96,749		23.8%
2022 (est.)	98,678	[6]	2.0%
U.S. Decennial Census [7] 1790–1960 [8] 1900–1990 [9] 1990–2000 [10] 2010–2020 [1]

Franklin County, along with Adams County, have the highest per capita percentage of Latino residents in the state. ^[11]

2020 census

as of the 2020 census, there were 96,749 people in Franklin County.^{[ citation needed ]}

2010 census

As of the 2010 census, there were 78,163 people, 23,245 households, and 18,163 families residing in the county. ^[12] The population density was 62.9 inhabitants per square mile (24.3/km²). There were 24,423 housing units at an average density of 19.7 per square mile (7.6/km²). ^[13] The racial makeup of the county was 60.5% white, 1.9% black or African American, 1.8% Asian, 0.7% American Indian, 0.1% Pacific islander, 31.8% from other races, and 3.2% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 51.2% of the population. ^[12] In terms of ancestry, 13.1% were German, 6.8% were English, 6.5% were Irish, and 3.3% were American. ^[14]

Of the 23,245 households, 49.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.9% were married couples living together, 13.4% had a female householder with no husband present, 21.9% were non-families, and 16.4% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 3.28 and the average family size was 3.68. The median age was 28.4 years. ^[12]

The median income for a household in the county was $47,749 and the median income for a family was $52,218. Males had a median income of $40,604 versus $29,517 for females. The per capita income for the county was $18,660. About 16.5% of families and 19.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 25.6% of those under age 18 and 13.7% of those age 65 or over. ^[15]

The 2019 county population is estimated to be 95,222, a 21.8% increase since 2010. This far outpaces Washington State's overall growth of 13.2% over the same time interval, and puts Franklin County among the fastest-growing counties in the nation.

In 2018 the county contained 28,647 housing units.

Communities

Cities

• Connell
• Kahlotus
• Mesa
• Pasco (county seat)

Census-designated places

• Basin City
• West Pasco

Unincorporated communities

• Eltopia
• Harder

Government

Franklin County has a Board of County Commissioners which is the governmental authority of the county. The board consists of three commissioners; they are elected by the voters and serve four-year terms. ^[16] Other elected county officials include Assessor, Auditor, Clerk, Coroner, Prosecuting Attorney, Sheriff, and Treasurer. ^[17]

Politics

United States presidential election results for Franklin County, Washington ^[18]

Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party
	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
2020	18,039	55.67%	13,340	41.17%	1,025	3.16%
2016	13,206	53.65%	8,886	36.10%	2,522	10.25%
2012	13,748	60.39%	8,398	36.89%	618	2.71%
2008	12,037	60.81%	7,361	37.19%	397	2.01%
2004	10,757	66.57%	5,188	32.11%	214	1.32%
2000	8,594	63.13%	4,653	34.18%	367	2.70%
1996	5,946	49.16%	4,961	41.01%	1,189	9.83%
1992	4,486	41.02%	3,743	34.22%	2,708	24.76%
1988	6,488	56.65%	4,772	41.67%	192	1.68%
1984	7,724	62.96%	4,328	35.28%	216	1.76%
1980	7,327	61.26%	3,719	31.09%	915	7.65%
1976	5,671	54.51%	4,369	42.00%	363	3.49%
1972	5,972	56.75%	3,867	36.75%	684	6.50%
1968	4,234	44.22%	4,038	42.17%	1,303	13.61%
1964	3,615	35.94%	6,375	63.38%	68	0.68%
1960	4,201	44.65%	5,156	54.80%	52	0.55%
1956	3,763	46.51%	4,322	53.42%	5	0.06%
1952	3,291	53.89%	2,798	45.82%	18	0.29%
1948	1,541	37.31%	2,525	61.14%	64	1.55%
1944	1,381	40.97%	1,974	58.56%	16	0.47%
1940	1,084	36.34%	1,868	62.62%	31	1.04%
1936	622	23.98%	1,784	68.77%	188	7.25%
1932	838	33.89%	1,540	62.27%	95	3.84%
1928	1,339	61.96%	799	36.97%	23	1.06%
1924	709	31.15%	237	10.41%	1,330	58.44%
1920	839	44.46%	571	30.26%	477	25.28%
1916	671	35.02%	1,110	57.93%	135	7.05%
1912	293	16.41%	612	34.29%	880	49.30%
1908	643	52.97%	485	39.95%	86	7.08%
1904	572	69.25%	223	27.00%	31	3.75%
1900	52	37.41%	81	58.27%	6	4.32%
1896	38	24.84%	113	73.86%	2	1.31%
1892	28	23.53%	54	45.38%	37	31.09%

Franklin is a strongly Republican county in Presidential elections. No Democratic presidential candidate has carried Franklin County since Lyndon B. Johnson’s 1964 landslide, and the last Democratic gubernatorial candidate it backed was Dixy Lee Ray in 1976. ^[19]

See also

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Franklin County, Washington

References

1. "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 15, 2023.
2. "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on May 31, 2011. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
3. "Milestones for Washington State History — Part 2: 1851 to 1900". HistoryLink.org. March 6, 2003.
4. Gannett, Henry (1905). The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States. Govt. Print. Off. pp.  131.
5. "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Retrieved July 5, 2015.
6. "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Counties: April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2022". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 15, 2023.
7. "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 7, 2014.
8. "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Retrieved January 7, 2014.
9. "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 7, 2014.
10. "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 26, 2015. Retrieved January 7, 2014.
11. "Franklin County, WA". DataUSA. In 2017, there were 1.28 times more Hispanic or Latino residents (46.8k people) in Franklin County, WA than any other race or ethnicity
12. "DP-1 Profile of General Population and Housing Characteristics: 2010 Demographic Profile Data". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved March 1, 2016.
13. "Population, Housing Units, Area, and Density: 2010 - County". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved March 1, 2016.
14. "DP02 SELECTED SOCIAL CHARACTERISTICS IN THE UNITED STATES – 2006-2010 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved March 1, 2016.
15. "DP03 SELECTED ECONOMIC CHARACTERISTICS – 2006-2010 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved March 1, 2016.
16. "Franklin County Commissioner's Office". Franklin County, Washington. Retrieved April 25, 2020.
17. "Franklin County Elections Department". Franklin County, Washington. Retrieved April 25, 2020.
18. Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved April 6, 2018.
19. Dave Leip. "Gubernatorial General Election Map Comparison – Washington". Dave Leip’s U.S. Election Atlas.

Further reading

• An illustrated history of the Big Bend country : embracing Lincoln, Douglas, Adams, and Franklin counties, state of Washington. Western Historical Pub. Co. 1904.
• Available online through the Washington State Library's Classics in Washington History collection

External links

• Franklin County, Washington at HistoryLink.org
• Tri-City Regional Chamber of Commerce

46°32′N118°54′W / 46.54°N 118.90°W / 46.54; -118.90