Franklin County | |
---|---|
Coordinates: 39°56′N77°43′W / 39.93°N 77.72°W | |
Country | United States |
State | Pennsylvania |
Founded | September 9, 1784 |
Named for | Benjamin Franklin |
Seat | Chambersburg |
Largest borough | Chambersburg |
Area | |
• Total | 773 sq mi (2,000 km2) |
• Land | 772 sq mi (2,000 km2) |
• Water | 0.6 sq mi (2 km2) 0.08% |
Population (2020) | |
• Total | 155,932 |
• Density | 200/sq mi (80/km2) |
Time zone | UTC−5 (Eastern) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC−4 (EDT) |
Congressional district | 13th |
Website | www |
Franklin County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 155,932. [1] Its county seat is Chambersburg. [2]
Franklin County comprises the Chambersburg–Waynesboro, PA metropolitan statistical area, which is also included in the Washington–Baltimore combined statistical area. The county is part of the South Central Pennsylvania region of the state. [a]
Originally part of Lancaster County in 1729, then York County in 1749, then Cumberland County in 1750, Franklin County became an independent jurisdiction on September 9, 1784, soon after the end of the American Revolutionary War. [3] It is named in honor of Founding Father Benjamin Franklin. [4]
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 773 square miles (2,000 km2), of which 772 square miles (2,000 km2) is land and 0.6 square miles (1.6 km2) (0.08%) is water. [5]
Franklin County is in the watershed of the Chesapeake Bay and the overwhelming majority of it is drained by the Potomac River, but the Conodoguinet Creek and the Shermans Creek drain northeastern portions into the Susquehanna River. It has a hot-summer humid continental climate (Dfa) and its hardiness zone is 6b. Average monthly temperatures in Chambersburg range from 29.9 °F in January to 74.7 °F in July. [6]
Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
---|---|---|---|
1790 | 15,662 | — | |
1800 | 19,638 | 25.4% | |
1810 | 23,083 | 17.5% | |
1820 | 31,892 | 38.2% | |
1830 | 35,037 | 9.9% | |
1840 | 37,793 | 7.9% | |
1850 | 39,904 | 5.6% | |
1860 | 42,126 | 5.6% | |
1870 | 45,365 | 7.7% | |
1880 | 49,855 | 9.9% | |
1890 | 51,433 | 3.2% | |
1900 | 54,902 | 6.7% | |
1910 | 59,775 | 8.9% | |
1920 | 62,275 | 4.2% | |
1930 | 65,010 | 4.4% | |
1940 | 69,378 | 6.7% | |
1950 | 75,927 | 9.4% | |
1960 | 88,172 | 16.1% | |
1970 | 100,833 | 14.4% | |
1980 | 113,629 | 12.7% | |
1990 | 121,082 | 6.6% | |
2000 | 129,308 | 6.8% | |
2010 | 149,618 | 15.7% | |
2020 | 155,932 | 4.2% |
As of the census [7] of 2000, there were 129,313 people, 50,633 households, and 36,405 families residing in the county. The population density was 168 people per square mile (65 people/km2). There were 53,803 housing units at an average density of 70 units per square mile (27/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 95.33% White, 2.33% Black or African American, 0.15% Native American, 0.55% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.74% from other races, and 0.86% from two or more races. 1.75% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 40.2% were of German, 19.4% American, 7.6% Irish and 6.0% English ancestry. 96.0% spoke English and 2.1% Spanish as their first language.
There were 50,633 households, out of which 30.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.00% were married couples living together, 8.20% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.10% were non-families. 23.70% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.70% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.49 and the average family size was 2.94.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 24.00% under the age of 18, 7.90% from 18 to 24, 28.20% from 25 to 44, 23.70% from 45 to 64, and 16.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 94.80 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.90 males.
In 2001, Franklin County was featured in David Brooks' article "One Nation, Slightly Divisible" in The Atlantic as a representative Red or Republican Party county. [8]
Race | Num. | Perc. |
---|---|---|
White (NH) | 132,566 | 85% |
Black or African American (NH) | 4,998 | 3.21% |
Native American (NH) | 242 | 0.16% |
Asian (NH) | 1,408 | 1% |
Pacific Islander (NH) | 40 | 0.03% |
Other/Mixed (NH) | 5,914 | 3.8% |
Hispanic or Latino | 10,764 | 7% |
Source: [10]
Source: [11]
Source: [12]
Source: [12]
For most of its history, Franklin County has been a Republican Party stronghold in presidential elections, with only three Democratic Party candidates having managed to win the county from 1880 to the present day. The most recent Democrat to win the county in a presidential election was Lyndon B. Johnson, who won state-wide in the Pennsylvania election and in the national election, in a 1964 landslide. As a testament to the county's status as a Republican Party stronghold, Jimmy Carter in 1976 is the lone Democrat to win forty percent of the county's votes since Johnson's 1964 win.
As of February 5, 2024, there are 99,471 registered voters in the county. There are 61,383 registered Republicans, 23,279 registered Democrats, 11,351 voters registered non-affiliated voters, and 3,458 voters registered to other parties. [13]
Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
2024 | 59,604 | 70.82% | 23,543 | 27.97% | 1,016 | 1.21% |
2020 | 57,245 | 70.65% | 22,422 | 27.67% | 1,358 | 1.68% |
2016 | 49,768 | 70.59% | 17,465 | 24.77% | 3,273 | 4.64% |
2012 | 43,260 | 68.32% | 18,995 | 30.00% | 1,065 | 1.68% |
2008 | 41,906 | 65.56% | 21,169 | 33.12% | 842 | 1.32% |
2004 | 41,817 | 71.40% | 16,562 | 28.28% | 190 | 0.32% |
2000 | 33,042 | 67.41% | 14,922 | 30.44% | 1,055 | 2.15% |
1996 | 25,392 | 56.77% | 14,980 | 33.49% | 4,358 | 9.74% |
1992 | 23,387 | 53.35% | 13,440 | 30.66% | 7,007 | 15.99% |
1988 | 27,086 | 68.32% | 12,368 | 31.20% | 190 | 0.48% |
1984 | 27,243 | 70.13% | 11,480 | 29.55% | 122 | 0.31% |
1980 | 22,716 | 61.83% | 12,061 | 32.83% | 1,964 | 5.35% |
1976 | 20,009 | 56.54% | 14,643 | 41.38% | 737 | 2.08% |
1972 | 24,093 | 70.01% | 9,456 | 27.48% | 866 | 2.52% |
1968 | 19,146 | 54.40% | 11,451 | 32.54% | 4,598 | 13.06% |
1964 | 13,525 | 41.06% | 19,332 | 58.68% | 85 | 0.26% |
1960 | 22,010 | 64.48% | 12,088 | 35.41% | 36 | 0.11% |
1956 | 19,121 | 63.33% | 11,060 | 36.63% | 12 | 0.04% |
1952 | 16,474 | 64.82% | 8,868 | 34.89% | 74 | 0.29% |
1948 | 12,151 | 61.79% | 7,352 | 37.39% | 161 | 0.82% |
1944 | 13,380 | 60.13% | 8,807 | 39.58% | 63 | 0.28% |
1940 | 13,084 | 50.63% | 12,713 | 49.20% | 43 | 0.17% |
1936 | 13,616 | 46.29% | 15,632 | 53.15% | 165 | 0.56% |
1932 | 10,992 | 52.95% | 9,338 | 44.99% | 428 | 2.06% |
1928 | 16,345 | 83.74% | 3,027 | 15.51% | 146 | 0.75% |
1924 | 9,791 | 58.82% | 5,770 | 34.67% | 1,084 | 6.51% |
1920 | 8,376 | 60.45% | 5,020 | 36.23% | 461 | 3.33% |
1916 | 5,674 | 48.86% | 5,336 | 45.95% | 602 | 5.18% |
1912 | 2,710 | 23.52% | 4,505 | 39.10% | 4,308 | 37.39% |
1908 | 6,938 | 58.05% | 4,682 | 39.17% | 332 | 2.78% |
1904 | 7,062 | 61.76% | 4,114 | 35.98% | 259 | 2.26% |
1900 | 6,483 | 57.98% | 4,500 | 40.24% | 199 | 1.78% |
1896 | 6,747 | 58.81% | 4,425 | 38.57% | 300 | 2.62% |
1892 | 5,725 | 52.57% | 4,965 | 45.59% | 201 | 1.85% |
1888 | 5,772 | 52.27% | 5,082 | 46.02% | 188 | 1.70% |
1884 | 5,570 | 50.82% | 5,261 | 48.00% | 130 | 1.19% |
1880 | 5,379 | 51.88% | 4,964 | 47.88% | 25 | 0.24% |
Lincoln Intermediate Unit (IU#12) region includes: Adams County, Franklin County and York County. The agency offers school districts, home-schooled students and private schools many services, including: special education services, combined purchasing, and instructional technology services. It runs Summer Academy, which offers both art and academic strands designed to meet the individual needs of gifted, talented and high achieving students. Additional services include: curriculum mapping, professional development for school employees, adult education, nonpublic school services, business services, migrant & ESL (English as a second language), instructional services, special education, management services, and technology services. It also provides a GED program to adults who want to earn a high school diploma and literacy programs. The Lincoln Intermediate Unit is governed by a 13-member board of directors, each a member of a local school board from the 25 school districts. Board members are elected by school directors of all 25 school districts for three-year terms that begin July 1. [16] There are 29 intermediate units in Pennsylvania. They are funded by school districts, state and federal program specific funding and grants. IUs do not have the power to tax.
Public school districts include: [17]
The Franklin County Library system has five branches:
The system also supports the Alexander Hamilton Memorial Library in Waynesboro, PA. In addition, the system currently operates two bookmobiles. [18]
There are four Pennsylvania state parks in Franklin County.
Under Pennsylvania law, there are four types of incorporated municipalities: cities, boroughs, townships, and, in at most two cases, towns. The following boroughs and townships are located in Franklin County:
Census-designated places are geographical areas designated by the U.S. Census Bureau for the purposes of compiling demographic data. They are not actual jurisdictions under Pennsylvania law. Other unincorporated communities, such as villages, may be listed here as well.
The population ranking of the following table is based on the 2010 census of Franklin County. [19]
†county seat
Rank | City/Town/etc. | Municipal type | Population (2010 Census) |
---|---|---|---|
1 | † Chambersburg | Borough | 20,268 |
2 | Waynesboro | Borough | 10,568 |
3 | Shippensburg (mostly in Cumberland County ) | Borough | 5,492 |
4 | Greencastle | Borough | 3,996 |
5 | Fayetteville | CDP | 3,128 |
6 | State Line | CDP | 2,709 |
7 | Wayne Heights | CDP | 2,545 |
8 | Guilford | CDP | 2,138 |
9 | Mont Alto | Borough | 1,705 |
10 | Mercersburg | Borough | 1,561 |
11 | Scotland | CDP | 1,395 |
12 | Marion | CDP | 953 |
13 | Pen Mar | CDP | 929 |
14 | Rouzerville | CDP | 917 |
15 | Blue Ridge Summit | CDP | 891 |
16 | Fort Loudon | CDP | 886 |
17 | Orrstown | Borough | 262 |
Adams County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 103,852. Its county seat is Gettysburg. The county was created on January 22, 1800, from part of York County, and was named for the second President of the United States, John Adams. On July 1–3, 1863, a crucial battle of the American Civil War was fought near Gettysburg; Adams County, as a result, is a center for Civil War-related tourism. The county is part of the South Central Pennsylvania region of the state. Adams County comprises the Gettysburg metropolitan statistical area, which is also included in the Harrisburg–York–Lebanon combined statistical area.
Warren County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 38,587. Its county seat is Warren. The county was established in 1800 from parts of Allegheny and Lycoming counties; attached to Crawford County until 1805 and then to Venango County until Warren was formally established in 1819.
Mifflin County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 46,143. Its county seat is Lewistown. The county was created on September 19, 1789, from parts of Cumberland County and Northumberland County. It was named for Thomas Mifflin, the first Governor of Pennsylvania. Mifflin County comprises the Lewistown, PA Micropolitan Statistical Area. The county is part of the Central Pennsylvania region of the state.
Huntingdon County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 44,092. Its county seat is Huntingdon. The county was created on September 20, 1787, mainly from the northern part of Bedford County, plus an addition of territory on the east from Cumberland County. The county is part of the Southwest Pennsylvania region of the state.
Fulton County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 14,556, making it the fourth-least populous county in Pennsylvania. Its county seat is McConnellsburg. The county was created on April 19, 1850, from a part of Bedford County and named after inventor Robert Fulton. The county is part of the Southwest Pennsylvania region of the state.
Dauphin County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 286,401. The county seat is Harrisburg, Pennsylvania's state capital and ninth-most populous city. The county was created on March 4, 1785, from part of Lancaster County and was named after Louis Joseph, Dauphin of France, the first son of King Louis XVI. The county is part of the South Central Pennsylvania region of the state.
Bradford County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, its population was 59,967. Its county seat is Towanda. The county was created on February 21, 1810, from parts of Lycoming and Luzerne Counties. Originally called Ontario County, it was reorganized and separated from Lycoming County on October 13, 1812, and renamed Bradford County for William Bradford, who had been a chief justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court and United States Attorney General. The county is part of the Northeast Pennsylvania region of the state.
Berks County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the county's population was 428,849. The county seat is Reading, the fourth-most populous city in the state. The county is part of the South Central Pennsylvania region of the state.
Antrim Township is a township in Franklin County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 15,778 at the 2020 census, an increase over the figure of 12,504 tabulated in 2000. It was named after County Antrim in Northern Ireland.
Chambersburg is a borough in and the county seat of Franklin County, in the South Central region of Pennsylvania, United States. It is in the Cumberland Valley, which is part of the Great Appalachian Valley, and 13 miles (21 km) north of Maryland and the Mason-Dixon line and 52 miles (84 km) southwest of Harrisburg, the state capital. According to the United States Census Bureau, Chambersburg's 2020 population was 21,903. When combined with the surrounding Greene, Hamilton, and Guilford Townships, the population of Greater Chambersburg is 52,273 people. The Chambersburg, PA Metropolitan Statistical Area includes surrounding Franklin County, and in 2010 included 149,618 people.
Greencastle is a borough in Franklin County in south-central Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 4,251 at the 2020 census. Greencastle lies within the Cumberland Valley of Pennsylvania.
Mercersburg is a borough in Franklin County, Pennsylvania, United States. The borough is 72 miles (116 km) southwest of Harrisburg, the state capital.
Shippensburg is a borough in Cumberland and Franklin counties in the U.S. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Settled in 1730, Shippensburg lies in the Cumberland Valley, 41 miles (66 km) southwest of Harrisburg, and is part of the Harrisburg–Carlisle Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 5,478 at the 2020 census.
Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania is a public university in the Shippensburg, Pennsylvania area. It is part of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education.
Cumberland County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 259,469. Its county seat is Carlisle. The county is part of the South Central Pennsylvania region of the state.
Pennsylvania Route 16 is a 43-mile-long (69 km) east–west state route located in southern Pennsylvania, United States. The western terminus of the route is at U.S. Route 522 in McConnellsburg. The eastern terminus is at the Mason–Dixon line in Liberty Township, where the road continues into Maryland as Maryland Route 140. PA 16 is a two-lane road that runs through rural areas in Fulton, Franklin, and Adams counties. The route heads east from McConnellsburg and crosses Tuscarora Mountain into Franklin County, where it continues east into the agricultural Cumberland Valley. Here, the passes through Mercersburg, Greencastle, and Waynesboro. PA 16 heads east through the South Mountain range, where it heads into Adams County and passes through Carroll Valley before coming to the Maryland border. PA 16 intersects several roads including PA 456 in Cove Gap, PA 75 and PA 416 in Mercersburg, PA 995 in Upton, US 11 and Interstate 81 (I-81) in Greencastle, PA 316 and PA 997 in Waynesboro, and PA 116 in Carroll Valley. The road's main name is Buchanan Trail in honor of 15th President James Buchanan, who was born near the road in Cove Gap.
The Chambersburg, Greencastle & Waynesboro Street Railway, now defunct, was an American railroad of south central Pennsylvania built in the 19th and 20th centuries.
Pennsylvania Route 696 is a 16.0-mile-long (25.7 km) state highway located in Franklin and Cumberland counties in Pennsylvania. The southern terminus is at PA 997 in Greene Township. The northern terminus is at PA 997 in Hopewell Township. PA 696 begins at PA 997 adjacent to an interchange with Interstate 81 (I-81) and heads northeast through farmland parallel to the interstate. The route turns north and has an interchange with I-81 before it continues into Shippensburg, where it has a brief concurrency with U.S. Route 11 and PA 533 in the downtown area. Past Shippensburg, PA 696 runs north through more farmland and heads to Newburg, where it has a short concurrency with PA 641. The route heads northwest from here to its terminus at PA 997.
Pennsylvania Route 997 is a 49.0-mile (78.9 km) route that is located in Franklin and Cumberland counties in central Pennsylvania in the United States. This route runs from the Maryland state line south of Waynesboro, where the road continues into that state as Maryland Route 64, north to PA 233 in the Upper Mifflin Township community of McCrea.
The Shippensburg Area School District is a midsized, suburban, public school district in Franklin County, Pennsylvania and Cumberland County, Pennsylvania. It is centered on the borough of Shippensburg and also serves Newburg, Hopewell Township, Shippensburg Township, and Southampton Township in Cumberland County and the adjacent and similarly named but independently governed Southampton Township along with Orrstown in Franklin County. Shippensburg Area School District encompasses approximately 121 square miles (310 km2). According to 2000 federal census data it serves a resident population of 23,714 people. By 2010, the District's population increased to 28,243 people. In 2009, the District residents’ per capita income was $15,113, while the median family income was $45,273. In the Commonwealth, the median family income was $49,501 and the United States median family income was $49,445, in 2010.
{{cite web}}
: Missing or empty |title=
(help)