Franklin County, New York

Franklin County History, Geography, Demographics, Cities and Towns, and Education

355 W. Main Street
County Courthouse
Malone, NY 12953-1827

Court House:

County Seat: Malone
Year Organized: 1808
Square Miles: 1,632

Etymology - Origin of County Name

Franklin County name in honor of Benjamin Franklin.

Demographics:

County QuickFacts: Census Bureau Quick Facts

History

Franklin County, taken from Clinton in 1808, is centrally distant from New York 287, from Albany NW. 142 miles. Greatest length 60, greatest breadth 30 miles. The high northern latitude sufficiently indicates the rigors of the climate. The forests are very dense, consisting of trees of immense size. In the southwestern part are some lofty ridges of mountains, but of all the rest a large portion is rather level than hilly. The settlements are almost wholly in the northern part, extending about 15 miles S. from the N. line, and even here are sparse; much file larger portion of the county being as yet covered with the primitive forests. The soil is a sandy loam, occasionally mixed with clay, and stony. The fields commonly among thrifty farmers are fenced with stones gathered from the surface. Some wheat is raised, but it is an uncertain crop, whilst grass, oats, barley, corn, and, generally are very productive. No portion of the state is perhaps better adapted to the sugar-beet. Grazing and lumbering are the chief pursuit of the inhabitants, who find their market upon the St. Lawrence river. The county is divided into 13 towns. (Historical Collections of the State of New York, Past and Present, John Barber, Clark Albien & Co, 1851)

Franklin County was named for Benjamin Franklin: the exact reason remaining somewhat of a mystery. At one time much of the south end of the county was owned by LeRay de Chaumont, son of a French count, who greatly admired Franklin. In addition, a great number of the first settlers came from counties named Franklin in Vermont and Massachusetts. Full History at NYSAC

Geography

Franklin County is in the northeastern part of New York State. The northern edge is the border with Canada.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,697 square miles (4,396 km²), of which, 1,631 square miles (4,226 km²) of it is land and 66 square miles (171 km²) of it (3.89%) is water.

Neighboring Counties:

Clinton County, New York - east
Essex County, New York - southeast
Hamilton County, New York - southwest
St. Lawrence County, New York - west
Le Haut-Saint-Laurent Regional County Municipality, Quebec - north

Cities and Towns:

- Bangor	town
- Bellmont	town
- Bombay	town
- Brandon	town
- Brushton	village	Incorporated Area
- Burke	village	Incorporated Area
- Chateaugay	village	Incorporated Area
- Constable	town
- Duane	town
- Fort Covington	town
- Harrietstown	town
- Malone (County Seat)	village	Incorporated Area
- Moira	town
- Santa Clara	town
- Saranac Lake	village	Incorporated Area
- St. Regis Mohawk Reservation	Reservation
- Tupper Lake	village	Incorporated Area

County Resources:

Enter County Resources and Information Here

County Resource Guide

Counties: US Map

The history of our nation can be seen as a prolonged struggle to define the relative roles and powers of our governments: federal, state, and local. And the names we've given our counties, our most locally based jurisdictions, reflects the "characteristic features of our country!"

But age, size and colorful names of our counties isn't the only reason to explore counties' role in American history, or the history of county government itself. In fact, the story of county government reflects the larger meanings of American history.

Today's counties are the most flexible, locally responsive and creative governments in the US. They are the most diverse, varying in size, population, geography, and governmental structure. In their politics and policies, they express a 1990's political slogan "Think globally, act locally."

Penn Foster High School

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