Franklin County, Vermont | |
|---|---|
 Franklin County Court House in St. Albans | |
 Location within the U.S. state ofVermont | |
 Vermont's location within theU.S. | |
| Coordinates:44°51′27″N72°54′43″W / 44.85748°N 72.912°W /44.85748; -72.912 | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |  Vermont |
| Founded | December 1, 1796 |
| Named after | Benjamin Franklin |
| Shire Town | St. Albans |
| Largest city | St. Albans |
| Area | |
• Total | 692 sq mi (1,790 km2) |
| • Land | 634 sq mi (1,640 km2) |
| • Water | 58 sq mi (150 km2) 8.4% |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | 49,946 |
| • Density | 78.8/sq mi (30.4/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−5 (Eastern) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−4 (EDT) |
| Congressional district | At-large |
Franklin County is acounty located in theU.S. state ofVermont. As of the2020 census, the population was 49,946.[1] Itscounty seat is the city ofSt. Albans.[2] It borders theCanadian province ofQuebec. The county was created in 1792 and organized in 1796.[3][4] Franklin County is part of theBurlington metropolitan area.
Franklin County is one of several Vermont counties created from land claimed by Vermont on January 15, 1777, when Vermont declared itself to be a state distinct from New York.[5][6][7] The land originally was contested byMassachusetts,New Hampshire, andNew York, but it remained undelineated until July 20, 1764, whenKing George III established the boundary between New Hampshire and New York along the west bank of theConnecticut River, north of Massachusetts and south of the parallel of45 degrees north latitude. New York assigned the land gained toAlbany County.[8][9] On March 12, 1772, Albany County was partitioned to createCharlotte County,[10] and this situation remained until Vermont's independence from New York and Britain. However, this did not end the contest. In 1772, land surveyors John Collins of Quebec and Thomas Valentine of New York erected survey monuments along what they took to be the 45th parallel of north latitude, intended to be the boundary between New York and Quebec. TheWebster–Ashburton Treaty of 1842 said that their measurement errors stand, so the boundary between Vermont and Quebec, and between New York and Quebec, is where Collins and Valentine put the survey monuments, some of which still stand today (seeCollins–Valentine line).
On September 3, 1783, as a result of the signing of theTreaty of Paris the Revolutionary War ended with Great Britain recognizing the independence of the United States. Article II of the treaty agreed on boundaries between the United States andBritish possessions to the north, and included Vermont within the U.S. Vermont's border withQuebec was established at45 degrees north latitude.[11][12] In 1792, Franklin County was formed from part of Chittenden County.[4] However, Vermont's government continued to take the position that it was independent of both the United States and Britain, andso it remained until 1791.
The county's namesake isBenjamin Franklin.[13]Chester A. Arthur, the21stU.S. President, was born in the town ofFairfield. He was one of two Presidents to be born in the state, the other beingCalvin Coolidge.
In 2008, the federal government declared the county a disaster area after severe storms and flooding on June 14–17.[14]
According to theU.S. Census Bureau, the county has an area of 692 square miles (1,790 km2), of which 634 square miles (1,640 km2) is land and 58 square miles (150 km2) (8.4%) is water.[15]
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1800 | 8,282 | — | |
| 1810 | 16,615 | 100.6% | |
| 1820 | 17,192 | 3.5% | |
| 1830 | 24,525 | 42.7% | |
| 1840 | 24,531 | 0.0% | |
| 1850 | 28,586 | 16.5% | |
| 1860 | 27,231 | −4.7% | |
| 1870 | 30,291 | 11.2% | |
| 1880 | 30,225 | −0.2% | |
| 1890 | 29,755 | −1.6% | |
| 1900 | 30,198 | 1.5% | |
| 1910 | 29,866 | −1.1% | |
| 1920 | 30,026 | 0.5% | |
| 1930 | 29,975 | −0.2% | |
| 1940 | 29,601 | −1.2% | |
| 1950 | 29,894 | 1.0% | |
| 1960 | 29,474 | −1.4% | |
| 1970 | 31,282 | 6.1% | |
| 1980 | 34,788 | 11.2% | |
| 1990 | 39,980 | 14.9% | |
| 2000 | 45,417 | 13.6% | |
| 2010 | 47,746 | 5.1% | |
| 2020 | 49,946 | 4.6% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census[16] 1790–1960[17] 1900–1990[18] 1990–2000[19] 2010–2018[20] | |||
As of the2010 United States census, there were 47,746 people, 18,513 households, and 12,939 families residing in the county.[21] The population density was 75.3 inhabitants per square mile (29.1/km2). There were 21,588 housing units at an average density of 34.1 per square mile (13.2/km2).[22] Of the 18,513 households, 34.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.7% were married couples living together, 10.7% had a female householder with no husband present, 30.1% were non-families, and 22.7% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.55 and the average family size was 2.97. The median age was 39.6 years.[21]
The median income for a household in the county was $53,623 and the median income for a family was $63,009. Males had a median income of $43,155 versus $36,940 for females. The per capita income for the county was $24,767. About 7.2% of families and 10.5% of the population were below thepoverty line, including 13.8% of those under age 18 and 8.7% of those age 65 or over.[23]
In1828, Franklin County was won byNational Republican Party candidateJohn Quincy Adams
In1832, the county was won byAnti-Masonic Party candidateWilliam Wirt.
In1836, the county was won byDemocratic Party candidateMartin Van Buren
FromWilliam Henry Harrison in1840 toWinfield Scott in1852, the county would vote theWhig Party candidates.
FromJohn C. Frémont in1856 toHerbert Hoover in1928 (barring1912, where the county was won byProgressive Party candidate and former presidentTheodore Roosevelt), theRepublican Party would have a 72-year winning streak in the county.
In1932, the county was won by Democratic candidateFranklin D. Roosevelt and would be won by him in all four of his presidential runs from 1932 to1944. During that time, Franklin County, along withChittenden andGrand Isle Counties would become Democratic enclaves in an otherwise Republican-voting Vermont. The county would also be won byHarry S. Truman in1948.
Dwight D. Eisenhower was able to win back Franklin County for the Republicans during the1952 and1956 elections.
The county would go to Democratic candidatesJohn F. Kennedy in1960,Lyndon B. Johnson in1964, andHubert H. Humphrey in1968.
Incumbent PresidentRichard Nixon would carry the county in1972 as wouldGerald Ford in1976.
In1980 and1984, the county was won by RepublicanRonald Reagan, who would become the last Republican presidential candidate to win Franklin County.
SinceMichael Dukakis won the county in1988, it has been won by Democratic candidates ever since, thoughBarack Obama has been the only one to win more than 55% of the county's vote.
| Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 2024 | 12,490 | 46.70% | 13,280 | 49.66% | 973 | 3.64% |
| 2020 | 11,274 | 43.65% | 13,611 | 52.69% | 945 | 3.66% |
| 2016 | 8,752 | 40.88% | 9,351 | 43.67% | 3,308 | 15.45% |
| 2012 | 7,405 | 37.23% | 12,057 | 60.62% | 426 | 2.14% |
| 2008 | 7,853 | 36.59% | 13,179 | 61.41% | 428 | 1.99% |
| 2004 | 8,936 | 44.86% | 10,598 | 53.20% | 386 | 1.94% |
| 2000 | 8,395 | 43.74% | 9,514 | 49.57% | 1,285 | 6.69% |
| 1996 | 4,617 | 28.49% | 8,790 | 54.24% | 2,799 | 17.27% |
| 1992 | 5,484 | 29.25% | 8,004 | 42.69% | 5,263 | 28.07% |
| 1988 | 7,293 | 49.16% | 7,372 | 49.70% | 169 | 1.14% |
| 1984 | 8,683 | 59.63% | 5,755 | 39.52% | 124 | 0.85% |
| 1980 | 5,998 | 44.61% | 5,914 | 43.99% | 1,533 | 11.40% |
| 1976 | 6,190 | 51.64% | 5,610 | 46.80% | 186 | 1.55% |
| 1972 | 8,109 | 67.21% | 3,898 | 32.31% | 58 | 0.48% |
| 1968 | 5,218 | 44.67% | 6,027 | 51.60% | 436 | 3.73% |
| 1964 | 3,261 | 26.98% | 8,823 | 73.00% | 2 | 0.02% |
| 1960 | 5,444 | 43.65% | 7,028 | 56.35% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1956 | 7,125 | 59.55% | 4,840 | 40.45% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1952 | 6,949 | 57.82% | 5,018 | 41.75% | 51 | 0.42% |
| 1948 | 4,897 | 46.89% | 5,455 | 52.23% | 92 | 0.88% |
| 1944 | 4,374 | 42.01% | 6,036 | 57.98% | 1 | 0.01% |
| 1940 | 5,258 | 41.21% | 7,439 | 58.30% | 63 | 0.49% |
| 1936 | 5,507 | 44.56% | 6,817 | 55.15% | 36 | 0.29% |
| 1932 | 4,999 | 44.29% | 6,179 | 54.75% | 108 | 0.96% |
| 1928 | 6,031 | 52.23% | 5,477 | 47.43% | 40 | 0.35% |
| 1924 | 4,594 | 67.10% | 1,649 | 24.08% | 604 | 8.82% |
| 1920 | 4,869 | 66.72% | 2,342 | 32.09% | 87 | 1.19% |
| 1916 | 2,796 | 56.41% | 2,107 | 42.51% | 54 | 1.09% |
| 1912 | 1,433 | 33.16% | 1,317 | 30.48% | 1,571 | 36.36% |
| 1908 | 2,360 | 66.84% | 1,048 | 29.68% | 123 | 3.48% |
| 1904 | 2,522 | 72.22% | 881 | 25.23% | 89 | 2.55% |
| 1900 | 2,738 | 66.38% | 1,316 | 31.90% | 71 | 1.72% |
| 1896 | 3,444 | 72.16% | 1,150 | 24.09% | 179 | 3.75% |
| 1892 | 2,540 | 63.22% | 1,353 | 33.67% | 125 | 3.11% |
| 1888 | 3,121 | 67.34% | 1,343 | 28.98% | 171 | 3.69% |
| 1884 | 2,619 | 59.73% | 1,396 | 31.84% | 370 | 8.44% |
| 1880 | 3,018 | 60.07% | 1,652 | 32.88% | 354 | 7.05% |
The median income for a household in the county was $41,659, and the median income for a family was $46,733. Males had a median income of $32,009 versus $24,078 for females. Theper capita income for the county was $17,816. About 7.00% of families and 9.00% of the population were below thepoverty line, including 10.40% of those under age 18 and 10.30% of those age 65 or over.
In 2009, the county had the most dairy farms in the state, 239 out of 1,078.[25]
Villages are census divisions, but have no separate corporate existence from the towns they are in.
School districts include:[26]
Places adjacent to Franklin County, Vermont | |
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Municipalities and communities ofFranklin County, Vermont,United States | ||
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Montpelier (capital) | |
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| Towns (pop. >5000) | |
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