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. This area of Southern Illinois is known locally as "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 431 sqmi, of which 409 sqmi is land and 23 sqmi (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 21 °F in January to a high of 90 °F in July, although a record low of -22 °F was recorded in January 1977 and a record high of 104 °F was recorded in August 2007. Average monthly precipitation ranged from 2.87 in in February to 4.59 in 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 effected 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

Transit

Major highways

Demographics

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 96.8 PD/sqmi. There were 18,525 housing units at an average density of 45.3 /sqmi. 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

Villages

Census-designated place

Townships

Franklin County is divided into twelve townships:

Unincorporated communities

Education

Regional

Primary and secondary

Higher education

Specialized

Politics

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