Franklin County, Kansas
Historic newspapers, landmarks, and county history layers for genealogists and local historians.
At a glance
SummaryThe National Register of Historic Places includes 21 listed properties in the county, first listed in 1972. Most listings are in or near Ottawa, Wellsville, Overbrook.
Summary generated automatically from the source data on this page.
Newspapers
Library of CongressNewspaper directory data for Kansas is not yet loaded on this site. Browse Franklin titles at the Library of Congress.
National Register of Historic Places
NPS NRHP15 of 21 listings mapped; some locations are restricted by NPS to protect sensitive sites.
21 listed properties
| Property | City | Listed |
|---|---|---|
| Appanoose Church of the Brethren and Cemetery | Overbrook | 2018 |
| Dietrich Cabin | Ottawa | 1972 |
| Downtown Ottawa Historic District | Ottawa | 1972 |
| Eight Mile Creek Warren Truss Bridge | Ottawa | 2003 |
| Franklin County Courthouse | Ottawa | 1972 |
| Hanway, Judge James, House | Lane | 2008 |
| Historic Ottawa Central Business District | Ottawa | 2008 |
| Jones, Tauy, House | Ottawa | 1972 |
| Middle Creek Tributary Bridge | Princeton | 1985 |
| Old Santa Fe Railroad Depot | Ottawa | 1973 |
| Ottawa High School and Junior High School | Ottawa | 2000 |
| Ottawa Library | Ottawa | 1980 |
| Pleasant Valley School District #2 | Wellsville | 2004 |
| Ransom, James H., House | Ottawa | 1974 |
| Reid, Lyman, House | Ottawa | 2017 |
| Silkville | Williamsburg | 1972 |
| Tauy Baptist Church | Ottawa | 2024 |
| Tauy Creek Bridge | Ottawa | 1990 |
| Tauy Jones Hall | Ottawa | 1982 |
| Walnut Creek Bridge | Wellsville | 1985 |
| Wellsville Bank Building | Wellsville | 1991 |
Source: National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Property links open NRHP nomination files at the National Archives.
County formation
Newberry AHCBFranklin was formed in 1855 (1855-08-25) from unknown / original county.
FRANKLIN created by Kansas Territory from non-county area.
Source: Newberry Library, Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
Population by decade
CensusFranklin County population from 1860 to 2020 (Census historical series).
| 1860 | 1880 | 1900 | 1920 | 1940 | 1950 | 1960 | 1980 | 2000 | 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3,030 | 16,797 | 21,354 | 21,946 | 20,889 | 19,928 | 19,548 | 22,062 | 24,784 | 25,996 |
Sources: U.S. Census Bureau historical county population (Forstall 1790–1990) and public-domain / CC0 county population series through 2020.
Cemeteries & historical places
USGS GNIS28 cemeteries and 0 historical populated places (ghost towns / former settlements) recorded in USGS GNIS for this county.
Cemeteries — 28 of 28 listed
| Name |
|---|
| Antioch Cemetery |
| Baker Cemetery |
| Berea Cemetery |
| Central Cemetery |
| Centropolis Cemetery |
| Chippewa Hills Cemetery |
| Dean Cemetery |
| Evergreen Mound Cemetery |
| Fouts Cemetery |
| Highland Cemetery |
| Hope Cemetery |
| Howard Cemetery |
| Kaub Cemetery |
| Lane Cemetery |
| Middle Creek Cemetery |
| Mount Calvary Cemetery |
| Mount Hope Cemetery |
| Mount Pleasant Cemetery |
| Munsee Indian Cemetery |
| Needham Cemetery |
| Ottawa Indian Mission Burying Ground |
| Peoria Cemetery |
| Pleasant Hill Cemetery |
| Roselawn Memorial Gardens |
| Saint John's Cemetery |
| Walnut Creek Cemetery |
| Wellsville Cemetery |
| Woodlawn Cemetery |
Source: USGS Geographic Names Information System (public domain). Cemeteries from the 2021 NationalFile archive; historical places from GNIS HistoricalFeatures topical extract.
Civil War battlefields nearby
ABPPAmerican Battlefield Protection Program (ABPP) Civil War study areas near this county.
| Battlefield | Study acres | Dist. |
|---|---|---|
| Cabin Creek | 2,409,122 | 26.7 km |
Source: NPS American Battlefield Protection Program Civil War Study Areas (public ArcGIS feature service).
Historical markers
HMdb linkMarker text and photos from the Historical Marker Database (HMdb) are not embedded here. HMdb allows non-commercial reuse with attribution, but commercial/compensated use needs written permission; this is a commercial site, so we only link out.
Search HMdb for Franklin County, Kansas
Terms: hmdb.org/copyright.asp. Linking is encouraged by HMdb.