FRANKLIN

NAME: Franklin COUNTY: Douglas ROADS: 2WD GRID: 3 CLIMATE: Hot summers/cold winters BEST TIME TO VISIT: Spring/Summer

COMMENTS: Located 3 miles SE of present day Lawrence, Kansas, just south of old highway 10. (Now 1-435)See the old cemetery still in place since 1853, full of broken tombstones and overgrown with brush. REMAINS: Old stone building, sits on the west side of road. Built in the early 1850's.

Started in 1853. The Civil War may have begun at Fort Sumner, but the seeds of that conflict were planted in Kansas at least six years earlier than the start of the War. Franklin was a pro-slavery stronghold and was typical of the hostilities in Franklin. Lawrence was also started as a town at the same time but it was a free-state. High population was in 1860 with over 2,000. After the Civil War the town declined quickly, as the railraod came through the town of Lawrence. Franklin lost its Post Office in 1867. All that remains is an old stone building, used for hay storage and the Franklin Cemetery. Submitted by: James Lee

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