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is a city in and the county seat of Williamson County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 41,842 as of the 2000 census.
The City of Franklin was founded by Abram Maury, Jr. (1766-1825), who was also a State Senator and is buried with his family in Founders Pointe, October 26, 1799 and was named after Benjamin Franklin, a close friend of Dr. Hugh Williamson, a member of the Continental Congress for whom Williamson County was named.
For most of its first 180 years, Franklin was a tranquil, small county seat. In the years prior to the American Civil War, Williamson County was one of the wealthiest counties in Tennessee and Franklin was the center of plantation economy.
However, the Civil War devastated the economy. Union troops occupied the area for nearly three years. The Battle of Franklin was fought on November 30, 1864, resulting in almost 10,000 casualties (killed, wounded, captured and missing) and turning forty-four buildings in town into field hospitals. (See The Carter House and
The Carnton Plantation].) It took 120 years for the county's economy to reach pre-war levels.
Franklin has grown from a very small, agricultural community into a strong blend of residential, commercial and corporate citizens.