Franklin
Historical Society
Back in the day of 1836, Town 5 North, Range 21
East, was the first time that a quadrant of the Wisconsin
Territory would be formed and cover some 36 square miles that
made it the second biggest city, area-wise, in the state, and
then finally named Franklin in 1838, after the great statesman,
inventor and author, Benjamin Franklin. During the 1830s, that
first wave of European immigrants would arrive here from
Ireland, and since the region had excellent natural resources,
it was a great place for people that had become used to hard
work. The town was heavily wooded in that time, with a large
variety of hardwoods like ironwood, hickory, oak, walnut, lynn,
aspen and sugar maple and had outstanding numbers of wild game,
the Root River and wetlands. Native Americans still would use it
for their hunting grounds, along with the whites, but in the
1840s, the Irish would be followed by the Dutch and then Germans
in the 1850s, with every wave of the newcomers causing the town
to grow into the biggest farming community bordering the
southern expanse of Milwaukee county. The initial recording of
history for the town dates to 1839, when it would be recognized
as a civil town. One of the finest indicators of how the town
has grown and progressed, it was ranked 90th on Money Magazine's
list of the 100 best places to live in the country during the
year 2007, that focused on the smaller cities that offered the
best blend of a real sense of community, good schools, economic
opportunity, things to do and safe streets. Some of the historic
structures that the historical society operates includes; the
Sheehan-Godsell Cabin, the Whelan School, Old Town Hall and St.
Peter's Chapel.
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