RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> State of Illinois >> Franklin County  

Welcome to Franklin County ...

Time Zone: Franklin County lies in the Central Time Zone (CST/CDT) and observes daylight saving time.

The community of Benton is the Seat for Franklin County.

Franklin County was founded in 1818. Franklin was created by taking area from White and Gallatin Counties.

From the Census Estimates for 2019, <1> Franklin had a population of 38,469 people. This is a decrease of 3.91% since the last Census (which gave a population of 40,035 people in 2010).

At the time of the 2010 Census, Franklin represented 0.31% of the total population of Illinois.

Below are some of the communities located in Franklin County:

  • Benton
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Benton is located in Franklin County (IL)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Benton
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 6,784 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Benton <2>
  • Buckner
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
    • Buckner is located in Franklin County (IL)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buckner
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 435 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Buckner <2>
  • Christopher
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
  • Ewing
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Ewing is located in Franklin County (IL)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ewing
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 293 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ewing <2>
  • Hanaford
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Hanaford is located in Franklin County (IL)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hanaford
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 316 people
  • North City
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • North City is located in Franklin County (IL)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North City
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 566 people
  • Orient
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Orient is located in Franklin County (IL)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orient
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 338 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Orient <2>
  • Royalton
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Royalton is located in Franklin County (IL)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Royalton
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,110 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Royalton <2>
  • Continue List   (6 more) ...
    • Sesser
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Sesser is located in Franklin County (IL)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sesser
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,837 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Sesser <2>
    • Thompsonville
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
    • Valier
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
      • Valier is located in Franklin County (IL)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Valier
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 630 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Valier <2>
    • West City
      (Less than 2 miles to the north)
      • West City is located in Franklin County (IL)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West City
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 626 people
    • West Frankfort
      (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
      • West Frankfort is located in Franklin County (IL)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Frankfort
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 7,733 people
    • Zeigler
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Zeigler is located in Franklin County (IL)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zeigler
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,671 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Zeigler <2>

Websites of Interest ...

Footnotes ...

<1>On a yearly basis, the US Census Bureau creates an estimate of the county's population. Keep in mind that this is an estimate and not an actual count. The last physical count was the 2010 Census and the next count will be for the 2020 Census.
<2>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.