The lost state of Franklin

It would have been the third smallest state but it failed

The State of Franklin, in all it’s glory.

Quick side note: apologies for the delay in this week’s normal article. I’ve spent the last couple days in dusty, dry (but very beautiful) eastern Oregon and didn’t have much access to internet.

Did you know that the United States almost had another teeny-tiny little state? Measuring at just under 5,000 square miles the state of Franklin very likely could have become a thing. Much more so than the State of Jefferson, Texlahoma, or any of the other failed state-secession movements. And this is primarily because Franklin almost became a thing right around the time of the American Revolutionary War. I became interested in Franklin after researching why and how Rhode Island became a state in my latest video:

Given how small Rhode Island was, I figured there had to be other examples of tiny states trying to make a go of it. And here we are! So what was the state of Franklin and why didn’t they become a state?

First, we need to step back into the chaotic period following the American Revolutionary War. The newly independent United States was not the federal behemoth that it is today, rather it was a very loose confederation. States held immense power, and vast swathes of western land were subject to complex, often conflicting, claims.

The land that would become Franklin was technically part of North Carolina. However, distance and the Appalachian Mountains created a barrier between the frontier settlers and the established North Carolina government to the east. The primary grievance was a profound feeling of abandonment. North Carolina, grappling with its own war debts and internal issues, offered little protection against Native American raids, a constant threat on the frontier. Settlers felt left to fend for themselves, with no immediate military aid or governmental support for their burgeoning communities. But, at the same time, they were also taxed by North Carolina and felt their interests weren't represented in the state legislature.

Adding to their woes, North Carolina, in an effort to pay off its Revolutionary War debts, initially ceded its western lands, including what would become Franklin, to the federal government in 1784. This move, intended to reduce its financial burden, felt like a betrayal to the settlers who had risked their lives to settle the territory. They feared their land claims would be jeopardized and that a distant federal government might not understand their unique circumstances. These were hardy, independent-minded pioneers, and having just fought a war for self-governance, the idea of forming their own, more responsive government resonated deeply. They truly believed they could better manage their affairs, establish justice, and secure their borders.

So, with their grievances mounting, the settlers of the "western counties" took matters into their own hands. That initial cession of western lands to the federal government was the catalyst, signaling to the settlers that North Carolina might be willing to divest itself of them entirely. A Revolutionary War hero and respected leader, John Sevier, became the driving force behind the Franklin movement, embodying the frontier spirit and earning the trust of the settlers. In August 1784, delegates from several counties met and drafted a constitution for the "State of Franklin." They established a rudimentary government, elected Sevier as governor, and even began minting their own coins. They then formally petitioned the Continental Congress for admission as the 14th state. But Franklin didn’t become a state.

They had an actual old map of Franklin!

Despite its promising start and the earnest efforts of its citizens, Franklin's bid for statehood was doomed from the outset. Mostly because North Carolina quickly reversed its cession of western lands after realizing the economic and strategic value of the territory. This immediately put Franklin in a precarious legal position: they were attempting to secede from a state that now claimed them. Adding to their woes, the Continental Congress, already struggling with the weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation and wary of setting a precedent for easy secession, refused to recognize Franklin. Therefore Franklin lacked federal legitimacy during a time when they absolutely needed it to fend off North Carolina.

Internal divisions also plagued the fledgling state. Not all settlers supported Franklin; some remained loyal to North Carolina, leading to conflicts, sometimes even armed skirmishes, between "Franklinites" and "Carolinians."

Finally, as the United States moved towards a stronger federal government under the Constitution in 1787, the idea of being part of a larger, more stable union became more attractive than struggling as an unrecognized, independent entity. North Carolina's eventual ratification of the Constitution and its final cession of the western lands to the new U.S. government in 1790, forming the Southwest Territory which later became Tennessee, sealed Franklin's fate. John Sevier himself, the champion of Franklin, eventually became the first governor of Tennessee.

So, while Franklin never emerged as its own state, it did come to embody the early state of Tennessee which isn’t a terrible compromise all things considered. But here’s the fascinating what if of it all: what if Franklin had succeeded? What would the State of Franklin look like today? Its historical claims roughly encompassed much of present-day East Tennessee. This would mean a state dominated by the Appalachian Mountains, including the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, and the fertile valleys of the Tennessee River and its tributaries. Cities like Knoxville, Chattanooga, and Johnson City would likely be major urban centers within Franklin.

Based on current county populations that would make up Franklin today, a modern state today would have a population of approximately 900,000 people (give or take a few thousand), making it larger than many other, much larger states. In fact, it would be larger in population than both Dakotas, Alaska, Vermont and, of course, Wyoming. So it’s really not inconcievable that Franklin could (and maybe even should) have become a state. But, at the end of the day, what was once a push to become Franklin, ultimately became what is today Tennessee. In fact, I would argue that had Franklin become a state, it would have just become the Tennessee we know and love today, just with another name.

A rose by any other name and all that I suppose.