Have you ever heard of the 14th almost state, Franklin? During the building years of the United States in the late 18th century, Franklin was proposed to be the 14th state added. The area of Franklin was supposed to be the upper east area of Tennessee.
After the Revolutionary War North Carolina legislators discussed giving some land to the federal government. The people who inhabited those areas started to discuss plans of self-government. By December of 1784, they had declared themselves the “state of Franklin.” This however had not been recognized by the states due to slow communication between people at the December Conference and the people of the “state of Franklin.” The land that had been given during that time was taken back. This left the people of Franklin without any land to call a state.
But why was the state going to be named Franklin? Originally the state was to be called Frankland, they even had a slogan, “The land of free men.” In the end, they decided to change the name to Franklin. First, in Benjamin Franklin’s honor, they proposed the name. Second, the leaders wanting to add Franklin as a state saw the name Franklin was gaining more traction in the courts. They decided this name would give them a better chance of getting their so-called state to become a reality.
So, why did the state of Franklin eventually fail? The state of Franklin operated like any other state during its time, but it did have its problems. Some of these included a lack of military, tax-free living, and the lack of economic infrastructure. Because of this, the North Carolina government began to give incentives to the people living in the Franklin land to move back to their former government. They also offered to waive all taxes they hadn’t paid during their time living in Franklin. This was all under the notion that Franklin would dissolve letting the people leave the “state.” The state as a whole refused this offer, but it wasn’t long after that many citizens and leaders had moved away.
Questions:
What would you name a state if you could?
Would it be named after you, why or why not?
Do you think Franklin should have stayed as a state?
Sources:
https://www.deseret.com/23922454/history-of-the-state-of-franklin/
https://www.taraross.com/post/tdih-state-franklin
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/true-story-short-lived-state-franklin-180964541/
Replies
I love this topic and have not heard of this story before which surprises me a little. Great summary and well done! I do have to say that you gamed the system a but by commenting to most people twice. That will have to become a new rule. I'll call it the "Emercyn Rule".
I don't know what I would want to name a state, if at all. I would probably name it after someone famous and respected, not myself. I think Franklin could've stayed a state if it started operating like the rest of the states we have today.
Would you live in the "state of Franklin" if given the chance? No taxes!
I think that Franklin could have stayed a state as well. In order to do so they would have had to start following the rules that the states at the time were following. One thing that I think they could have done better was taxing the people that lived there.
If I were to name a state I would have to have people take a vote so it's partially what I want and what others want. I wouldn't want the state to be named after me because I don't think it sounds good with all the other states.
That is a really good idea. Having people take a vote could get everyone involved when it came to choosing the state's name would help creativity, originality, and more people would like the name because they would have picked it.
I probably wouldn't name a state but if I were to it would most likely just be a name or named after and animal. I wouldn't name a state after me, mainly because my name is spelled weird so I wouldn't want people miss pronouncing it. I feel like it would be cool to have more states, but I also feel like we don't really need it.
No on has said an animal, I like that idea though. Even if you believe your name is spelled weird it would be kind of fun to have your name as a state.
What animal do you think you would name the state after?
I dont know what I would want to name a state. But if I had to name a state it would probaly name it after me or smehting I like. I would name it after me so the state could represent my family and our name. I think it would of been cool for a state named after a guy, and would of been a cool history for the state.
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