.about us.

main street franklin fund is a 501c3 nonprofit organization focused on planning and development within the Village of Franklin, Michigan. It is our mission to enhance the downtown business corridor by implementing a safe, walkable, and attractive Village Center, while preserving and promoting the historic architecture, charm, and magnificent rural setting that incentivize residents and visitors to live, work, and play inside this hidden gem.

.the history of the Village of Franklin.

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The Franklin Village settlement began in 1824, and upon the completion of the Erie Canal, more settlers from New England arrived.

 

Many of the early settlers had trades  including: blacksmith, carpenter, mason, bricklayer, and a shoemaker.  For the next decade, Franklin continued to grow and had many businesses including: flour and feed mills, a lumber mill, a brick and tile yard, a wagon and sleigh shop, a cooperage, distillery and many small shops.

 

Life in the Village did not change until the advent of the automobile and the construction of highways, and a local developer laid out a plan calling for large single-family lots in the 1920’s.

 

Franklin was incorporated as a Home Rule Village on November 8, 1953 and continues the tradition of family homes and businesses as the Village had originally begun.

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