Franklin, WV

Franklin is the Pendleton County seat in the Allegheny Mountains of West Virginia, where the 2020 census counted 486 residents. The town sits along the South Branch of the Potomac River on the eastern edge of Monongahela National Forest. It was established in 1794 and named for Francis Evick, one of the first settlers. The river valley gives Franklin its long north-south line, while mountain roads pull the town into the surrounding county.

Franklin’s calendar leans into that setting. Trout Fest arrives in May, and the Treasure Mountain Festival, begun in 1968, fills the town on the third weekend of September with Pendleton County history and mountain scenery. Franklin Gorge draws rock climbers, while the Franklin Historic District preserves much of the commercial and residential core listed in 1986. The courthouse role, river, forest edge, and festivals all meet in a town that works as both county center and gateway to the high country. The result is a town with a courthouse in the middle and a mountain trail in every direction.