The Elms (Franklin, Virginia)

The Joint Expedition Against Franklin was a joint engagement between the United States Army and Navy against the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. The engagement was intended to move Union forces into an area where Confederate forces were gathering as they prepared to move on Suffolk, Virginia. Originally planned as a coordinated two-pronged attack with a naval flotilla supporting an infantry advance on Franklin, Virginia, communications delays caused the Union Navy to start the mission before the Army was ready to support it. Instead, October 3, 1862 (1862-10-03) found Union Naval forces on the Blackwater River greatly outnumbered by Confederate infantrymen and ultimately forced to retreat. The naval action alone is also known as the Action at Crumpler's Bluff or the Battle of Crumpler's Bluff.Simultaneously, a nearby Army reconnaissance team conducted a failed assault on the town on the basis that the audibly nearby Naval forces—which they did not know were then in retreat—would bring support. The outcome left the Union forces with a combined 5 casualties and 21 wounded. Dialogue between officers following the conflict left the Union navy questioning the usefulness of gunboats in joint expedition settings in which they would not be capable of supporting themselves.

Paul D. Camp Community College (PDCCC) is a public community college in Franklin, Virginia. Founded in 1970, it is one of 23 schools in the Virginia Community College System. The college is named after a local advocate of education, who, along with his brothers, founded the lumber business, Camp Manufacturing Company. The college was built on land donated by Camp's daughters almost 50 years after his death. Paul D. Camp Community College has campuses in Franklin and Suffolk, Virginia (Hobbs Suffolk Campus) as well as a center in the town of Smithfield, Virginia. The Franklin Campus opened in fall 1971. Classes were offered in Suffolk as early as 1979. However, the current building on Kenyon Road was not erected until 1995. The Smithfield Center began its operations in 1993. PDCCC serves the cities of Franklin and Suffolk, and the counties of Southampton and Isle of Wight. PDCCC offers day and evening classes, credit and non-credit workforce services and training for area businesses and industries through the college's Regional Workforce Development Center on the Franklin Campus, dual enrollment courses for high school students, and a growing number of online classes.

Franklin is the southwesternmost independent city in Hampton Roads, Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 8,180. The Bureau of Economic Analysis combines the city of Franklin with Southampton County for statistical purposes.

Hayden High School is a historic high school complex for African-American students located in Franklin, Virginia. The main building was completed in 1953 and is a two-story, "L"-plan brick-clad building with two smaller one-story additions. Associated with the main school are two 1969 one-story classroom buildings situated behind the school. Hayden High School is an important site in the fight over both equalization and desegregation of public schools. The school was closed in the 1980s, after housing a middle school.The school was named for educator Della Irving Hayden (1851-1924), founder of the Franklin Normal and Industrial Institute. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2013.

Franklin High School is a public high school in Franklin, Virginia. It is a co-educational school serving grades 9-12. Franklin High School is a member of the Tri-Rivers District, Class A athletic conference. Franklin High School is part of the Franklin City Public Schools District.

Camptown is a census-designated place in Isle of Wight County, Virginia, United States, lying just east of Franklin. The population as of the 2010 census was 766. The International Paper mill (formerly Union Camp, now closed) is here along with a black Community known as Camptown.

Woods Hill is an historic estate at 1501 Clay Street in Franklin, Virginia. The 17-acre (6.9 ha) estate is notable for its house, designed by architect Alan McCullough and built in 1951, and its landscaping, designed by Charles Freeman Gillette. The house is a two-story brick structure, built out of custom bricks laid in Old English Bond and mortared using rough edging mortar. The property includes a log cabin and old service station (established by the building owner's father) that were located on the rural parcel.The property was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2014.

Brown's Ferry, also known as the Mahone House, is a historic home near Courtland, Southampton County, Virginia. It was built about 1815, and is a large two-story, five-bay, Federal style brick dwelling. It has a one-story kitchen attached to the rear. The main house has a side gable roof and three interior end chimneys. The interior features notable woodwork and painting. Also on the property are a contributing smokehouse, corn crib, and pole barn. It was the birthplace of Confederate General William Mahone (1826–1895).It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979.

Beechwood, also known as Jericho, is a historic home located near Beales, Southampton County, Virginia. The frame dwelling was built in several sections between about 1790 and late-19th centuries. It consists of a two-story, three-bay main block dated to about 1790 with a side-hall, double pile plan. It has a small one-bay wing at the east end; a two-bay, one-cell wing at the west; and a two-story, two-room ell off the west wing. The front facade features a one-story pedimented porch with a dentil cornice and full entablature supported on Tuscan order columns.It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979.

Sedley is a census-designated place (CDP) in the middle of Southampton County, Virginia, United States. The population as of the 2010 Census was 470. It lies at an elevation of 89 feet (27 m).

Elm Grove, also known as the Williams-Rick House, is a historic plantation house located near Courtland, Southampton County, Virginia. The original section was built about 1790, and enlarged by its subsequent owners through the 19th century. The main section is a two-story, six-bay, frame dwelling sheathed in weatherboard. It has a side gable roof and exterior end chimneys. Three noteworthy early outbuildings survive. Directly north of the house is a single-story, one-cell frame building probably erected as an office and used at the turn of the century as a school. West of the house is a frame dairy with a gable roof, beaded weatherboards, and louvred ventilator above the door on the front. Most interesting is the smokehouse which stands northwest of the house. This low, square building has saddle-notched round log walls and encloses four srnokepits. This is the only known early example of a multiple-pit smokehouse in Virginia. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979.The tract now known as Elm Grove was left to Isaac Williams by his father, Jonah Williams, in 1771. After Isaac Williams's death in 1788, the property remained in his estate until 1803, when 342 acres of his land were transferred to his son Edwin. After Edwin Williams's death in 1811, the estate was divided among several heirs, all of whom soon sold their portions to Richard and Oswin Ricks, a father and son. In 1832 Oswin Ricks sold the property to Dr. Robert Murray, an Irish-born physician. Tradition states that Murray operated a school at Elm Grove at mid-century, a belief substantiated by the 1850 census which lists fourteen girls and two boys (in addition to the Murrays's own six children) residing at the house at that time. Murray sold the property to William W. Briggs in 1858. In 1887 Lucius Lelius Manry bought Elm Grove. It remained in the Manry family until the death of Edward Smith Manry in 1996.

Southampton Academy is a small, private school located in Courtland, Virginia. Southampton Academy, also known locally as "SA" provides education for students from pre-kindergarten through the 12th grade. Southampton Academy was founded in 1969, as a segregation academy.