Franklin (pop. 8,000) was founded in 1800 by Pennsylvanian Guinea Lewis who named the town for Benjamin Franklin. The town is a salt-mining, sugar-refining and carbon-black operations center.
The Grevemberg House Museum in Franklin is an antebellum Greek Revival townhouse, c 1851. Decorated in period furnishings, the home features Civil War artifacts, antique toys, kitchen implements and local newspapers.
Constructed in 1837 during the Greek Revival period, Franklin's Oaklawn Manor was the center of one of the first sugar cane plantations in the area. Within the mansion is an extensive collection of rare prints and original paintings created by naturalist John James Audubon and an assortment of handmade, hand-painted carvings of various waterfowl that winter in southern Louisiana. The gardens were designed to resemble the Gardens of Versailles.
Address: Oaklawn Manor, 3296 East Oaklawn Drive, Franklin, LA 70538-3218, United States
Phone: 1 (337) 828-0434, Fax: 1 (337) 828-1930