Franklin County was separated from St. Louis county and established in 1818. The county covers 922.1 square miles and has a population of 93,807. There are 55,116 registered voters in Franklin County comprising 80.9% of the voting age population. There are 34,945 households in the county with an average size of 2.7 persons and the median age of residents is 35.8 years. Median household income is $28,622 annually with 5.9% of county families and 8.3% of the total population with incomes below the poverty level. There are 1,498 miles of roadways in Franklin County with 69% maintained by municipal and county governments, and 31% maintained by the state of Missouri. 75.8% of workers drive to work alone and .4% take public transportation to work. The county seat was originally the village of Newport which no longer exists. The county seat was permanently moved to the City of Union in 1825. The county is governed by a three member County Commission led by the Presiding Commissioner and has 11 municipalities. Franklin County's economy has long included manufacturing, but the once significant presence of shoe manufacturing is no more, the industrial base of the county is more diverse. The historic and quaint towns of Franklin County such as Washington , Union , and Sullivan , and the natural beauty of the area attract many people to the county both as tourists and as new residents