Franklin is a city in Merrimack County, New Hampshire, United States. At the 2020 census, the population was 8,741, the least of New Hampshire's 13 cities. Franklin includes the village of West Franklin.
Situated at the confluence of the Pemigewasset and Winnipesaukee rivers that form the Merrimack River, the town was settled by Anglo-European colonists in 1764 and originally known as "Pemigewasset Village". It was taken from portions of Salisbury, Andover, Sanbornton and Northfield. The name "Franklin" was adopted in 1820 in honor of statesman and founding father Benjamin Franklin. Water power from the falls on the Winnipesaukee River helped it develop as a mill town. It incorporated as a town in 1828, and then as a city in 1895.
Daniel Webster was born in a section of Franklin that was then part of Salisbury. There is a state historic site located off Route 127 that preserves the famous orator's childhood home. As an adult, Webster owned "The Elms", a farm near the Merrimack River along present-day Route 3.
In 1943, the Army Corps of Engineers created the Franklin Falls Reservoir above Franklin by constructing the Franklin Falls Dam for flood control on the Pemigewasset River.
File:Bird's-eye View, Franklin, NH.jpg|Bird's eye view {{circa|1912}}
File:Merrimack River, Franklin, NH.jpg|Merrimack River in 1905
File:Old High School, Franklin, NH.jpg|Old High School in 1908
File:View of Central Street, Franklin, NH.jpg|Central Street in 1909
File:Sulloway Mills, Franklin, NH.jpg|Sulloway Mills {{circa|1910}}
File:Webster Birthplace, Franklin, NH.jpg|Daniel Webster birthplace {{circa|1910}}
File:FranklinNH CityHall.jpg|City Hall
File:FranklinNH FreePublicLibrary.jpg|The library
Franklin is located in northern Merrimack County at (43.446956, −71.656966).
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which are land and are water, comprising 5.95% of the town. It is drained by the Winnipesaukee, Pemigewasset and Merrimack rivers. Webster Lake is in the north.