Franklin Elementary stood at the corner of Franklin Rd and Orchard Rd. Finished in 1905, it was made out of stone with the symbolic bell being added in 1907. The first high school students were accepted in 1908 and graduated in 1911. The building was utilized as a high school to begin with. This was in support of the growing neighborhood and was named Franklin, even before the first stone was laid. Again in 1914, the area was overcrowded, so an addition was added to the schoolhouse. Major renovations occurred in 1936, when the school received three new classrooms, a gymnasium, boy’s and girl’s dressing rooms, and new space for other programs.
In 1949, Franklin ceased to be a high school and a two-story structure was added on the west side of the building, which included a new entrance and office area. In 1974 another wing was added as well as a portion of the playground and several new portables to again accommodate the growing community. One of the first few students to attend both Franklin?s elementary, which was a small building to the side of the high school, and the high school itself was Manson McClure. He graduated in 1942 and joined the Army.The many renovations of Franklin took their toll. The school started out as a stone building, but as more adjustments were made, brick was more commonly used. As time continued the use of stone was returned to. The bell is one thing that has remained through all the renovations and additions and has lasted for around one hundred years.
Franklin Elementary School served 410 students in grades K through 6. Around 100 of those students spoke another language. Franklin was demolished in 2009 and that choice is still a source of pain and frustration for many in Boise. The lot has stood empty for almost a decade as a reminder of what was lost.