Daniel Smith settled on a
Donation Land Claim here in 1852. A post office named Franklin was established in 1855, with Enos Ellmaker as the first postmaster. It was named for
Franklin, Missouri. Royal Varney Howard, an
Oregon Trail pioneer of 1853, opened a store in 1857, where he began referring to the settlement as Smithfield in honor of Daniel Smith. Smith laid out a
plat for the community of Smithfield in 1891. Franklin Cemetery (aka Franklin Grange Cemetery) was established in 1891; Daniel Smith is buried there. Daniel Smith sold the Christian Church congregation the property. The tracks have since been removed. Agricultural activities in 1915 included farming, dairying, and poultry raising, with the area being particularly suited for berries and other fruit crops. As of 1990, a former school building and Grange hall, which had been moved to Franklin in 1914, served as the Franklin store. As of 2025, the two churches were the Franklin Christian Church and Bethany Church of Franklin. The Franklin station of the
Lane Rural Fire Authority is located at the intersection of Territorial Highway and Franklin Road. The store served as a
stagecoach stop along the Territorial road, so the flag was visible to dozens of travelers every week. Two markers were placed before the existing ones. The first marker was placed on July 27, 1930, by the Lewis and Clark Chapter of the
Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR). It read, "Pioneer home of Daniel Smith, 1852, for whom Smithfield was named and also the Westside Old Territorial Road, 1848-1965." A stone marker was erected within three years by the DAR that read, "By the ruling of the court, this is and has been Smithfield since 1857. Dedicated Smithfield 1862 in honor of Daniel Smith, pioneer of 1852, Donor of the village site." The stone marker was destroyed (possibly dynamited), and the earlier marker vanished. A bronze marker mounted on a concrete base, placed by the DAR in 1950, remains in the area. There is also another marker dated 1933 without the controversial wording that still exists. In 1934, the county placed road signs with both "Franklin" and "Smithfield", and
topographic maps labeled the place "Franklin-Smithfield". By 1966, maps only referred to Franklin. ==Smithfield in Polk County==