Franklin?

 Tennessee has been a state since 1796. However, not many people know that part of Tennessee had the possibility of being a completely different state with the name of Franklin.

If Franklin had become a state it would take up what is now Eastern Tennessee. Franklin owes its namesake to Benjamin Franklin. The name Franklin was chosen in the hopes of drawing in Benjamin’s support for statehood. It was given to congress by North Carolina to pay off war debt. It had its own government, including a constitution and an army to fend off Native Americans. North Carolina rescinded its gift of the Franklin territory when the hope of paying off war debts could not be realized. The people of Franklin restarted with their own government. John Sevier was elected governor. North Carolina was angered over the loss of this land and threatened to send in troops to forcefully put down secession. The Cherokee nation was laying claim to the area, and Franklin could not supply the manpower need to repulse them on their own. Neither Franklin nor North Carolina wanted bloodshed, so Franklin rejoined North Carolina without a fight.

A state in the backwaters of America almost existed due to the need for organization against the wilderness. Franklin couldn't have survived on its own or there might have been a state of Franklin to this day. John Sevier went on to become a Tennessee governor and a U.S. congressman. He was appointed to the first Board of Trustees of Blount College, which was the forerunner of the University of Tennessee.