# Fame.am profile — machine-readable export
# Canonical URL: https://fame.am/person/francis-townsend
# Generated: 2026-08-14T01:16:29.987Z

schema: https://schema.org/Person
url: "https://fame.am/person/francis-townsend"
name: "Francis Townsend"
slug: "francis-townsend"
description: "Francis Everett Townsend was an American physician and political activist in California. In 1933, he devised an old-age pension scheme to help alleviate the Great Depression. Known as the \"Townsend Plan\", this proposal would pay every person over age 60 $200 per month, with the requirement it all be spent quickly. It was never enacted but the popularity of the Plan influenced Congress to start the Social Security system, which involved much smaller amounts. The Plan was organized by real estate salesman Robert Clements, who made Townsend only a figurehead while the Plan expanded to thousands of clubs in many states. Townsend was born just outside Fairbury, Illinois, where he is memorialized by a post office named in his honor."
tagline: "American politician"
image: "https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/Francis_Townsend%2C_seated_at_desk%2C_with_microphones_hec.27728.jpg?width=1200"
gender: "male"
country:
  name: "United States"
  isoCode: "US"
category:
  name: "Academics"
  slug: "academics"
profileType:
  name: "Academic"
  slug: "academic"
  entityType: "https://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q39631"
birthDate: "1867-01-13"
deathDate: "1960-09-01"
livingStatus: "DECEASED"
scores:
  popularity:           48.6
  momentum:             7.757983178302863
  historical:           6.393201333333334
  currentAttention:     0
  sourceConfidence:     39.99999999999999
  profileCompleteness:  70
  trendDirection:       "RISING"
ranks:
  global:   null
  country:  null
  category: null
sources:
  - url: "https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%A2%D0%B0%D1%83%D0%BD%D1%81%D0%B5%D0%BD%D0%B4%2C_%D0%A4%D1%80%D1%8D%D0%BD%D1%81%D0%B8%D1%81_%D0%AD%D0%B2%D0%B5%D1%80%D0%B5%D1%82%D1%82"
    title: "Таунсенд, Фрэнсис Эверетт"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://ar.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D9%81%D8%B1%D9%86%D8%B3%D9%8A%D8%B3_%D8%AA%D8%A7%D9%88%D9%86%D8%B3%D9%86%D8%AF"
    title: "فرنسيس تاونسند"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://arz.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D9%81%D8%B1%D9%86%D8%B3%D9%8A%D8%B3_%D8%AA%D8%A7%D9%88%D9%86%D8%B3%D9%86%D8%AF"
    title: "فرنسيس تاونسند"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francis_Townsend"
    title: "Francis Townsend"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://eo.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francis_Townsend"
    title: "Francis Townsend"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francis_Townsend"
    title: "Francis Townsend"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://id.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francis_Townsend"
    title: "Francis Townsend"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q3081716"
    title: "Wikidata"
    type:  "WIKIDATA"

# bio (long form, separated for readability)
bio: |
  Imported from discovery source: wikidata-dump