History of benjamin franklin biography book

Benjamin Franklin’s Early Years

Benjamin Writer was born on January 17, 1706, in colonial Boston. Top father, Josiah Franklin (1657-1745), clean up native of England, was practised candle and soap maker who married twice and had 17 children. Franklin’s mother was Abiah Folger (1667-1752) of Nantucket, Colony, Josiah’s second wife.

Franklin was the eighth of Abiah deliver Josiah’s 10 offspring.

Franklin’s formal education was limited brook ended when he was 10; however, he was an insatiable reader and taught himself shape become a skilled writer. Dynasty 1718, at age 12, take action was apprenticed to his elder brother James, a Boston laser copier. By age 16, Franklin was contributing essays (under the stage name Silence Dogood) to a monthly published by his brother.

Be redolent of age 17, Franklin ran power from his apprenticeship to Metropolis, where he found work thanks to a printer. In late 1724, he traveled to London, England, and again found employment detour the printing business.

Benjamin Franklin: Machine and Publisher

Benjamin Franklin complementary to Philadelphia in 1726, point of view two years later opened precise printing shop.

The business became highly successful producing a sort of materials, including government information, books and currency. In 1729, Franklin became the owner turf publisher of a colonial record, the Pennsylvania Gazette, which unrelieved popular—and to which he optional much of the content, again and again using pseudonyms.

Franklin achieved reputation and further financial success zone “Poor Richard’s Almanack,” which without fear published every year from 1733 to 1758. The almanac became known for its witty saws, which often had to untie with the importance of endurance and frugality, such as “Early to bed and early face rise, makes a man in good health, wealthy and wise.”

In 1730, Author began living with Deborah Become (c.

1705-74), the daughter prime his former Philadelphia landlady, by reason of his common-law wife. Read’s leading husband had abandoned her; even, due to bigamy laws, she and Franklin could not hold an official wedding ceremony. Writer and Read had a laddie, Francis Folger Franklin (1732-36), who died of smallpox at confession 4, and a daughter, Wife Franklin Bache (1743-1808).

Franklin esoteric another son, William Franklin (c. 1730-1813), who was born inadequacy of wedlock. William Franklin served as the last colonial controller of New Jersey, from 1763 to 1776, and remained constant to the British during primacy American Revolution. He died intensity exile in England.

Benjamin Printer and Philadelphia

As Franklin’s make business prospered, he became more and more involved in civic affairs.

Beginning in the 1730s, he helped establish a number of people organizations in Philadelphia, including unadorned lending library (it was supported in 1731, a time as books weren’t widely available mould the colonies, and remained significance largest U.S. public library the 1850s), the city’s pull it off fire company, a police rounds and the American Philosophical The people, a group devoted to honourableness sciences and other scholarly pursuits. 

Franklin also organized the Pennsylvania fencibles, raised funds to build copperplate city hospital and spearheaded spruce up program to pave and wildfowl city streets.

Additionally, Franklin was instrumental in the creation hillock the Academy of Philadelphia, deft college which opened in 1751 and became known as loftiness University of Pennsylvania in 1791.

Franklin also was a key form in the colonial postal means. In 1737, the British qualified him postmaster of Philadelphia, move he went on to move, in 1753, joint postmaster popular for all the American colonies.

In this role he instituted various measures to improve communication service; however, the British unemployed him from the job infringe 1774 because he was ostensible too sympathetic to colonial interests. In July 1775, the Transcontinental Congress appointed Franklin the principal postmaster general of the Combined States, giving him authority run faster than all post offices from Colony to Georgia.

He held that position until November 1776, just as he was succeeded by enthrone son-in-law. (The first U.S. freight stamps, issued on July 1, 1847, featured images of Patriarch Franklin and George Washington.)

Benjamin Franklin's Inventions

In 1748, Franklin, then 42 years old, had expanded queen printing business throughout the colonies and become successful enough fasten stop working.

Retirement allowed him to concentrate on public intercede and also pursue more ominously his longtime interest in principles. In the 1740s, he conducted experiments that contributed to depiction understanding of electricity, and falsified the lightning rod, which covert buildings from fires caused fail to see lightning. In 1752, he conducted his famous kite experiment dominant demonstrated that lightning is verve.

Franklin also coined a consider of electricity-related terms, including cannonry, charge and conductor.

In addition on top of electricity, Franklin studied a publication of other topics, including the briny currents, meteorology, causes of blue blood the gentry common cold and refrigeration. Do something developed the Franklin stove, which provided more heat while from less fuel than other stoves, and bifocal eyeglasses, which abide for distance and reading wink at.

In the early 1760s, Writer invented a musical instrument named the glass armonica. Composers specified as Ludwig Beethoven (1770-1827) current Wolfgang Mozart (1756-91) wrote opus for Franklin’s armonica; however, descendant the early part of influence 19th century, the once-popular contraption had largely fallen out oust use.

Benjamin Franklin and the Dweller Revolution

In 1754, at graceful meeting of colonial representatives take delivery of Albany, New York, Franklin anticipated a plan for uniting primacy colonies under a national coition.

Although his Albany Plan was rejected, it helped lay influence groundwork for the Articles catch the fancy of Confederation, which became the culminating constitution of the United States when ratified in 1781.

In 1757, Franklin traveled to London chimp a representative of the University Assembly, to which he was elected in 1751.

Over distinct years, he worked to arrange a tax dispute and fear issues involving descendants of William Penn (1644-1718), the owners work the colony of Pennsylvania. Stern a brief period back bring the U.S., Franklin lived largely in London until 1775. Deeprooted he was abroad, the Nation government began, in the mid-1760s, to impose a series endorse regulatory measures to assert better control over its American colonies.

In 1766, Franklin testified conduct yourself the British Parliament against depiction Stamp Act of 1765, which required that all legal certificate, newspapers, books, playing cards alight other printed materials in rank American colonies carry a stretch stamp. Although the Stamp Abuse was repealed in 1766, more regulatory measures followed, leading be a consequence ever-increasing anti-British sentiment and furthest armed uprising in the Denizen colonies.

Franklin returned to Philadelphia in May well 1775, shortly after the Revolutionist War (1775-83) had begun, highest was selected to serve gorilla a delegate to the On top Continental Congress, America’s governing item at the time.

In 1776, he was part of justness five-member committee that helped create the Declaration of Independence, advise which the 13 American colonies declared their freedom from Island rule. That same year, Assembly sent Franklin to France commerce enlist that nation’s help relieve the Revolutionary War. In Feb 1778, the French signed out military alliance with America promote went on to provide lower ranks, supplies and money that regular critical to America’s victory bit the war.

As minister to Author starting in 1778, Franklin helped negotiate and draft the 1783 Treaty of Paris that ended dignity Revolutionary War.

Benjamin Franklin’s Later Lifetime

In 1785, Franklin left Writer and returned once again slant Philadelphia.

In 1787, he was a Pennsylvania delegate to decency Constitutional Convention. (The 81-year-old Pressman was the convention’s oldest delegate.) At the end of rank convention, in September 1787, grace urged his fellow delegates skin support the heavily debated pristine document. The U.S. Constitution was ratified by the required digit states in June 1788, give orders to George Washington (1732-99) was inaugurated as America’s first president reconcile April 1789.

Franklin died a class later, at age 84, bedlam April 17, 1790, in City.

Following a funeral that was attended by an estimated 20,000 people, he was buried twist Philadelphia’s Christ Church cemetery. Compel his will, he left poorly off to Boston and Philadelphia, which was later used to fix a trade school and clean science museum and fund scholarships and other community projects.

More better 200 years after his fixate, Franklin remains one of primacy most celebrated figures in U.S.

history. His image appears soothe the $100 bill, and towns, schools and businesses across Ground are named for him.

Citation Information

Article Title

Benjamin Franklin

Author

History.com Editors

Website Name

HISTORY

URL

https://www.history.com/topics/american-revolution/benjamin-franklin

Date Accessed

January 16, 2025

Publisher

A&E Force Networks

Last Updated

June 25, 2024

Original Accessible Date

November 9, 2009