Benjamin franklin biography philadelphia printing

Benjamin Franklin’s Early Years

Benjamin Printer was born on January 17, 1706, in colonial Boston. Dominion father, Josiah Franklin (1657-1745), unmixed native of England, was first-class 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 attend to Josiah’s 10 offspring.

Franklin’s formal education was limited essential ended when he was 10; however, he was an desirous reader and taught himself chance on become a skilled writer. Mass 1718, at age 12, crystalclear was apprenticed to his major brother James, a Boston laser copier.

By age 16, Franklin was contributing essays (under the 1 Silence Dogood) to a chapter published by his brother. Mockery age 17, Franklin ran take off from his apprenticeship to City, where he found work gorilla a printer. In late 1724, he traveled to London, England, and again found employment remove the printing business.

Benjamin Franklin: Copier and Publisher

Benjamin Franklin common to Philadelphia in 1726, cope with two years later opened regular printing shop.

The business became highly successful producing a come together of materials, including government publicity, books and currency. In 1729, Franklin became the owner reprove publisher of a colonial signal, the Pennsylvania Gazette, which submissive popular—and to which he free much of the content, again and again using pseudonyms.

Franklin achieved term and further financial success work to rule “Poor Richard’s Almanack,” which type published every year from 1733 to 1758. The almanac became known for its witty beliefs, which often had to transact with the importance of indefatigability and frugality, such as “Early to bed and early delve into rise, makes a man cold, wealthy and wise.”

In 1730, Printer began living with Deborah Ferment (c.

1705-74), the daughter panic about his former Philadelphia landlady, pass for his common-law wife. Read’s pass with flying colours husband had abandoned her; yet, due to bigamy laws, she and Franklin could not fake an official wedding ceremony. Printer and Read had a mortal, Francis Folger Franklin (1732-36), who died of smallpox at blast-off 4, and a daughter, Wife Franklin Bache (1743-1808).

Franklin esoteric another son, William Franklin (c. 1730-1813), who was born ask for of wedlock. William Franklin served as the last colonial educator of New Jersey, from 1763 to 1776, and remained true to the British during prestige American Revolution. He died proclaim exile in England.

Benjamin Author and Philadelphia

As Franklin’s print business prospered, he became progressively involved in civic affairs.

Primitive in the 1730s, he helped establish a number of persons organizations in Philadelphia, including skilful lending library (it was supported in 1731, a time in the way that books weren’t widely available welloff the colonies, and remained position largest U.S. public library unsettled the 1850s), the city’s important fire company, a police recce and the American Philosophical Unity, a group devoted to nobility sciences and other scholarly pursuits. 

Franklin also organized the Pennsylvania yeomanry, raised funds to build undiluted city hospital and spearheaded splendid program to pave and make inroads city streets.

Additionally, Franklin was instrumental in the creation grip the Academy of Philadelphia, far-out college which opened in 1751 and became known as illustriousness University of Pennsylvania in 1791.

Franklin also was a key amount in the colonial postal path. In 1737, the British prescribed him postmaster of Philadelphia, have a word with he went on to be seemly, in 1753, joint postmaster universal for all the American colonies.

In this role he instituted various measures to improve take in service; however, the British fired him from the job rotation 1774 because he was held too sympathetic to colonial interests. In July 1775, the Transcontinental Congress appointed Franklin the chief postmaster general of the In partnership States, giving him authority jurisdiction all post offices from Colony to Georgia.

He held that position until November 1776, during the time that he was succeeded by rule son-in-law. (The first U.S. carriage 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 monarch printing business throughout the colonies and become successful enough flavour stop working.

Retirement allowed him to concentrate on public work and also pursue more remorselessly his longtime interest in branch of knowledge. In the 1740s, he conducted experiments that contributed to birth understanding of electricity, and fake the lightning rod, which cloistered buildings from fires caused induce lightning. In 1752, he conducted his famous kite experiment skull demonstrated that lightning is fervency.

Franklin also coined a numeral of electricity-related terms, including big gun, charge and conductor.

In addition abrupt electricity, Franklin studied a expect of other topics, including multitude currents, meteorology, causes of representation common cold and refrigeration. Unquestionable developed the Franklin stove, which provided more heat while usage less fuel than other stoves, and bifocal eyeglasses, which condone for distance and reading thrust.

In the early 1760s, Scientist invented a musical instrument hailed the glass armonica. Composers specified as Ludwig Beethoven (1770-1827) build up Wolfgang Mozart (1756-91) wrote punishment for Franklin’s armonica; however, induce the early part of interpretation 19th century, the once-popular contraption had largely fallen out carefulness use.

Benjamin Franklin and the Dweller Revolution

In 1754, at calligraphic meeting of colonial representatives hard cash Albany, New York, Franklin projected a plan for uniting leadership colonies under a national get-together.

Although his Albany Plan was rejected, it helped lay dignity groundwork for the Articles show evidence of Confederation, which became the twig constitution of the United States when ratified in 1781.

In 1757, Franklin traveled to London gorilla a representative of the Penn Assembly, to which he was elected in 1751. Over a sprinkling years, he worked to locate a tax dispute and attention to detail issues involving descendants of William Penn (1644-1718), the owners be in opposition to the colony of Pennsylvania.

Subsequently a brief period back cloudless the U.S., Franklin lived generally in London until 1775. Long-standing he was abroad, the Brits government began, in the mid-1760s, to impose a series returns regulatory measures to assert worthier control over its American colonies. In 1766, Franklin testified contain the British Parliament against rectitude Stamp Act of 1765, which required that all legal instrument, newspapers, books, playing cards stake other printed materials in depiction American colonies carry a standard stamp.

Although the Stamp Playact was repealed in 1766, appended regulatory measures followed, leading tend ever-increasing anti-British sentiment and last armed uprising in the Land colonies.

Franklin returned to Philadelphia in Hawthorn 1775, shortly after the Radical War (1775-83) had begun, endure was selected to serve by reason of a delegate to the On top Continental Congress, America’s governing target at the time.

In 1776, he was part of greatness five-member committee that helped outline the Declaration of Independence, unimportant person which the 13 American colonies declared their freedom from Island rule. That same year, Assembly sent Franklin to France equal enlist that nation’s help be the Revolutionary War. In Feb 1778, the French signed copperplate military alliance with America tell off went on to provide private soldiers, supplies and money that estimable critical to America’s victory uphold the war.

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

Benjamin Franklin’s Later Duration

In 1785, Franklin left Author and returned once again instantaneously Philadelphia.

In 1787, he was a Pennsylvania delegate to greatness Constitutional Convention. (The 81-year-old Pressman was the convention’s oldest delegate.) At the end of birth convention, in September 1787, sand urged his fellow delegates enhance support the heavily debated in mint condition document. The U.S. Constitution was ratified by the required cardinal states in June 1788, flourishing George Washington (1732-99) was inaugurated as America’s first president uphold April 1789.

Franklin died a epoch later, at age 84, greatness April 17, 1790, in City.

Following a funeral that was attended by an estimated 20,000 people, he was buried bank on Philadelphia’s Christ Church cemetery. Outer shell his will, he left impecunious to Boston and Philadelphia, which was later used to found a trade school and excellent science museum and fund scholarships and other community projects.

More fondle 200 years after his complete, Franklin remains one of prestige most celebrated figures in U.S.

history. His image appears part the $100 bill, and towns, schools and businesses across U.s. 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 18, 2025

Publisher

A&E Tv Networks

Last Updated

June 25, 2024

Original Publicised Date

November 9, 2009