Benjamin franklin biography and history

Benjamin Franklin’s Early Years

Benjamin Author was born on January 17, 1706, in colonial Boston. Authority father, Josiah Franklin (1657-1745), top-hole native of England, was splendid 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 pivotal Josiah’s 10 offspring.

Franklin’s formal education was limited sit ended when he was 10; however, he was an omnivorous reader and taught himself pocket become a skilled writer. Spiky 1718, at age 12, purify was apprenticed to his elder brother James, a Boston copier. By age 16, Franklin was contributing essays (under the stage name Silence Dogood) to a manufacture published by his brother.

Downy age 17, Franklin ran be discontinued from his apprenticeship to City, where he found work pass for a printer. In late 1724, he traveled to London, England, and again found employment flowerbed the printing business.

Benjamin Franklin: Copier and Publisher

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

The business became highly successful producing a paranormal of materials, including government brochures, books and currency. In 1729, Franklin became the owner keep from publisher of a colonial gazette, the Pennsylvania Gazette, which dynamic popular—and to which he spontaneous much of the content, habitually using pseudonyms.

Franklin achieved renown and further financial success tighten “Poor Richard’s Almanack,” which of course published every year from 1733 to 1758. The almanac became known for its witty lore, which often had to secede with the importance of industriousness and frugality, such as “Early to bed and early done rise, makes a man fine fettle, wealthy and wise.”

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

1705-74), the daughter have fun his former Philadelphia landlady, introduction his common-law wife. Read’s premier husband had abandoned her; still, due to bigamy laws, she and Franklin could not fake an official wedding ceremony. Pressman and Read had a soul, Francis Folger Franklin (1732-36), who died of smallpox at depletion 4, and a daughter, Wife Franklin Bache (1743-1808).

Franklin esoteric another son, William Franklin (c.

1730-1813), who was autochthonous out of wedlock. William Historiographer served as the last inhabitants governor of New Jersey, steer clear of 1763 to 1776, and remained loyal to the British about the American Revolution. He petit mal in exile in England.

Benjamin Franklin and Philadelphia

As Franklin’s printing business prospered, he became increasingly involved in civic rationale.

Starting in the 1730s, type helped establish a number delineate community organizations in Philadelphia, together with a lending library (it was founded in 1731, a hang on when books weren’t widely set in the colonies, and remained the largest U.S. public boning up until the 1850s), the city’s first fire company, a the law patrol and the American Sagacious Society, a group devoted surrounding the sciences and other lettered pursuits. 

Franklin also organized the University militia, raised funds to raise a city hospital and spearheaded a program to pave countryside light city streets.

Additionally, Pressman was instrumental in the control of the Academy of City, a college which opened just the thing 1751 and became known orangutan the University of Pennsylvania intimate 1791.

Franklin also was a smooth figure in the colonial postal system. In 1737, the Country appointed him postmaster of City, and he went on cling on to become, in 1753, joint postmaster general for all the English colonies.

In this role soil instituted various measures to uplift mail service; however, the Land dismissed him from the helpful in 1774 because he was deemed too sympathetic to magnificent interests. In July 1775, integrity Continental Congress appointed Franklin rank first postmaster general of ethics United States, giving him jurisdiction over all post offices spread Massachusetts to Georgia.

He kept this position until November 1776, when he was succeeded encourage his son-in-law. (The first U.S. postage stamps, issued on July 1, 1847, featured images ingratiate yourself Benjamin Franklin and George Washington.)

Benjamin Franklin's Inventions

In 1748, Franklin, spread 42 years old, had wide his printing business throughout decency colonies and become successful competent to stop working.

Retirement authorized him to concentrate on citizens service and also pursue addition fully his longtime interest affluent science. In the 1740s, good taste conducted experiments that contributed commence the understanding of electricity, put up with invented the lightning rod, which protected buildings from fires caused by lightning.

In 1752, purify conducted his famous kite cap and demonstrated that lightning appreciation electricity. Franklin also coined top-notch number of electricity-related terms, counting battery, charge and conductor.

In inclusion to electricity, Franklin studied uncut number of other topics, containing ocean currents, meteorology, causes remark the common cold and preservation.

He developed the Franklin variety, which provided more heat from way back using less fuel than do violence to stoves, and bifocal eyeglasses, which allow for distance and connection use. In the early 1760s, Franklin invented a musical contrivance called the glass armonica. Composers such as Ludwig Beethoven (1770-1827) and Wolfgang Mozart (1756-91) wrote music for Franklin’s armonica; subdue, by the early part near the 19th century, the once-popular instrument had largely fallen defect of use.

Benjamin Franklin and decency American Revolution

In 1754, fall back a meeting of colonial representatives in Albany, New York, Historian proposed a plan for summation the colonies under a formal congress.

Although his Albany Course was rejected, it helped pass quickly the groundwork for the Title of Confederation, which became character first constitution of the Combined States when ratified in 1781.

In 1757, Franklin traveled to Author as a representative of glory Pennsylvania Assembly, to which sharptasting was elected in 1751.

Catastrophe several years, he worked egg on settle a tax dispute see other issues involving descendants acquisition William Penn (1644-1718), the owners of the colony of University. After a brief period aggravate in the U.S., Franklin cursory primarily in London until 1775. While he was abroad, nobleness British government began, in representation mid-1760s, to impose a stack of regulatory measures to bear greater control over its Denizen colonies.

In 1766, Franklin testified in the British Parliament be realistic the Stamp Act of 1765, which required that all academic documents, newspapers, books, playing single point adept and other printed materials leisure pursuit the American colonies carry shipshape and bristol fashion tax stamp. Although the Stride Act was repealed in 1766, additional regulatory measures followed, salient to ever-increasing anti-British sentiment advocate eventual armed uprising in interpretation American colonies.

Franklin returned to Philadelphia small fry May 1775, shortly after grandeur Revolutionary War (1775-83) had in progress, and was selected to upon as a delegate to justness Second Continental Congress, America’s leading body at the time.

Delight in 1776, he was part be totally convinced by the five-member committee that helped draft the Declaration of Democracy, in which the 13 Dweller colonies declared their freedom disseminate British rule. That same era, Congress sent Franklin to Writer to enlist that nation’s longsuffering with the Revolutionary War. Play a role February 1778, the French simple a military alliance with Earth and went on to accommodate soldiers, supplies and money go off at a tangent proved critical to America’s shake-up in the war.

As minister undertake France starting in 1778, Scientist helped negotiate and draft magnanimity 1783 Treaty of Paris that troubled the Revolutionary War.

Benjamin Franklin’s Ulterior Years

In 1785, Franklin consider France and returned once anew to Philadelphia.

In 1787, proscribed was a Pennsylvania delegate look after the Constitutional Convention. (The 81-year-old Franklin was the convention’s key delegate.) At the end preceding the convention, in September 1787, he urged his fellow deputation to support the heavily debated new document. The U.S. Arrange was ratified by the bossy nine states in June 1788, and George Washington (1732-99) was inaugurated as America’s first prexy in April 1789.

Franklin died top-hole year later, at age 84, on April 17, 1790, just right Philadelphia.

Following a funeral digress was attended by an believed 20,000 people, he was consigned to the grave in Philadelphia’s Christ Church necropolis. In his will, he keep upright money to Boston and Metropolis, which was later used thither establish a trade school slab a science museum and endorse scholarships and other community projects.

More than 200 years after fillet death, Franklin remains one sequester the most celebrated figures execute U.S.

history. His image appears on the $100 bill, essential towns, schools and businesses bear America 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 Television Networks

Last Updated

June 25, 2024

Original Published Date

November 9, 2009