Portrait of Benjamin Franklin
courtesy of Archiving Early America


Young Ben in Philadelphia
courtesy of Archiving Early America


The Pennsylvania Gazette


The Pennsylvania Gazette



Ben Franklin, Postermaster General,
courtesy of Archiving Early America


Printing Press


Poor Richard's Almanach


Benjamin Franklin's Autobiography

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Benjamin Franklin - Patriot, Statesman & Scientist.

by Susan Groves - Center Street Elementary - El Segundo Unified

send to printer

I. Ben's Early Life

Benjamin Franklin was born on April 17, 1706 in Boston. He was the youngest son of 17 children. Since Ben’s father was married more than once, several of his brothers and sisters were his half brothers and sisters.

Ben taught himself to read at an early age, so he was sent to grammar school when he was eight years old. He only stayed for two years, though, when his father brought him home to work in his candle and soap making business. Ben did not enjoy working in the candle shop. After two years he was sent to be an apprentice to his older brother, James, in his
print shop.

An apprentice is someone who signs a contract and agrees to live, work, and learn with someone who works in a trade making something. Ben was supposed to work for his brother until he was 21 years old.

Ben liked printing better than candle making, and spent five years working for hisbrother. James was not always kind to Ben and sometimes beat him. Ben loved books and reading and spent his free time teaching himself by reading books.

By the age of 16 Ben was an accomplished writer as well as a printer. While serving an apprentice, he had written for his brother’s newspaper. After five years Ben ran away and took a ship from Boston to New York. From New York he made his way to Philadelphia.

II. Life in Philadelphia

Ben got a job working in a print shop for Mr. Keimer, who also published a newspaper. In 1729 Benjamin purchased Keimer’s newspaper and renamed it The Pennsylvania Gazette. At this time Ben also opened his first printing shop. When he was just 26 years old he started publishing Poor Richard’s Almanack, which contained weather predictions, astrological observations, and humorous bits of wisdom and advice on how to live a good life. He also included maxims, wise and witty sayings, which people still use today.

One of his maxims was:

“He that riseth late must trot all day. Lost time is never found again.”

People liked him a lot. He made jokes with them and worked hard. Benjamin Franklin believed that it was important to be truthful, sincere, and honest all of the time. He lived simply, ate plain food, saved his money, and paid his debts promptly. When he was 24 years old he married Deborah Read. They had three children, but one died when he was four, of smallpox.

III. Ben's Accomplishments

While he was still a young man Ben started teaching himself foreign languages. He could read Spanish, French, Italian, and German as well as English. His print shop was doing well. He opened more print shops in other areas. This is like McDonald’s restaurants; there are many of them owned by the same company, but run by different people. In addition to printing papers in his shops, he sold
paper, almanacks, and a few schoolbooks.

We know that Ben loved to read, and if he wanted new books they had to be brought over by ship from England. He came up with the idea of a subscription library (today’s lending library). People would pay and could then borrow books. Only 50 people signed up at first since there were very few readers in Philadelphia at this time and a great many poor people. This company was called The Library Company. You can still visit The Library Company today.

Ben was a successful printer and made a good living from his printing shops. He also started the first fire insurance company in Philadelphia. He helped start The American Philosophical Society (you can visit this library as well either in Philadelphia, or on-line), The Philadelphia Academy (a school for ordinary citizens), and he helped start the first hospital.

He was postmaster general for all of the 13 colonies. He traveled to France and England on behalf of the 13 colonies during the Revolutionary War. He convinced France to help the colonies and got weapons and money to help the war. After the war he helped to negotiate the peace treaty. He helped to write the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of the United States of America.

IV. Ben's Inventions

He was fascinated by science and invented many things that we use today. When he was a boy in Boston he invented swim paddles for the feet and hands to make swimming easier. He invented the Franklin stove (we still use freestanding, wood burning stoves like these to heat homes), bifocals, and the odometer (for measuring miles traveled).

His greatest inventions are in the field of electricity. He proved that lightning is electricity, and as a result of this he invented the lightning rod to protect buildings from lightning strikes.

Benjamin Franklin was an accomplished writer, publisher, printer, businessman, thinker, scientist, inventor, diplomat, and statesman. He was a hard worker and lived simply. His only real entertainment was reading.

His wife was a good partner and helped him run his printing businesses. Much of their 40 years of married life was spent apart since Benjamin traveled to France and England and was gone for several years at a time. He was in England when Deborah died. He had not been home for 10 years. Ben died when he was 82 years old.

Benjamin Franklin is a shining example of how hard work, determination, self-discipline, and living a moral life can lead to success. He lived over 200 years ago and his inventions are still improving the lives of Americans today. Our government is based on The Constitution that he helped write over 200 years ago.

V. Ben's Inventions

  • Franklin Stove
  • bifocals (reading glasses)
  • swimming paddles
  • electrostatic machine(to discover principles of electricity)
  • proved that lightning is electricity
  • lightning rod
  • discovered the positive and negative poles
     of electricity
  • glass armonica (for making music)
  • odometer (for measuring mileage traveled)
  • medical catheter
  • mechanical arm to get books down from high shelves
  • investigated properties of heat (wear lighter colors in hot weather and vice versa)
  • foot-operated fan for cooling in hot weather
  • chair whose seat lifted to reveal a step ladder
  • smokeless streetlight

VI. Ben's Accomplishments

  • He had printing franchises (he owned several different shops, like McDonalds)
  • He helped write and published a newspaper, The Pennsylvania Gazette.
  • He wrote and published Poor Richard’s Almanac.
  • He helped start the first circulating library.
  • He started the first fire insurance company.
  • He helped start the American Philosophical  Society.
  • He helped start the Philadelphia Academy, which  became the University of Philadelphia.
  • He helped set up Philadelphia’s first fire and police departments.
  • He helped start the first hospital.
  • He proved that lightning is electricity.
  • He studied weather patterns.
  • He initiated the study of hydrodynamics.
  • He was a diplomat to England and France.
  • He helped to write the Declaration of   Independence.
  • He helped to write the Constitution of the United   States of America.

How Do We Know?

We know about Benjamin Franklin by looking at primary source documents. Primary sources are things that have survived from the past. These can be actual journals, letters, drawings, artifacts, portraits, maps, and artifacts from people living at that time. Artifacts are things found (often buried underground) that people used to make their lives easier. Primary source documents are sometimes done in the people’s own handwriting. What is unique about Benjamin Franklin is that many of the things he wrote and said are around for us to read today.

Secondary source documents are accounts of the past created by people writing about events sometime after they happened. Your social science textbook is an example of a secondary source document.

Writings

Since Benjamin Franklin was such a great reader and great writer, we have most of the things he wrote. A lot of his documents are stored in the American Philosophical Society in Philadelphia. The multi-volume Papers of Benjamin Franklin are being published by Yale University Press. Many volumes are already published and there are more to come.

He wrote his autobiography, which you can read. Ben had definite opinions on things, and wrote a great many essays. He signed historical documents, such as the Declaration of Independence.

Newspaper

Ben also printed and published a newspaper, newspaper, the Pennsylvania Gazette. You can see copies of this paper today in Philadelphia and in a facsimile edition, on microfilm, or on-line.He also wrote and published Poor Richard’s Almanack. This gave much information as well as a lot of his opinions. One of his maxims was, “A penny saved is a penny earned.”

Letters

Ben wrote letters to many people, including his wife, which can be read today.

Art

There are many paintings and portraits of Ben Franklin that were painted during his lifetime.

Artifacts

Early printing presses have been found, of the type that Ben would have used. Paper, used for printing, and other materials have been found as well