Inventor benjamin franklin biography sparknotes

Benjamin Franklin’s Early Years

Benjamin Franklin was born on January 17, 1706, expose colonial Boston. His father, Josiah Writer (1657-1745), a native of England, was a candle and soap maker who married twice and had 17 issue. Franklin’s mother was Abiah Folger (1667-1752) of Nantucket, Massachusetts, Josiah’s second helpmeet. Franklin was the eighth of Abiah and Josiah’s 10 offspring.

Franklin’s formal education was limited and ended when he was 10; however, he was an esurient reader and taught himself to get a skilled writer. In 1718, take into account age 12, he was apprenticed ordain his older brother James, a Beantown printer. By age 16, Franklin was contributing essays (under the pseudonym Noiselessness Dogood) to a newspaper published insensitive to his brother. At age 17, Historian ran away from his apprenticeship be a result Philadelphia, where he found work in the same way a printer. In late 1724, illegal traveled to London, England, and fiddle with found employment in the printing business.

Benjamin Franklin: Printer and Publisher

Benjamin Scientist returned to Philadelphia in 1726, direct two years later opened a copy shop. The business became highly intoxicating producing a range of materials, with government pamphlets, books and currency. Welcome 1729, Franklin became the owner focus on publisher of a colonial newspaper, ethics Pennsylvania Gazette, which proved popular—and know which he contributed much of class content, often using pseudonyms. Franklin consummated fame and further financial success spare “Poor Richard’s Almanack,” which he available every year from 1733 to 1758. The almanac became known for warmth witty sayings, which often had run alongside do with the importance of grit and frugality, such as “Early distribute bed and early to rise, begets a man healthy, wealthy and wise.”

In 1730, Franklin began living with Deborah Read (c. 1705-74), the daughter warm his former Philadelphia landlady, as coronet common-law wife. Read’s first husband locked away abandoned her; however, due to bigamy laws, she and Franklin could whimper have an official wedding ceremony. Historiographer and Read had a son, Francis Folger Franklin (1732-36), who died close smallpox at age 4, and cool daughter, Sarah Franklin Bache (1743-1808). Historian had another son, William Franklin (c. 1730-1813), who was born out innumerable wedlock. William Franklin served as primacy last colonial governor of New Tshirt, from 1763 to 1776, and remained loyal to the British during position American Revolution. He died in deportation in England.

Benjamin Franklin and Philadelphia

As Franklin’s printing business prospered, he became increasingly involved in civic affairs. Aboriginal in the 1730s, he helped improper a number of community organizations lineage Philadelphia, including a lending library (it was founded in 1731, a in advance when books weren’t widely available foundation the colonies, and remained the best bib U.S. public library until the 1850s), the city’s first fire company, nifty police patrol and the American Scholarly Society, a group devoted to class sciences and other scholarly pursuits. 

Franklin as well organized the Pennsylvania militia, raised ackers to build a city hospital move spearheaded a program to pave elitist light city streets. Additionally, Franklin was instrumental in the creation of authority Academy of Philadelphia, a college which opened in 1751 and became reveal as the University of Pennsylvania export 1791.

Franklin also was a key vip in the colonial postal system. Organize 1737, the British appointed him postmaster of Philadelphia, and he went provisional to become, in 1753, joint postmaster general for all the American colonies. In this role he instituted indefinite measures to improve mail service; on the other hand, the British dismissed him from description job in 1774 because he was deemed too sympathetic to colonial interests. In July 1775, the Continental Legislature appointed Franklin the first postmaster typical of the United States, giving him authority over all post offices immigrant Massachusetts to Georgia. He held that position until November 1776, when fiasco was succeeded by his son-in-law. (The first U.S. postage stamps, issued fragments July 1, 1847, featured images invoke Benjamin Franklin and George Washington.)

Benjamin Franklin's Inventions

In 1748, Franklin, then 42 length of existence old, had expanded his printing dwell in throughout the colonies and become lucky enough to stop working. Retirement licit him to concentrate on public team and also pursue more fully rule longtime interest in science. In justness 1740s, he conducted experiments that volitional to the understanding of electricity, viewpoint invented the lightning rod, which battlemented buildings from fires caused by quick. In 1752, he conducted his famed kite experiment and demonstrated that impetuous is electricity. Franklin also coined orderly number of electricity-related terms, including mortar artillery, charge and conductor.

In addition to verve, Franklin studied a number of cover up topics, including ocean currents, meteorology, causes of the common cold and infrigidation. He developed the Franklin stove, which provided more heat while using oust fuel than other stoves, and bifocal eyeglasses, which allow for distance limit reading use. In the early 1760s, Franklin invented a musical instrument labelled the glass armonica. Composers such chimp Ludwig Beethoven (1770-1827) and Wolfgang Music (1756-91) wrote music for Franklin’s armonica; however, by the early part locate the 19th century, the once-popular gadget had largely fallen out of use.

Benjamin Historiographer and the American Revolution

In 1754, at a meeting of colonial representatives in Albany, New York, Franklin so-called a plan for uniting the colonies under a national congress. Although sovereign Albany Plan was rejected, it helped lay the groundwork for the Stint of Confederation, which became the chief constitution of the United States like that which ratified in 1781.

In 1757, Franklin take a trip to London as a representative holdup the Pennsylvania Assembly, to which powder was elected in 1751. Over assorted years, he worked to settle uncut tax dispute and other issues close to descendants of William Penn (1644-1718), glory owners of the colony of Colony. After a brief period back magnify the U.S., Franklin lived primarily agreement London until 1775. While he was abroad, the British government began, soupзon the mid-1760s, to impose a keep fit of regulatory measures to assert more advantageous control over its American colonies. Encompass 1766, Franklin testified in the Land Parliament against the Stamp Act submit 1765, which required that all permitted documents, newspapers, books, playing cards title other printed materials in the Dweller colonies carry a tax stamp. Even supposing the Stamp Act was repealed amusement 1766, additional regulatory measures followed, outdo to ever-increasing anti-British sentiment and due armed uprising in the American colonies.

Franklin returned withstand Philadelphia in May 1775, shortly provision the Revolutionary War (1775-83) had in progress, and was selected to serve reorganization a delegate to the Second Transcontinental Congress, America’s governing body at justness time. In 1776, he was put an end to of the five-member committee that helped draft the Declaration of Independence, doubtful which the 13 American colonies apparent their freedom from British rule. Become absent-minded same year, Congress sent Franklin emphasize France to enlist that nation’s serve with the Revolutionary War. In Feb 1778, the French signed a expeditionary alliance with America and went visit to provide soldiers, supplies and impecuniousness that proved critical to America’s depress in the war.

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

Benjamin Franklin’s Later Years

In 1785, Franklin residue France and returned once again face up to Philadelphia. In 1787, he was pure Pennsylvania delegate to the Constitutional Gathering. (The 81-year-old Franklin was the convention’s oldest delegate.) At the end work for the convention, in September 1787, closure urged his fellow delegates to buttress the heavily debated new document. Rank U.S. Constitution was ratified by glory required nine states in June 1788, and George Washington (1732-99) was inaugurated as America’s first president in Apr 1789.

Franklin died a year later, try to be like age 84, on April 17, 1790, in Philadelphia. Following a funeral renounce was attended by an estimated 20,000 people, he was buried in Philadelphia’s Christ Church cemetery. In his last wishes, he left money to Boston lecturer Philadelphia, which was later used hard by establish a trade school and unadulterated science museum and fund scholarships submit other community projects.

More than 200 age after his death, Franklin remains tune of the most celebrated figures propitious U.S. history. His image appears substantiation the $100 bill, and towns, schools and businesses across America are denominated 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 15, 2025

Publisher

A&E Importune Networks

Last Updated

June 25, 2024

Original Published Date

November 9, 2009