4d. The Ideas of Benjamin Franklin
Although his life is most closely associated with Philadelphia, Ben Franklin was born in Boston. At the age of seventeen he made his way to the City of Brotherly Love and became a printer.
Throughout the early years of the English colonies, most Europeans did not take Americans seriously. Most were seen as the chaff of English society, bound for America because they could not make it in England.
Many viewed Americans as irrational religious fanatics or crude pioneers. American art literature, and science were snubbed by most cultured Europeans. Benjamin Franklin would help them take notice.
Ben Franklin was born in 1706 in colonial Boston. Apprenticed to his brother, a printer, young Ben ran away to Philadelphia when he was seventeen. The next twenty-five years of his life he made a fortune out of the three pennies he had carried with him to the city.
Ben Franklin performed his famous kite experiment in 1752 with help from his son William. Franklin experimented with electricity throughout his life and is credited with the invention of the lightning rod.
Although he gave up active control of his printing business, Franklin kept working. He decided to devote the rest of his life to philanthropic and intellectual pursuits. He established a fire house, library, and hospital for Philadelphia. He founded the College of Philadelphia — now the University of Pennsylvania — one of the finest institutions of higher learning in the world.
Among Franklin's numerous contributions to the world is the University of Pennsylvania. Originally called the College of Philadelphia, this school continues to be a premier educational institution serving over 20,000 students. The seal of the University appears above.
He became an inventor, developing products as diverse as an efficient wood-burning stove and bifocal reading glasses. Of course, his most famous work was with electricity. In his famed experiment with a kite and key, Franklin proved that lightning was a form of electrical energy. His discovery brought him honorary degrees from Harvard and Yale, as well as fame overseas.
Franklin continued his life as a public servant. Although he was seventy years old when the Revolution began, he served as a delegate to the Continental Congress and as a diplomat abroad. He was received as a celebrity when he traveled through Europe. An ardent patriot, he proved to the world what great ideas could come from the western side of the Atlantic Ocean.His Pennsylvania Gazette soon surpassed all Boston publications in circulation. Poor Richard's Almanac became a staple for many of the literate colonials. People liked his insights and his dry wit. By the age of forty-two, he made enough money to retire.
