Ben Franklin
Founding father, inventor, author, theorist.
Life
Born January 17, 1706, Benjamin Franklin was the son of Josiah Franklin and Abiah Folger. Although his father desired him to become a clergy man (a male priest), Ben's family was not in the financial position to pay for 4 years of schooling, so Ben followed in his brother's footsteps and became a writer at age 12. In 1723, Ben took a boat to NY in hopes of finding a printer job. When that failed, he walked across NJ into Philadelphia where he met his future wife. On October 6, 1723, Deborah Read sold rolls to the disheveled and messy 17 year old. The governor of PA offered Benjamin his own business if he went to London to pick up supplies. Upon returning to America, many saw that Franklin was a hard worker, and began to offer him government jobs.
Founding America
Franklin was one of the most important statesmen and ambassadors. In the summer of 1776, Franklin was part of the five-man committee that would draw up the document declaring independence for America. Along with Franklin, Washington, Hamilton, Adams, Jefferson and Madison worked to create a new government to replace the British Parliament by creating The Articles of Confederation (an agreement among all thirteen original states in the US that served as the first constitution).
Most Famous Inventions
Benjamin Franklin was the inventor of many things, but he has 4 inventions that really expressed his knowledge and appealed to many. These inventions include;
- Franklin Stove; a cast-iron stove for heating a room, resembling an open fireplace in shape.
- Lighting Rod; is a metal rod or metallic object mounted on top of an elevated structure, such as a building, a ship, or even a tree, electrically bonded using a wire or electrical conductor to interface with ground or "earth" through an electrode, engineered to protect the people
- Bifocals; eyeglasses with two distinct optical powers, commonly prescribed to people with presbyopia who also require a correction for myopia, and/or astigmatism.
- Glass Harmonica; a musical instrument in which the sound is made by a row of rotating, concentric glass bowls, kept moist and pressed with the fingers or with keys.
Poor Richard's Almanac
Franklin began publishing Poor Richard's Almanac on December 28, 1732. He continued to publish for 25 years, bringing him economic success and popularity. Each year, as many as 10,000 copies were sold. In his writings, he expressed his knowledge and wisdom on life.
Ben Franklin short biography