BENJAMIN FRANKLIN Patriot and Statesman Born in 1706 - Died in 1790 Enter your search terms Submit search form   Web gardenofpraise.com

Benjamin Franklin was born into a large family. He was the 15th child of seventeen children in the family. His father, Josiah, was a candlemaker. Benjamin helped him make candles and soap.

His father wanted him to take over the family business when he grew up, but he wasn't interested. To help Ben decide on a career, Josiah took him on long walks around Boston so he could observe men doing the work of their trade. Benjamin learned how to do many things during these excursions * , but he didn't want to pursue any of the trades.

When Ben was twelve years old his father apprenticed * him to his older brother James, who was a printer. Ben had to sign "articles of indenture * "; a contract that bound him to work for James for nine years until he was 21 years old! He worked twelve hours a day in the printing shop, but still found time to educate himself. Though he only had two years of formal schooling, he taught himself foreign languages and read books on grammar, science, and math.

Ben wrote letters to the editor of the newspaper (his brother), and signed them "Silence Dogood". People enjoyed reading the letters, but James became angry and stopped printing them when he found out his younger brother had been writing them and signing a fictitious * name.

James got into trouble and was imprisoned. He was told he could no longer publish the newspaper. He decided he would have Ben publish the paper for him (even though it was illegal because Ben was his appretice). He told Ben he would tear up his contract if he would publish the newspaper while he was in prison. So Ben published the paper. Later James tried to hold him to the original "articles of indenture", but he failed because the authorities would find out he had illegally put Ben in charge of the paper. So James could not write a new contract binding Ben to him. The two brothers fought constantly.

Finally Ben ran away and went to Philadelphia. He started his own successful printing business and published a newspaper, The Pennsylvania Gazette, for many years. He is most famous for "Poor Richard's Almanack" which he published for 25 years. People frequently quote from his sayings such things as, "Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise"and "A penny saved is a penny earned". Ben followed this rule all his life and accomplished more than most men of his time.

He was able to get the cooperation of people by giving credit for ideas to others rather than taking the credit himself. He started the Junto club where people could come together to exchange ideas. As a result of these meetings he started the first library in America, the first volunteer fire department in Philadelphia, and the first hospital in Pennsylvania.

They appointed him postmaster and he created a working postal system. He even created the "Dead Letter Office".

Franklin's drawing

He invented bifocal glasses so he would not have to switch glasses when looking at things far away and close up.He invented the lightning rod to protect people's homes from being destroyed by lightning.

He invented the Franklin stove which provided better heat for their homes. He refused to patent the Franklin stove and the lightning rod because he thought more people would benefit from the inventions if he did not patent them.

He proved that lightning and electricity are the same thing using a kite, string, and key in a thunderstorm. His experiments earned him fame. He was also awarded honorary degrees from Harvard and Yale even though he lacked formal schooling.

He made studies of the Gulf Stream while on voyages across the Atlantic Ocean. He started the University of Pennsylvania.

He served as a diplomat * to France and spent about 10 years away from his family to further the cause of American independence. The people of France loved him dearly and honored him in many ways.

He helped to write the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of the United States.

He also worked to put an end to slavery in America long before others took up the cause.

Some say when he died in 1790 the whole civilized world went into mourning. 20,000 people honored him at his funeral in Philadelphia.

People still visit his grave today and throw pennies on his headstone. Every year $6,000 worth of pennies are collected and given in his honor to help the poor.

Fugio cent 1787
Courtesy of my son, Elton
This coin is said to have been designed by Benjamin Franklin.
Learn more about the Fugio cent at Wikipedia.

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Ben's Guide to U.S. Government
for kids

A Quick Biography of Benjamin Franklin
from U.S. History.org

Benjamin Franklin
PBS presentation

Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin
read online

Benjamin Franklin
from World of Biography

Quotations from Benjamin Franklin


Benjamin Franklin
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Time for Kids
Benjamin Franklin Activities

Benjamin Franklin
from Hero History

At biography.com search for Benjamin Franklin.
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Benjamin Franklin (Beautiful Feet Books) By Ingri D'Aulaire / Beautiful Feet Books Benjamin Franklin details the life of this famous American from his boyhood as one of the youngest of 17 children, to his teen years as an apprentice in his brother's print shop and his later years as an inventor, statesman, diplomat, and signer of the Declaration of Independence. Young people will enjoy learning about the fascinating life Ben Franklin led from the lively text and beautiful illustrations of this d'Aulaire classic. Recommended for ages 4 to 11.

Your Story Hour Volume 6 - Audiobook on CD By Your Story Hour Like old-time radio, these 24 riveting historic dramas bring to life exciting chapters from America's past. Backed by music and sound effects, a professional cast re-enacts the tests and triumphs of both celebrated and lesser known people such as Benjamin Franklin, Belva Ann Lockwood, Walter Reed, Booker T. Washington, and Glenn Cunningham. 12 one-hour CDs in a vinyl storage case.

Learning Language Arts Through Literature, Grade 4, Orange, Teacher By Debbie Strayer / Common Sense Press With literature as a basis, this innovative program uses an integrated approach as it takes your students through all the activities needed to learn reading, grammar, vocabulary, spelling, writing, research, study skills, and more. Just turn to Lesson 1 and begin teaching. The authors have done the work for you in an easy-to-follow format with little or no preparation. Features you will find in this book: 32 weekly lessons divided into daily plans. 4 book studies (listed in the order they appear): The Boxcar Children by Gertrude Chandler Warner; The Wright Brothers by Augusta Stevenson: Benjamin Franklin by Augusta Stevenson; and The Sign of the Beaver by Elizabeth George Speare. They include reading skills, vocabulary, higher-order reasoning and more. Everyday words taken from literature teach grammar, spelling, and writing through dictation, activities, and games. Newspaper Unit includes paragraph writing, vocabulary, research, creating a newspaper, and much more. Research Unit includes fact-gathering, note-taking, and step-by-step instructions for writing research papers. Journal Writing involves map making, caption creating, perspective writing, and more. Creating Books allows your students to make their own books with simple, clear instructions for story writing and book binding. Teacher-friendly assessments provide everything you need to evaluate students for a letter grade. Also great for determining the areas of growth needed for each individual student. The Orange Book has been designed for a 4th grade skill level.

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From Word Central's Student Dictionary
by Merriam - Webster
(Pronunciation note: the schwa sound is shown by &)

apprentice
Pronunciation: &-'prent-&s
Function: noun
a person who is learning a trade or art by experience under a skilled worker

excursion
Pronunciation: ik-'sk&r-zh&n
Function: noun
from Latin excursio, excursion- "a going out"

indenture
Pronunciation: in-'den-ch&r
Function: noun
a contract by which one person is made to work for another for a stated period

fictitious
Pronunciation: fik-'tish-&s
Function: adjective
not real , made-up, imaginary

diplomat
Pronunciation: 'dip-l&-"mat
Function: noun
a person employed or skilled in diplomacy
( diplomacy: the work of keeping up relations
between the governments of different countries)

Biographies in this Series

Presidents of the United States	George Washington 1st U.S. President	John Adams 2nd U.S. President	Thomas Jefferson 3rd U.S.President
	James Monroe 5th U.S. President	Andrew Jackson 7th U.S. President	Abraham Lincoln 16th U.S.President
	Franklin D. Roosevelt 32nd U.S. President	John F. Kennedy 35th U.S. President	James Madison 4th U.S. President
	Theodore Roosevelt 26th U.S. President
American Patriots	Benjamin Franklin patriot and statesman	Francis Scott Key Star Spangled Banner	Deborah Sampson woman soldier in the Revolutionary War
World Leaders	Constantine Roman Emperor	Alexander the Great conqueror	Winston Churchill British Prime Minister
Inventors	Alexander Graham Bell telephone	Johann Gutenberg printing press	Cyrus McCormick mechanical reaper
	The Wright Brothers first airplane	Henry Ford Automaker	Thomas A. Edison electric light bulb
	Sequoyah Cherokee alphabet	Nikola Tesla 700 patents	.
Explorers	Christopher Columbus explorer	Meriwether Lewis explorer	Robert Peary Arctic explorer
	John Muir Naturalist	Matthew Henson Arctic Explorer	Sir Edmund Hillary Mr.Everest
	Kit Carson Indian agent	"Johnny Appleseed" orchardist	.
Women who made a difference	Clara Barton founder of the Red Cross	Helen Keller overcame blindness & deafness	Florence Nightingale founder of nursing profession
	Joan of Arc religious and military leader	Amelia Earhart Aviator	Annie Oakley sharpshooter
	Susan B. Anthony Suffragette	Elizabeth Keckly Seamstress	Harriet Tubman deliverer of slaves
	Anne Frank Diarist	Eleanor Roosevelt Humanitarian	.
Scientists	George Washington Carver botanist and educator	Sir Isaac Newton explained gravity and properties of light	Marie Curie scientist, physicist
	Louis Pasteur Biologist	Albert Einstein physicist, genius	Galileo Astronomer, physicist
Educators	Noah Webster writer of dictionary	Booker T. Washington leader and educator	Aristotle Greek philosopher
Physicians	Hippocrates father of medicine	Walter Reed discovered cause of yellow fever	Albert Schweitzer humanitarian
Religious Leaders	Increase Mather Salem witch trials	.
Athletes	Lou Gehrig baseball player	Wilma Rudolph Olympic gold medal winner	Tiger Woods golfer
Civil Rights Leaders	Martin Luther King civil rights leader	Rosa Parks bus desegregation	Sojourner Truth Former slave
	Frederick Douglass Abolitionist	Mary Ann Shadd Cary Civil rights leader	James Forten Inventor, abolitionist
Composers	Beethoven composer
Artists	John James Audubon artist and naturalist	Gutzon Borglum sculptor, Mount Rushmore	Ansel Adams photographer

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