Benjamin Franklin | |
|---|---|
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| 6th President of Pennsylvania | |
| In office October 18, 1785 – November 5, 1788 | |
| Vice President | Charles Biddle Thomas Mifflin |
| Preceded by | John Dickinson |
| Succeeded by | Thomas Mifflin |
| United States Minister to France | |
| In office September 14, 1778 – May 17, 1785 | |
| Appointed by | Continental Congress |
| Preceded by | New office |
| Succeeded by | Thomas Jefferson |
| United States Minister to Sweden | |
| In office September 28, 1782 – April 3, 1783 | |
| Appointed by | Congress of the Confederation |
| Preceded by | New office |
| Succeeded by | Jonathan Russell |
| 1st United States Postmaster General | |
| In office July 26, 1775 – November 7, 1776 | |
| Appointed by | Continental Congress |
| Preceded by | New office |
| Succeeded by | Richard Bache |
| Speaker of the Pennsylvania Assembly | |
| In office May 1764 – October 1764 | |
| Preceded by | Isaac Norris |
| Succeeded by | Isaac Norris |
| Member of the Pennsylvania Assembly | |
| In office 1762–1764 | |
| In office 1751–1757 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 100px January 17, 1706 Boston, Massachusetts Bay |
| Died | April 17, 1790 (aged 84) Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| Resting place | 100px |
| Nationality | American |
| Political party | Independent |
| Spouse | Deborah Read |
| Children | William Franklin Francis Folger Franklin Sarah Franklin Bache |
| Parent |
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| Profession | Printer-Publisher Writer Politician Scientist |
| Signature |  |
Benjamin Franklin (January 17, 1706 [O.S. January 6, 1705][Note 1][Note 2] – April 17, 1790) was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. A noted polymath, Franklin was a leading author, printer, political theorist, politician, postmaster, scientist, musician, inventor, satirist, civic activist, statesman, and diplomat. As a scientist, he was a major figure in the American Enlightenment and the history of physics for his discoveries and theories regarding electricity. He invented the lightning rod, bifocals, the Franklin stove, a carriage odometer, and the glass 'armonica'.[1] He facilitated many civic organizations, including a fire department and a university.
Franklin earned the title of "The First American" for his early and indefatigable campaigning for colonial unity; as an author and spokesman in London for several colonies, then as the first United States Ambassador to France, he exemplified the emerging American nation.[2] Franklin was foundational in defining the American ethos as a marriage of the practical values of thrift, hard work, education, community spirit, self-governing institutions, and opposition to authoritarianism both political and religious, with the scientific and tolerant values of the Enlightenment. In the words of historian Henry Steele Commager, "In a Franklin could be merged the virtues of Puritanism without its defects, the illumination of the Enlightenment without its heat."[3] To Walter Isaacson, this makes Franklin "the most accomplished American of his age and the most influential in inventing the type of society America would become."[4]
Franklin, always proud of his working class roots, became a successful newspaper editor and printer in Philadelphia, the leading city in the colonies.[5] He was also partners with William Goddard and Joseph Galloway the three of whom published the Pennsylvania Chronicle, a newspaper that was known for its revolutionary sentiments and criticisms of the British monarchy in the American colonies.[6] He became wealthy publishing Poor Richard's Almanack and The Pennsylvania Gazette.
- ^ Engber, Daniel (2006). What's Benjamin Franklin's Birthday?. Retrieved June 17, 2009. Engber clearly explains Franklin's confusing birthdates, which are shared by many notable people, not the least of whom was George Washington
- ^ Contemporary records, which used the Julian calendar and the Annunciation Style of enumerating years, recorded his birth as January 6, 1705. The provisions of the British Calendar (New Style) Act 1750, implemented in 1752, altered the official British dating method to the Gregorian calendar with the start of the year on January 1 (it had been March 25). These changes resulted in dates being moved forward 11 days, and for those between January 1 and March 25, an advance of one year. For a further explanation, see: Old Style and New Style dates.
- ^ "Inventor". The Franklin Institute. Retrieved April 25, 2012.
- ^ H.W. Brands, The First American: The Life and Times of Benjamin Franklin (2000)
- ^ Isaacson 2003, p. 491
- ^ Isaacson 2003, p. 492
- ^ H.W. Brands. The First American: The Life and Times of Benjamin Franklin. Random House Digital; 2010. p. 390.
- ^ "William Goddard and the Constitutional Post". Smithsonian National Postal Museum. Retrieved May 27, 2012.