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Period: Jan 1, 1501 to
The Enlightenment
The Enlightenment was a movement that "promoted" the use of reason to learn about truth. Many important philosophers came up at this time, and many important scientific discoveries/advances were made through observation and experimentation. One philosopher, John Locke was a very influental person in the Enlightenment and had many ideas. Benjamin Franklin embraced those ideas that suggested having a king is wrong. Another thinker was Isaac Newton. He also had ideas that Benjamin "embraced". -
Benjamin Franklin is Born!
Benjamin Franklin was born on January 17, 1706. He was the youngest, the fifteenth, son of Josiah and Abiah Franklin. -
Swimming Fins
The exact date isn't known for when Benjamin Franklin created the swimming fins. The swimming fins that he created were special because they weren't the kind that we attach to our feet, they went on a person's hand. They were shaped like an artist's painting pallet. Benjamin was a great swimmer, so he created these so he would be able to swim faster. Although he did swim faster, Benjamin Franklin said that they caused his wrist to become tired. -
Running Away
Benjamin Franklin ran away from his brother, James', print shop to Philadelphia. This is because he was sick of the way his brother was treating him. James would argue with him a lot, and then would start beating him too. First, he went to New York, but there were no printing jobs there. Afterwords, he went to Philadelphia, where he got a job with printer Keimer. -
Pennsylvania Gazette
In 1729, Benjamin Franklin bought The Pennsylvania Gazette from Samuel Keimer, his former employer. This was his first newspaper that he owned by himself, the other one he had opened with a partner. This printing press got him to be elected as the official printer for Pennsylvania. -
Marriage With Deborah Reed
Benjamin Franklin married Deborah Reed. They used to love each other, but Deborah Reed had married someone else. -
The Library Company of Philadelphia
A lot of Americans didn't have many books during this time period. Books were rare, and very expensive. Only very wealthy people had access to books. Benjamin Franklin, along with a group called The Junto, created the Articles of Agreement to start a library. They started by investing 40 shillings each and promising to invest 10 extra shillings each year. The first book order was sent to London in 1732. Many of the first books in the library were religious or educational tomes. -
Francis Folger Franklin is Born
Francis Folger, called Frankie, was Benjamin Franklin's first legitimate child. William Franklin was his first actual child, but was "illegitiment" because Benjamin Franklin had him through an affair with an unknown lady before he was married. William's birthdate isn't exactly known. -
Poor Richard's Almanac
The Poor Richard's Almanac was an almanac by Benjamin Franklin under the psuedonym of Poor Richard, or Richard Saunders. It was a yearly almanac that appeared for 25 years. Each year, about 10,000 copies were sold. Napolean Bonaparte found the almanac so good, that he had it translated into Italian, along with another document that Benjamin Franklin created, the Pennsylvania State Constitution. John Paul Jones recieved a ship named after Richard. Some ideas in the almanac are still popular. -
Francis Folger Franklin's Death
Franky, Benjamin Franklin's son, died at the age of four, due to smallpox. His tombstone's epitaph said, "The delight of all that knew him". P.S. Read the last line in the picture. -
Union Fire Company
Benjamin Franklin visited Boston, Massachusetts, his native colony, and while he was there, he noticed the colony's fire-fighting abilities. In Philedalphia, the place he lived, fire-fighting abilities weren't high. People would team up, but Benjamin Franklin didn't think that what they were doing was enough. Through an anonymous letter to his own newspaper, Benjamin Franklin convinced the colonists of "Philly" to create a fire department (Benjamin Franklin wrote the letter himself, to himself). -
Sarah "Sally" Franklin Bache
Sarah Franklin was Benjamin and Deborah Franklin's daughter. Lovingly, they called her "Sally". She was very influential during the Revolutionary War. She raised money for the Continental Army and is mainly known for her involvement in the Ladies Association of Philadelphia. She took leadership of the group, and made 2,200 shirts for the army along with the rest of the group. -
Lightning Rod Invented-Exact Date Not Known
Benjamin Franklin invented the lightning rod as protection from lightning, which he had recently proven was electricity. To prevent houses and land to be damaged by lightning, he created a 8 to 10 foot pole that was sharpened at the end. This pole would attract the lightning, and would be hit by the lightning, instead of having houses hit by lightning. Having sharp lightning rods became a political statement against King George, because he'd had blunt lightning rods installed around his palace. -
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Albany Congress
This was a meeting between delegates from seven of the thirteen colonies. The seven colonies that sent delegates were Connecticut, Rhode Island, New York, Maryland, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and New Hampshire. Benjamin Franklin was part of this summit, or meeting. The group focused mainly on the relationships with the Indians and the weakening colonial resistance during the French and Indian War. This summit was held in Albany, New York, hense the name, "Albany Congress". -
Albany Plan of Union
Benjamin Franklin, along with Thomas Hutchinson, drafted the Albany Plan of Union. This was a plan for the colonies to unite with each other to protect themselves against the French and hostile Indians. It was made during the Albany Congress. The plan wasn't accepted for a few reasons. First of all, the colonies didn't trust or really care about each other. Therefore, the colonies didn't vote for it to be used. The Parliament didn't want it to pass because the colonies might revolt. -
Deborah Reed Franklin's Death
Deborah Reed Franklin died at the age of 44. After this, Benjamin Franklin goes on to try to marry other people. -
Period: to
The American Revolution
Benjamin Franklin had used to be someone who wasn't strongly against the British, but during the American Revolution, he became a revolutionary. He helped draft the Declaration of Independence, and readily signed it. In 1777, during the revolution, Benjamin Franklin helped rush war supplies acroos the ocean, and get support from the French. Finally, the French joined. This is one of the main reasons that the French joined the Americans, and they won. After the revolution, Benjamin had changed. -
Second Continental Congress
The Second Continental Congress was a meeting of delegates from the 13 colonies that talked about military matters, statements of position, Independence, and much more. It was led by John Adams. Benjamin Franklin was one of the very important people in this "summit". After Thomas Jefferson had written the Declaration of Independence, Benjamin Franklin was the second one to revise and sign it, right after John Adams. This meeting was where America becaame America, and declared war on Britain. -
Treaty of Paris 1783
There were two Treaties of Paris. The first one ended the French and Indian War. This is the second one. The one that stated that the British had to recognize the 13 colonies, now America, as a seperate, independent country. Benjamin Franklin was one of the few who signed it. The others were John Jay, and John Adams. Furthermore, Britain had to remove all of its troops from the new nation. This treaty was very important because, ending the American Revolution, it created a new nation, America. -
Ben Franklin Signs the American Constitution
Benjamin Franklin signed the American Constitution, and even wrote a part of it. This document set the rules for America. Since Benjamin Franklin had signed this document, the Declaration of Independence, the Treaty of Paris, and even more political documents favoring the colonies, he was one of the most politically influencial people for America. -
Benjamin Franklin Dies
Benjamin Franklin died. It was said that he was born an Englishman, but died an American. He died at the age of 84 years. His funeral had brought the largest crowd of "mourners" ever known. There were about 20,000 people there. Benjamin Franklin was buried next to his wife in Christ Church Burial Ground. When Benjamin Franklin died, America lost one of its most loyal citizens.
