Fun and Interesting Facts about Benjamin Franklin

Jun 16
09:29

2011

Carlos

Carlos

  • Share this article on Facebook
  • Share this article on Twitter
  • Share this article on Linkedin

Although never a president, Benjamin Franklin was a significant person in the history of the United States. He was one of the founding fathers, and he is the only politician to have signed all four documents instrumental in the creation of the U.S. (Declaration of Independence, Treaty of Alliance with France, Treaty of Paris, and U.S. Constitution).

mediaimage
A portrait of Franklin is also on the $100 bill. On June 10,Fun and Interesting Facts about Benjamin Franklin Articles 1752 Franklin demonstrated an experiment which showed the electrical nature of lightning by flying a kite in a thunderstorm and capturing a charge in a Leyden jar. This experiment was one of many that he conducted in his research of electricity. Franklin coined several terms which we use today including battery, conductor, and electrician. He also invented the lightning rod, which is used to protect buildings and ships from lightning damage.

Franklin was born on January 17, 1706 in Boston. His father's name was Josiah Franklin, who fathered 17 children in total and was a candle and soap maker. Despite his extensive research and intellectual prowess it is interesting to note that Ben Franklin's formal education ended at the age of 10. At that time he went on to become an apprentice to his brother, who was a printer. Franklin was truly a jack of all trades, and an incredible businessman. Through his career he founded a library, insurance company, city hospital and academy in Philadelphia that would later become the University of Pennsylvania.

Franklin invented many things in his life, but he did not like to patented any of them. He believed that his inventions gave him the opportunity to serve society, which shows just how virtuous he was. Some of the inventions which can be attributed to Franklin are the glass harmonica, bifocal glasses, the urinary catheter, the iron furnace stove, the rocking chair and the odometer.

Franklin was also constantly trying to improve both his mind and body. In order to live a healthier life, Franklin became a vegetarian. He believed that eating a vegetarian diet was healthier than a diet filled with meat. In addition, meat was much more expensive, so by becoming a vegetarian, Franklin could save money to spend on books. Franklin was such a gifted intellect that he taught himself to read French, Spanish, Latin, and Italian. He also extended his passion for self-improvement to civic improvement as he organized the first fire company in the colonies, made designs for paving and lighting Philadelphia streets and for expanding the city watch to a force of police.

Here are some other fun and interesting facts about Benjamin Franklin.


  • Fun Fact: Franklin wrote a book called the 'Poor Richard's Almanac' and it was extremely popular in colonial America. It is best known for its proverbs such as "A penny saved is a penny earned," and "God helps them that help themselves."

  • Fun Fact: Franklin loved music. He was an accomplished guitar, harp, and violin player

  • Interesting Fact: Once, Franklin observed that he remained cooler wearing a wet shirt on a hot sunny day. This made him propose one of the very important principles of refrigeration, ‘Cooling by Evaporation’.

  • Interesting Fact: Franklin was an expert swimmer. In fact, he was such a good swimmer that he considered opening a swimming school at one point in his life.