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| me at Benjamin Franklins House in London...in the RAIN... |
* TELL THEM LONDON IN A DAY TOURS SENT YOU AND YOU CAN GET A 2for1 DISCOUNT (Buy one ticket and get one for free)*
Ben was an interesting guy... he was an inventor... inventing things such as bifocal glasses, swim fins, glass harmonica, street lighting, odometer, 3 wheel clock, extension arm, a stove and how could we forget the lightening rod... Of the numerous inventions Franklin created, he did not patent a single one.
I recently read this on a PBS website and found it really interesting:
Daylight Savings Time: In 1784, while Franklin was living in France, he wrote a humorous letter to the Journal of Paris, in which he suggested that it would be more thrifty to use natural light than to burn candles or oil lamps. In his tongue-in-cheek commentary, Franklin recommended that the city of Paris enact a number of laws which would force Parisians to get up with the sun and retire early in the evening. Later, Franklin's letter was published as an essay under the title of An Economical Project. We will never know if Franklin intended anyone to take his idea seriously, but every April and October people reset their clocks to "spring ahead" or "fall back."
Besides an inventor Ben Franklin was a number of other things such as: a diplomat, colonial agent between America and Britain, entrepreneur, a writer, a printer, gulf stream mapper, kite flyer, journalist, electricity pioneer, US FOUNDING FATHER and much much more...
He was also a husband and father, but I'm not sure if he was very good at either of those things especially the husband part... He was a passionate man when it came to his work, but when it came to his wife he would leave her for very long periods of time. When she was sick he was not at her bedside. When she died he wasn't there then either...
He even had an illegitimate son that was once the Governor of New Jersey. Ben was a bit of a ladies man from what I've read... I wasn't alive in 1775 so I'm not one to say for certain...
Besides this house, he has ties to St. Bartholoemew The Great Church (found 1123) and St. Bride's Church...
He lived a long 84 years and now rests in a small cemetery in Philadelphia, PA (USA)... located just a short walk from the Liberty Bell.
Benjamin Franklin House opened for the first time on his 300th birthday in January 2006 and now offers Historical Experience Tours as well as Architectural tours Wednesday-Monday. Closed Tuesday for School activities.
Location:
36 Craven Street
London, WC2N 5NF
UK
www.BenjaminFranklinHouse.orgwww.benjaminfranklinhouse.org
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