FREE ESSAY ON BENJAMIN FRANKLIN

BENJAMIN FRANKLIN

Benjamin Franklin was born on January 17, 1706 in Boston, Massachusetts. He was born into
a modest family, but later became to be one of the greatest statesmen in the country. He
shaped this country's course of events, which forever changed the way we live today.
Ben Franklin made many contributions to the revolutionary cause. One could say he was one
of the greatest fighters in the Revolutionary War. Although he did not fight physically
with weapons, he powerfully fought with words. Among many revolutionary contributions, he
helped draft and sign the "Declaration of Independence," he secured financial and
physical aid from France for the war cause, he lifted many laws that were imposed on the
colonies by the King of England, and in 1787, and he signed "The Constitution of the
United States of America." When he met with the assembly meeting over the "Declaration of
Independence," he addressed the delegates with the statement, "We must all hang together,
or assuredly we shall all hang separately." 
During the French and Indian War, he supplied General Braddock and his men with 150
wagons and 259 horses so he could march on Fort Duquesne. Ben Franklin led a small group
of soldiers along with his son to Gnadenhuetten to build a fort to protect Pennsylvania
from the French and Indian invaders. Within a few weeks, he had three well-fortified
forts spaced out over 15 miles and suitable living quarters for the men.
If Ben Franklin had not participated in the politics of the American Revolution, the
Americans could have easily lost the war. When he went to France to secure financial and
physical aid for the war cause, it gave more power to the Americans, which probably led
them to win the war. If he had not gone to England to lift the taxes, that could have
mean that more British troops most likely would have been sent over to make people pay
taxes, which could have lengthened the war. Had he not participated in the war, it most
likely would have changed the outcome of the war.
It was very interesting the way that Franklin came up with and proved that electricity
came from lightning. In 1752, he and his son Billy set out on a stormy night to prove the
electricity was generated by lightning. He took a kite and attached a long ribbon to the
end of it. He tied a key on the ribbon, about 7 feet away from the bottom, and was flying
it as close as he could get it to the clouds. Franklin waited for lightning to strike the
kite, which would pass down the ribbon to the key. Then, it struck! He touched the key,
and he felt that stinging feeling of a shock! He was right, lightning did generate
electricity!! He waited for it to happen again, and he put a special jar around the key,
which will trap the electricity inside. Once the electricity was in the jar, he touched
it and he fell back to the ground. He was right! Soon after the experience, Ben went to
tell his colleagues who had worked on the study with him. 
To learn more about Ben Franklin would be a great idea. He was one of the leading
statesmen in the new America and was a historical figure who shaped our nations history.
He was a very bright and intelligent man who could enlighten anyone in many areas of
learning. He was an inventor who came up with many ideas which are taken for granted
today, such as the post office, or the library, or the fire department, he introduce
methods of street paving and lighting, and he found ways to correct the excessive smoking
of chimneys. Not too many people know of all the things he invented, and most people
would probably be interested in learning about the things he invented or thought of.
By reading The story of Benjamin Franklin by Enid Lamonte Meadowcraft, the reader learns
of the things that Ben Franklin had invented, or the many Revolutionary contributions he
made, or that he signed the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence and helped
draft the "Declaration of Independence." The reader would also learn that Ben was a
modest man from Boston who had moved to Philadelphia and worked up into the highest ranks
in Philadelphia and became loved by everyone in Philadelphia and all of the colonies.
I would recommend The Story of Benjamin Franklin by Enid Lamonte Meadowcraft to third
through fourth graders at the most. This is a very easy read and can be read very
quickly. If one is looking for a book of facts on Benjamin Franklin, this is not the book
for such detailed information. It is more of a story than a sophisticated biography of
Ben Franklin. This book is not recommended to many people beyond fourth grade, for it is
too easy.