GREAT SITES FOR CHILDREN:
Ben Franklin: Glimpses of
the Man
An excellent site from
the Franklin Institute, with explanations of
Franklin's contributions as an economist, inventor,
statesman, and many other areas. Kids should click
on "Learn More About Ben!" and then "Frequently
Asked Questions About Ben" to find out everything
from where Ben went to school to why he thought the
turkey should be the national symbol of the United
States.
Benjamin Franklin House View parts
of the only remaining house that Franklin lived in,
located near Trafalgar Square, London, England. This
site shows pictures of the house plus conservation
efforts to turn it into a museum.
Ben’s Guide to U. S. Government Brief information about Benjamin Franklin’s life as
a printer, librarian, inventor, and statesman, plus
a timeline of his life.
The Electric Franklin The
Independence Hall Association has created a site
filled with games, biographical stories, pictures,
videos, and quotes for all ages. Read more about
Franklin’s electrical experiments and some of the
words he created to describe electricity.
GREAT SITES FOR ADULTS AND
OLDER STUDENTS:
America’s Founding Fathers: Delegates to the
Constitutional Convention This biography from the National Archives gives a
fairly detailed history of Benjamin Franklin,
highlighting most of his political life.
Benjamin Franklin: An Extraordinary Life, An
Electric Mind Companion site
to the PBS series; explore the timeline, check out
the "Ben A to Z" to find some of his many
descriptions, read about his theories related to
health, or find out some of the many ways he has
influenced how we do things today.
Benjamin Franklin Invents the Glass Armonica
One of Franklin’s loves was music, and this page
explains how he combined music and invention to
create a new musical instrument.
Benjamin Franklin Tercentenary Highlights events
in the Philadelphia area relating to Benjamin
Franklin’s birthday; also has lesson plans for
teachers to use in connection with the exhibit.
Ben Franklin Web Portal This portal limits
searches to web pages specifically about Benjamin
Franklin, providing access to Franklin’s writings
and quotes, sites that explore his research, and a
collection of resources for teachers.
Invention Dimension
Benjamin Franklin was not only a Founding Father, he
is also considered one of the first American
inventors. This page from MIT focuses on the
"Franklin stove."
Writings of Benjamin Franklin This is a collection of links to things written by
Benjamin Franklin, from a variety of websites and on
a variety of topics. Included here are links to
versions of Poor Richard’s Almanack, from 1733 to
1759; letters and scientific observations, and his
last will and testament.
GREAT SITES FOR RESEARCH
AND PRIMARY SOURCES:
Benjamin Franklin Collection at Bartleby.com This page provides links to the Columbia
Encyclopedia entry for Benjamin Franklin, as well as
links to fulltext versions of some of his writings.
For an extensive biography and discussion of his
life, go down the page and click on "Franklin" under
"Writings About Franklin" for the chapter from the
Cambridge History of American Literature.
Declaring Independence: Drafting the Documents View pages of Thomas Jefferson’s "original Rough
draft" of the Declaration of Independence, complete
with editorial changes made by Benjamin Franklin and
John Adams.
Letters of Delegates to Congress What
was Benjamin Franklin doing during the years
1774-1789? This Library of Congress site can
partially answer the question. Click on "Browse,"
pick a range of time, and scroll through the page to
read some of Benjamin Franklin’s letters.
Liberty Library of Constitutional Classics Check
out 2 writings of Benjamin Franklin’s from 1754 that
later influenced the Articles of Confederation and
the Constitution of the United States: "Albany Plan
of Union" and "In Defense of a Plan for Colonial
Union".