5 Things You Didn’t Know About Ben Franklin
Most of us are familiar with Benjamin Franklin’s scientific inventions, and his role as one of the United States’ foremost Founding Fathers. But his ingenuity extended far beyond his most defining accomplishments; Franklin, it seems, was a visionary without limits. For instance, did you know his rustic clothing inspired European copycats? Or that he was instrumental in understanding the Gulf Stream? These lesser-known facets of Franklin’s legacy underscore the breadth of his intellect and the enduring impact of his innovations. Here are five fascinating ways Franklin’s forward-thinking approach made him one of the most fascinating figures in American history.
He Was a Cultural Icon in France
In late 1776, early in the Revolutionary War, Franklin sailed from Philadelphia to France on a diplomatic mission. Although he was ultimately there to secure French support for American independence, he also became somewhat of a style icon. Unlike many of his contemporaries who favored the popular powdered wig of the time, Franklin wore his natural hair unstyled. His clothing was similarly unfussy: Plain suits, a walking stick, and fur hats were his signature sartorial items.
This deliberately simple and very Americana choice of attire, coupled with Franklin’s global reputation, endeared him to the French, and even influenced French fashion. Some women began wearing wigs made to look like his fur cap, a style known as the “coiffure a la Franklin,” and his image appeared in portraits and on medallions and other jewelry. In 1779, Franklin wrote to his daughter about just how popular he had become. “The numbers sold are incredible,” he wrote. “The pictures, busts, and prints, (of which copies upon copies are spread every where) have made your father’s face as well known as that of the moon.”
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He Started America’s First Volunteer Fire Department
Many rural communities rely on volunteer fire departments, and their origin is thanks to Franklin’s civic-mindedness. In 1736, he founded the first volunteer fire department of its kind in the U.S., the Union Fire Company in Philadelphia. Unlike Boston’s Mutual Fire Societies, Franklin’s department, sometimes called the “Bucket Brigade,” served the entire community and not just members. The brigade had approximately 30 volunteers to start, fulfilling various roles such as water management, property protection, and training. When attending a fire, each member brought leather buckets to carry water and linen sacks to attempt to save belongings.
Volunteer fire departments aren’t the only enduring and important public service attributed to Franklin, either. In 1731, he established the Library Company of Philadelphia, the first successful public lending library in America, and in 1751, he played a pivotal role in the establishment of Pennsylvania Hospital, one of the first hospitals in the country.
He Invented an Instrument That Was Beloved by Beethoven
Franklin was quite musical, too. Not only did he play instruments such as the guitar and the harp, but in the 1760s, he even invented an instrument of his own. The “glass armonica” consisted of glass bowls of varying sizes, arranged concentrically to eliminate the need for water and mounted on a rounded rod. The rod was moved by a foot pedal, and the glass bowls were played by rubbing one's fingers along their edges. It was meant to produce tones similar to “singing” glasses, something Franklin had seen while living in England.
Following its first public performance in 1762, the armonica became a hit. Marie Antoinette took lessons, Thomas Jefferson was a fan, and Ludwig van Beethoven and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart both composed music for the novel instrument. Despite its initial popularity, the armonica fell out of favor by the 1820s, due in part to its purported negative effects on mental health — attributed at first to the instrument’s ethereal tones, but later thought to be due to lead poisoning from the paint applied to the bowls. Today, the armonica is used by some niche musicians, a second life that would surely please Franklin, who said the instrument had brought him “the most personal satisfaction.”
His First Pseudonym Was “Mrs. Silence Dogood”
Franklin was a prolific writer, famously contributing words to the Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution. But his first prose was published when was just a teenager — and it was done so under the pen name "Mrs. Silence Dogood." He used the name to get published in his brother’s newspaper, The New-England Courant, without his brother’s knowledge. Disguising himself as a middle-aged widow, Franklin penned a series of witty and satirical essays that quickly gained popularity with readers.
He penned 14 essays under the pseudonym, one of just many he would use in his life. Some of the others were Polly Baker, a character Franklin used to point out double standards among men and women under the law; the Busy-Body, an American Weekly Mercury character who dabbled in lighthearted societal gossip and relationship talk; and perhaps Franklin’s most famous pseudonym, Richard Saunders, of Poor Richard's Almanack, which was first published in 1732 and lasted for 26 annual editions.
The Gulf Stream Was First Charted by Franklin
The Gulf Stream is a major ocean current that brings warm water from the Gulf of Mexico into the Atlantic Ocean, significantly influencing weather patterns. Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de León first observed the current in 1513, but it wasn’t until the late 18th century that Franklin became the first to chart out the path of the Gulf Stream on a map.
While serving in London as deputy postmaster general for the American colonies, Franklin noticed a difference in sailing times between westbound and eastbound ships. He consulted his cousin Timothy Folger, a Nantucket whaler with deep knowledge of the area, who provided his insights into the powerful current. Together, Franklin and Folger charted the waters, and published their findings on a map in 1768, the first known physical depiction of what they termed the “Gulph Stream.” The map was distributed to Franklin’s mail ships, and the knowledge served as the basis of future Gulf study by the United States Coast Survey.
