It's Ben Franklin's 306th Birthday! Let's See Some Stamps!

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I was born Benjamin Franklin in Boston on January 17, 1706. It's a good time to look back and reflect.

I'm glad the some schools observe Thrift Week near my birthday because I've always recommended being thrifty. I also created the first odometer (a devise for measuring distance) so that I could measure my postal routes when I was the first Postmaster General.

Many of the things we use today are a result of experiments I did to improve everyday living. Bifocal lenses, the Franklin stove, watertight bulkheads, and swim fins are just a few of the inventions I came up with. I also created something called the "long arm", which is a tool with claws at the end used to grasp things that are hard to reach.

I was the first person to conduct extensive research on electricity. In June 1752, I used a kite to prove lightning was a stream of electrified air called plasma.

I was the only person to sign all four documents that created the United States of America. I signed The Declaration of Independence in 1776, the Treaty of Alliance with France in 1778, and the Treaty of Peace with England, France, and the United States in 1782. Most importantly, I signed The Constitution in 1787.

At the age of 22, I owned and operated my own printing office. I published a newspaper called "The Pennsylvania Gazette". My annual publication, "Poor Richard's Almanack," sold over 10,000 copies a year! I started the very first public library with a lending program. I played the violin, harp, and guitar, and managed to build my own instrument out of glass called the Armonica.