Philadelphia favors Franklin

PHILADELPHIA — Trail Benjamin Franklin's shadow along the cobblestone sidewalks in Philadelphia's compact historic district and see where this self-made man worked, worshiped, experimented, created and helped shape a new nation.

Stand behind delegates' desks in Independence Hall and imagine Franklin's voice at the signing of the Declaration of Independence: "We must all hang together, or assuredly we shall all hang separately."

Trace Franklin's giant footprint that still covers his adopted city, from libraries (he established the first lending library in 1731), to fire departments (he prompted the formation of Philadelphia's first volunteer fire company in 1736), to universities (he founded the Philadelphia Academy in 1751, which became the University of Pennsylvania, America's oldest university), to hospitals (he led a fund drive to build Pennsylvania Hospital in 1751, the nation's first hospital), to insurance companies (he organized the first fire insurance company in 1752).

Born in Boston, one of 17 children, Franklin rose from humble roots to international acclaim. And his maxims, published for 25 years in "Poor Richard's Almanack," still are quoted: "Time is money"; "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure" and "Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise."

And because he preached frugality — "A penny saved is a penny earned" — Franklin might be embarrassed today that his face appears on the $100 bill, and not the 1-cent coin.

While much has been written and broadcast in biographical works about Franklin, none may match extensive celebrations to commemorate the 300th anniversary of his birth Jan. 17, 2006. The federal Benjamin Franklin Tercentenary Commission, headquartered at the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia, plans major national and international festivities.

Philadelphia, which at the time of our nation's founding was the largest and richest city in America and served as the U.S. capital for 10 years, even now has extensive exhibits in the historic district on its favorite adopted son.

"I don't know that I can ever say enough about Ben Franklin, the way he's affected America, the way he's affected Philadelphia, the way he's affected me," says Joseph Becton, a National Park Service ranger who appeared in an Emmy award-winning PBS documentary, "Benjamin Franklin, an Extraordinary Life, an Electric Mind."