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Daniel Lordelo Benjamin franklin 4/10/13
He is considered to be one of the greatest Americans that ever lived.
He was the only person to sign the four key documents of American History, The Declaration of Independence the Treaty of Alliance with France, the Treaty of Peace with Great Britain, and the Constitution of the United States.
By serving as a diplomat in France and gaining France's help, he contributed greatly to winning the Revolutionary War.
His newspaper, the "Pennsylvania Gazette," was one of the most successful papers in the colonies. He was the first editor to publish a newspaper cartoon and to use maps to illustrate a story.
He became Philadelphia's postmaster in 1737. The British government was so impressed by his efficiency that they made him deputy postmaster general for all of the colonies in 1753.
He founded a city hospital, organized a fire department, helped found what eventually became the University of Pennsylvania, established a professional organization for scholars called the American Philosophical Society, and helped establish the first subscription library in the American colonies.
His inventions include, electricity, the Franklin stove Bifocal lenses, the lightning rod. His scientific studies promoted an understanding of the Gulf Stream in the Atlantic Ocean and he encouraged "daylight-saving" time in summer. He did not patent any of his inventions or use them for profit, preferring to give them to the world for everyone's comfort and convenience.
He wrote and published the yearly almanac, "Poor Richards Almanac" for twenty-five years.

Also:
Benjamin Franklin was born into a large family. He was the 15th child of seventeen children in the family. His father, Josiah, was a candle maker. Benjamin helped him make candles and soap.

His father wanted him to take over the family business when he grew up, but he wasn't interested. To help Ben decide on a career, Josiah took him on long walks around Boston so he could observe men doing the work of their trade. Benjamin learned how to do many things during these excursion , but he didn't want to pursue any of the trades.

When Ben was twelve years old his father apprenticed * him to his older brother James, who was a printer. Ben had to sign "articles of indenture * "; a contract that bound him to work for James for nine years until he was 21 years old! He worked twelve hours a day in the printing shop, but still found time to educate himself. Though he only had two years of formal schooling, he taught himself foreign languages and read books on grammar, science, and math.

Ben wrote letters to the editor of the newspaper (his brother), and signed them "Silence Dogwood". People enjoyed reading the letters, but James became angry and stopped printing them when he found out his younger brother had been writing them and signing a fictitious * name.

James got into trouble and was imprisoned. He was told he could no longer publish the newspaper. He decided he would have Ben publish the paper for him (even though it was illegal because Ben was his apprentice). He told Ben he would tear up his contract if he would publish the newspaper while he was in prison. So Ben published the paper. Later James tried to hold him to the original "articles of indenture", but he failed because the authorities would find out he had illegally put Ben in charge of the paper. So James could not write a new contract binding Ben to him. The two brothers fought constantly.

Finally Ben ran away and went to Philadelphia. He started his own successful printing business and published a newspaper, The Pennsylvania Gazette, for many years. He is most famous for "Poor Richard's Almanack" which he published for 25 years. People frequently quote from his sayings such things as, "Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise “and "A penny saved is a penny earned". Ben followed this rule all his life and accomplished more than most men of his time.

He was able to get the cooperation of people by giving credit for ideas to others rather than taking the credit himself. He started the Junto club where people could come together to exchange ideas. As a result of these meetings he started the first library in America, the first volunteer fire department in Philadelphia, and the first hospital in Pennsylvania.

They appointed him postmaster and he created a working postal system. He even created the "Dead Letter Office".