Episodes
Franklin Part I — Boston to Philadelphia
The runaway apprentice, the printing house, the rise — from the Autobiography and the early papers.
Franklin Part II — Scientist, Diplomat, Founder
The experiments, the French alliance, the Convention, and the last public act: the abolition petition of 1790.
From the Record
I agree to this Constitution with all its faults, if they are such: because I think a General Government necessary for us... I doubt too whether any other Convention we can obtain, may be able to make a better Constitution.
Benjamin Franklin · Speech at the Conclusion of the Convention · September 17, 1787 · Yale Avalon
Key Documents in the Archive
The Papers of Benjamin Franklin — Complete Digital Edition
Yale University · franklinpapers.org
The Albany Plan of Union · 1754
Yale Avalon Project
Franklin’s Anti-Slavery Petition to Congress · February 3, 1790
National Archives · Center for Legislative Archives
Franklin Correspondence · Founders Online
Founders Online · National Archives
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The Full Archive →
52 episodes, 347 primary documents, 30 founders — browse by founder or topic.