Ben was his dad's 15th child of 17 total children!
Ben Franklin was the first Postmaster General of the United States.
Later in life, Ben set his slaves free and became a fighter for the freedom of slaves.
He didn't patent any of his many inventions, letting people use his ideas for free.
Franklin became fairly wealthy from the publishing of Poor Richard's Almanack.
He loved playing chess and was inducted into the U.S. Chess Hall of Fame in 1999.
As a teenager, Franklin had several letters published in his brother's newspaper under the fake name "Silence Dogood." His brother was not happy when he found out.
During his life, Franklin's views on slavery changed dramatically. In 1748, he purchased his first slave, but by 1760 he had freed all of his slaves. He became a staunch abolitionist and spent much of his later life campaigning for an end to slavery.
