My Courtship of Ben Franklin
Written: Jun 12 '01 (Updated Jun 12 '01)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: famous folks speak about Franklin, 18th Century print shop, Franklin artifacts
Cons: hall of mirrors can be dizzying, lack of information on people quoted
The Bottom Line: Franklin Court is the place to learn about Benjamin Franklin the man, the diplomat, the inventor. I strongly recommend visiting this wonderful museum.
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| quasar's Full Review: Independence National Historic Park |
I can't remember a time when Benjamin Franklin wasn't a part of my life. I say this with complete seriousness, knowing he's been dead for well over 200 years.
I don't know how and when it began, but I do remember reading Robert Lawson's wonderful book Ben and Me at a very early age. The story of Ben's life told from the perspective of the mouse that lived in Ben's wig, the story made Ben very appealing. Maybe it was my love of thunderstorms, storms that always seemed to be accompanied by tales of how Ben proved that lightning and electricity are the same thing using a key tied to a kite string (an old wive's tale, by the way).
Or maybe it's because we moved near Philadelphia when I was 4.5 years old. Franklin is everywhere in Philly. From the bridge to New Jersey named for him to the parkway lined with the flags of many nations to the money at the U.S. Mint to the Franklin Institute science museum and its large statue of its namesake to the bronze statue sitting on a park bench on the campus of the University of Pennsylvania, Franklin pervades the city.
My absolute favorite Franklin place is Franklin Court. Consisting of an underground museum, the house Franklin lived in for most of his years in Philadelphia, the printing shop he ran, and several other businesses he had an interest in, Franklin Court is the ultimate tribute to this man so strongly identified with Philadelphia.
Spanning Chestnut and Market Streets between 3rd and 4th Streets in the Historic District of Philadelphia, Franklin Court is part of Independence National Park. While most people flock to the Liberty Bell and Independence Mall, I always begged my parents to take me to Franklin Court.
The Lay of the Land
There are two entrances to Franklin Court - one on Market Street and one on Chestnut Street. As you walk in on cobblestone paths, it is likely you will be accompanied by one or more couples in period clothing - there seem to be three or four couples at any time who just wander around the grounds. Inside the main courtyard are some small remains of Ben's original house including (and I don't quite understand why this one is so popular) the remains of the privy. The underground museum, the centerpiece of the complex, lines the length of the complex on 4th Street. It has a small one story above-ground presence even though the entire museum is below. The second Franklin house and the print shop are on Market Street.
The Main Underground Museum
The bulk of any trip to Franklin Court should be spent in the underground museum. This museum isn't huge, but it is packed with goodies related to Franklin and information about his life. You enter the museum near Market Street, and immediately start going down a fairly long ramp. eventually, after turning, you will reach a small rangers station. They are there merely to answer questions and tell you a bit about the museum not to collect any entrance fees (Franklin Court, like everything else in Independence National Park, is free). Even so, this station is always manned by at least one if not two rangers. They are all well-versed in both Franklin and the museum, and I've often found myself returning to the station to ask questions throughout my visits. With very few exceptions, my questions were answered quickly and courteously.
After passing the ranger station, you reach a smallish room with paintings on one side and furniture on the other. The paintings are of Franklin and his family, the furniture all from his house or items he invented. Included here are an original Franklin Stove and a glass armonica. For those not in the know, the glass armonica is a very unique-sounding xylophone-like musical instrument invented by Franklin (the sound is somewhat reminiscient of the sound made when you rub the lip of a glass partially filled with water or the sound you can make blowing on a partially filled glass coke bottle). It consists of a row of glass rings of different sizes that resonate when you rub them.
The next room is a small room of mirrors. Neon signs of different colors containing description phrases about Franklin flash as you walk through, creating rather fun house-like visual effects. This room is interesting, but it tends to make me dizzy. I usually walk right through, but most kids find it fascinating and want to stand there for a few minutes.
The room of mirrors leads to the main exhibit hall. The largest by far of the three rooms, this room is divided into two main areas. The bulk of the room has exhibits about Franklin's life, inventions, and contributions to early America including a glass-enclosed case in the middle of the room with more artifacts. This is all interesting and worth viewing. However, the highlight of this area, and of the entire trip, is the bank of telephones near the entrance. There are approximately 50 telephones in a grid, all facing a wall. On the wall lives a list of telephone numbers that, when dialed, reach famous people from all over the world, many different walks of life, and many different time periods. The numbers are organized by geographical region, mainly split by North American people and International folks. Each call yields a quote about Franklin from the person you call.
You can call a very diverse group of people, everyone from John F. Kennedy to Robert Millikan to Mozart to D.H. Lawrence and more. Don't know who all of these people are? You probably should. But, be that as it may, don't look for help from the museum. The wall merely lists names and numbers with no indication of who the listed people are other than their phone number. The phone number is a good clue, because the numbers are quite realistic. Not only does the number for Robert Millikan* uses the Chicago area code, it actually uses a University of Chicago exchange. The numbers for British folks use the right country code. You can identify location this way. A few of the calls end with a short explanation of who was speaking and why they are important, but most end solely with their name. I love making these calls, but I realize that it can be frustrating to not know who these people are or why you should care what they had to say.
A small theater connects to one end of the main hall. Here you can watch a movie about Franklin. The movie changes periodically. For several years when I was little they played a short movie that illustrated Franklin's life through his letters. When I visited this past Memorial Day weekend, they had an 18 minute movie originally made for the Discovery Channel. This movie jumped through Franklin's life and frankly wasn't as good as previous movies I remember. Aside from general issues with the movie, it propogated the false story of discovering electricity by tying a key to a kite and flying it during a lightning storm which is not true. I expected better of both the Discovery Channel and Franklin Court.
The House
Franklin Court also has a large display of household artifacts and typical household items from the late 18th century. These live in a tall, narrow several story house that Franklin lived in for part of his life. I wasn't able to visit this section on my recent visit so it's been many years and I don't want to mislead people about the contents or layout of the house. Even if I remember it correctly it could have changed over the years so I am not going to say more about the house.
The Print Shop
Franklin's original print shop has been lovingly recreated on its original spot on Market Street. This is where the Pennsylvania Gazette was printed, the nations first newspaper which became the Saturday Evening Post. Here too Poor Richard's Almanac was printed, the book filled with proverbs that give us the best insight into the wit and writing of Franklin. Today it contains a large display of 18th Century printing presses and related paraphernalia. Park rangers give printing demonstrations throughout the day. I always find myself fascinated in the print shop, both by the process used to print and the tales about the Gazette and Poor Richard told by the rangers.
The Post Office
Among his many other accomplishments and duties, Benjamin Franklin was America's first Postmaster General. He established the first post office in 1775, and it is still in operation today. It is the only official United States post office that doesn't fly the US flag because it was founded before there was a flag to fly. Today visitors can get their mail stamped with B. Free Franklin, the official seal of this branch known as the Free Franklin Post Office. No, that doesn't mean you don't have to pay for mail sent at this office. The free is a tribute to finally becoming a free nation separate from England.
Summing Up
Franklin Court remains one of my favorite places to spend a few hours. Whether your interests lie in the area of how people lived in the 18th Century, 18th Century technology, or Franklin himself, you will not be disappointed. Every child should have the opportunity to talk to famous people on those phones - to me that is and will always remain the highlight of a visit to Franklin Court.
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* Robert Millikan, a physicist from the University of Chicago, proved that electric charge is quantized.
Recommended:
Yes
Best Suited For: Families
Best Time to Travel Here: Anytime
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