LyrArc Insights

Eric Weiner traces the path taken by Ben Franklin to Paris in 1776

Eric Weiner, is author of  "Ben and Me- In Search of a Founder's Formula for a Long and Useful Life." This is the second article in a series by NYT on America's 250th Anniversary for the Declaration of Independence. Weiner travels from Boston to London, and from Philadelphia to Paris along the sea route taken by Franklin to the Brittany coast in December 1776 with his 2 grandchildren, one of 7 voyages crossing the Atlantic. The title of his article in NYT is "Searching paris for Ben Franklin- America's 'Least Dead' Founding Father."

"Least Dead" for whom? Of pop cultures, TikTok, Facebook, social media and the rest? Benjamin Franklin is one of the founding fathers most critical for getting the French to support George Washington, Thomas Jefferson in the American cause in 1776. It was the French cannon, and the French Navy that made it possible for Washington to move his armies north and surround the British at Yorktown, Virginia. Franklin's experiments with electricity are the earliest pioneering efforts of the scientific revolution of the 19th century that set Europe apart from Asia, and the scientific revolution of the 20th century that set America apart from the rest of the world. Franklin is not just a founding father, he is the founder of the US Post Office which was the radio and internet of its period making communication possible over long distances. Franklin was the first Postmaster General in 1775 and set up the US postal system. Franklin set up the first circulating library in 1731 and the University of Pennsylvania- the first fire department in Philadelphia. He was president of the state of Pennsylvania after Independence. There is a great deal of ignorance about the founding fathers no less in places like the entrance to the Smithsonian institution in Washington DC of all places, where no mention is made of Franklin as an Abolitionist- Franklin's scientific mind and his modern thinking had no place for the European institution of slavery in the 1500-1800 period. Franklin was the president of the Pennsylvania Society for the Abolition of Slavery.

 By 1781 Franklin had his first meeting with King Louis XVI at Versailles. The US Mission and Franklin's home was located in the hillside village of Passy a few hours from Paris where the clean air and water helped revive him. He crosses the Atlantic again in 1783 when the Peace Treaty is signed by Franklin. Weiner is 70 in 2026 and writes that Franklin grew more serene with age even with some ailments, was loved in France, and returned to America for his final voyage home with his 2 grand children in 1785. A life well lived something for all Americans to aspire and emulate.