From the Smithsonian magazine archives, some of our favorite reader questions about our nation's founding upon its 250th birthday. Q: Did Benjamin Franklin really fly a kite in a thunderstorm?
Ben Franklin's invention of the lightning rod and his revelation of the mysterious workings of lightning and thunder made him one of the foremost scientists of his day. As Dray, who won the Robert F.
Gov. Larry Hogan says the 1772 Maryland State House was saved from lightning “by a 208-year-old original Ben Franklin lightning rod.” The nation’s oldest State House was hit by lightning Friday ...
This Saturday, Jan. 17, marks Benjamin Franklin’s birthday — his 320th, as a matter of fact! He was born in Boston in 1706 ...
Introduction: Lightning after Franklin 1. A New Invention 2. The Introduction of the Lightning Rod in the Netherlands 3. Eighteenth-Century Physical Theories on Thunderstorms 4. Official Religion 5.
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in ...
Ever prescient, John Adams rightly predicted that Benjamin Franklin would forever occupy an elevated position in the American imagination. He was, after all, the man who risked life and limb to fly a ...
"Cotton Mather, dam you, with a pox to you!" -- Made at Philadelphia -- A subject of serene contemplation -- The mighty hand of God -- Electric ambassador -- The science of freedom Summary A biography ...
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