Benjamin Franklin was one of the greatest influences on the United States in its early years. Besides being a great statesman and political figure, he was also an inventor, writer, linguist, philanthropist, and astrologer. Historians hail him as the first true American, and his sayings and writings are still relevant today. He began his career as a printer and writer when he ran away to Philadelphia at the age of 17. His annual "Poor Richard's Almanack" sold ten thousand copies a year. After his death, approximately $4,400 was left in a 200-year trust to both Boston and Philadelphia.

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Available books:

• The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin