ThmIndntihlm

IN SOMANY WAYS, FRANKLIN LEFT HI5 MARK ON THECITY HE LOVED BY JOANN GRECO

IN 1723, E[hI FRANKLIN AR*IVED iN municipallandmarks that bear his name: the Bridge, Benjamin Franklin Philadelphiafrom Boston,by way of New Parkway,Franklin Square and the FranklinInstitute of Science York,sea-tossed and foot-weary. Walking It'sthere in littlethings, too: from the creamy white blossoms of thefragrant Franklinia throughthe riversidestreets, the bedrag- alatamahatree at BartramsGarden to the ubiquitous"Franklin busybody," attached to gled 17-year-oldfollowed a crowd of windowsall over town Bothpay tribute to Franklin'ssense of discoveryand ingenuity. The "clean-dressedpeople" into a Quaker firstis a treesaved from extinction by hisgreat friend, botanist John Bartram. The second is meetrnghouse Lulledby the silence,he a mirroredcontraption supposedly designed promptlyfell asleep. by a dallyingFranklin so he couldspot his "Comparesuch unlikelybeginnings wife withoutopening his windowas she with the figureI havesince made there," approachedfrom down the block. Franklinwrote in hisautobiography. Soon Mosttangibly, Franklin s presence isfelt enough,Franklin was indeedon hisway in the sculpturesand statuesthat dot to takingPhiladelphia bystorm, molding it 'sdowntown, massive works into a city of firsts and priming it to hewnfrom powerful materials, each striving becomethe capitalof the newlyformed to illustratesome bit of Franklin'smany UnitedStates of America. personaeand accomplishments. Beforesettling in Philadelphia,Franklin Unrelentinglycurious scientist and exper- enjoyedan 18-monthstay in London, imenter,brilliant statesman, imaginative where, he later wrote, he made many inventolgiant civic presence. Franklin was all "ingenious"acquaintances and readcon- of these,yes, but he identifiedhimself fore- F siderablyArmed with a new glossof mostas a printer.Joseph Brown's Benjamin ,iz sophisticationand an encyclopediasworth Franklin- Craftsman(or YoungBen Franklin) of ideas,Franklin was only 20 yearsold nearCity Hall pays tribute to thisFranklin, a \c >; when he returned.He wouldstay for the man both literallyand figurativelyof letters z next30 years,making his mark on the city The1O-foot bronze shows a determinedBen z andforging an unbreakableconnection. workingthe press,his shirtsleeves rolled up. As Philadelphiacelebrates the 300th Lookingat it,we're reminded that, while the older Franklin may have been oft-indolent and a gout ;F anniversaryof Franklin's birth, his indelible suffereriFranklin in hisyounger years was a bitof a fitnessnut: an early adopter of vegetarianism, o impact is everywhere.lt's there in the an inveteratewalker, and an enthusiasticswimmer who iscredited with inventinqswim fins

8 GUEST INFORMANT Franklinloved to solveproblems, whether to smooththe way for his own recreations, suchas swimmingand reading(he inventedbifocals), or to facilitatehis professionallife as, say,postmaster (he invented an odometerand attachedit to hiscarriage to helphim discover more efficientroutes). This passion served as a guidingforce in all hisendeavors It was in his role as publicservant extraordinnaire that this trait took on its greatest signiftcanceAs everyschoolchild learns, Franklin was criticalin establishingthe nation's first fire insurancecompany, hospital and publiclibrary - not to mentionAmerica's first Risingmore than 100 feet into the sky,the nontheologicalliberal arts university stainlesssteel structuregracefully melds Severalsculptures around town recognizethese accomplishments Francesco Lazzerini's images of Franklin'spotent brew: key, 1792 statueof a toga-cladFranklin leaning on a stackof books now standsoutside the lightningflash and kite LibraryCompany of Philadelphia,the descendantof the nation'sfirst library.ln 1731, aI a Noguchi'ssubtle, conceptual tribute sessionof ,the salonhe had formed,Franklin thought that "it might be convenientto isn'tthe only one that searchesto conveya us lmembers]to havethem lour books]altogether where we met, that upon occasionthey senseof Franklinsspirit Eventhe massive might be consulted" This becamethe "mother of all the North Americansubscription FranklinNational Memorial, a 3O-tonmarble libraries,now so numerous,"Franklin noted, adding that "theselibraries have improved the piecein the grand rotundaof the Franklin 3 generalconversation of the Americans,made the commontradesmen and farmers as intelligent Institute,is about essencemore than any- F as most gentlemenfrom other countries,and perhapshave contributed in somedegree to the thing else SculptorJames Earle Fraser said standso generallymade throughout the coloniesin defenseof theirprivileges." he wanted portray "ready o to a Franklin to Franklin'sdedication to enlightenmentled to Ihe 1749 printingof hisProposals Relating turn the f ull forceof his keenmind on any to the Educationof Youth in PensilvaniaFranklin outlined an institution that would offer problemthat concernedhim." practicalas well asclassical instruction in orderto prepareyouth for real-worldpursuits The And AlexanderGeneralis' lighthearted io resultinginstitution, now known asthe Universityof ,acknowledges its founder mpt:l crrrln-rrrpnf Fr:n(lin'5 head SeeS

o with GeorgeLundeen's 1987 bronze of a convivialFranklin sitting on a bench,reading The inspirationin a merry pranksterwho - open seatnext to him presentsa favoritephoto op for studentsand visitors from the age of 16, when he assumedthe To many,Franklins most singularachievement remains his proof that lightningconsists guise of a middle-agedwidow in the of electricalcharges. lsamu Noguchi'sBolt of Lightningcommemorates this discoveryin "SilenceDogood" letters, until his late sixties, o a sitethe artistchose himself, between the BenjaminFranklin Bridge and FranklinSquare when he wrote an "Edict by the King of

GUESTINFORMANT 11 Venturi's Ghost Structure, painted steeloutlines of Franklin'shouse and print shop, will have to do These shadow buildings, combined with restorationsof five buildingscontaining an eighteenthcentury printing office, an architecturaland archaeological exhibit,an operatingpost off ice and a postal museum,provide a fine sense of the way Ben lived his lastyears in Philadelphia.(Franklin left Philadelphia

in 1757 to fulfill diplomaticduties in z Prussia,"a veiledplea for Americaninde- Londonand ParisHe stayedaway, except for briefspates, until 1785 -o ) z pendence- delightedin hoaxesand puz- In his lastyears, Franklin did not slow down He advisedNoah Websterand Robert ; : zles Floatingabove a highway that runs Fultonon their littleprojects (oh, a dictionary,a steamengine), concluded that leadwas o through town, Generalis'Franklin sports poisonousand shouldno longerbe usedin printing,denounced slavery and servedas a

f Iowing locksand tiny glasses delegateto the U S ConstitutionalConvention He died in 1790 and, via a cortegethat o The arc of Franklin'sprofessional life drew20,000people,waslaidtorestatChristChurchsburialground Wecanpaytribute z from printer/publisher/journalistto civil to him there today,but walking aroundthe city that he worked so hard to developis a

servant,from inventor to founding father, betterway In doing so, we realizethat, in so manyways, Franklinis stillwith us o certainlysurvives in Philadelphia'sinstitutions ;F and monuments.For a hint of what his JoAnn Greco writes from her home in Philadelphia,where she alsoco-owns and operates c private life was like, architect Robert Dessert,an all-dessertcafe Any day nor,u,she expectsto be switching to . :

I2 GUESTINFORMANT