FREE Admission to the Benjamin Franklin Museum And Other Activities!

Ben Franklin Museum

‘Celebrating the Life of an Extraordinary Man’

Benjamin Franklin, one of the Founding Fathers of the United States, was born on January 17, 1706. In honor of Benjamin Franklin, the Benjamin Franklin Museum will be open to the public for free January 20 in conjunction with the Martin Luther King Jr holiday. For details, click here.

Franklin was a leading author, printer, political theorist, politician, postmaster, scientist, inventor, civic activist, statesman, and diplomat. He even facilitated many civic organizations, including Philadelphia’s fire department and founded the University of Pennsylvania. Interesting fact: Benjamin Franklin ran away from Boston to Philadelphia at the age of 17 and throughout his years in Philly, brought a lot to the City of Brotherly Love in so many ways.

The museum, originally built for the 1976 Bicentennial celebration, is built next to where Franklin actually lived in the mid 1700′s. It is housed underground, beneath Franklin Court, which went through a major two-year revitalization from 2011 to 2013.

More about the museum, click here.

Other Ben Franklin Activities ~ January 16 – 20

  • Public Procession for Benjamin Franklin

January 17 (Friday): FREE – Starting at 11:15 am – 12:00 pm at American Philosophical Society (427 Chestnut St.). March to Franklin’s final resting place at Christ Church Burial Ground (5th and Arch Sts)Tributes honoring his legacy take place graveside, before a wreath-laying ceremony. This annual procession was established to bring international attention to Franklin’s ideas and accomplishments, and highlight his contributions and influence on the modern world. More info, click here. There is also a panel discussion (free) from 9 am – 11 am and a luncheon at noon. For more details, click here.

  • Ben’s Birthday Bash

January 18 & 19 (Saturday & Sunday): 10 am – 2 pm: Held at The Franklin Institute at 222 North 20th Street. – Celebrate the entrepreneurial spirit of Philadelphia’s favorite and most influential founding father—and our very own namesake during the museum-wide, weekend-long birthday bash. Plus, on Saturday, January 19, enjoy free ice cream courtesy of our friends at Franklin Fountain, while supplies last. Event is included with general museum admission. ~ More Information ~

  • Benjamin Franklin Tippler’s Tour

January 17 & 18: 5:30 p.m. Historic Philadelphia Center, 6th and Chestnut streets. Enjoy a Colonial guide for the Tippler’s Tour with Ben Franklin, a rollicking pub crawl, with stops for drinks and snacks at four Old City establishments. Franklin “himself” joins the tour along the way and stays for a chat at City Tavern, the final stop, to enjoy a Yards Brewing Company Franklin Spruce Ale. ~ More Info ~ SOLD OUT ~ For Tickets ~

  • Franklin & Women with Dr. Carla Mulford

January 16: 5:30 pm – 7:00 pmFREE (you need to register) Held at the at the The Library Company of Philadelphia at 1314 Locust Street. Carla J. Mulford, Professor of English at Pennsylvania State University, will speak on Benjamin Franklin and women—his ideas about women, his fictional women, and the women in his life. ~ More Information ~

Location

Benjamin Franklin Museum
317 Chestnut Street
Philadelphia, PA 19106

Hours

Saturday – Monday  |  9:00 am – 5:00 pm  | Last entrance to museum is at 4:15 pm

Cost

FREE  |  January 20, 2020 (for Ben Franklin museum)

Benjamin Franklin Celebrations  |  January 16 – 20, 2020

Phone

(215) 965-2305

Web Site

Photo Courtesy of NPS