Your Comments

Benjamin Franklin was the kind of man whose genius could be little dreamed of today. He was also a giant of a statesman. Without him at our founding, there can be little doubt that our nation would have been the poorer for it.
Posted 6 months ago by Scott C. from New Castle, Indiana

A great reminder of what this country is all about!
Posted 10 months ago by Al S. from Mesa, AZ

Franklin and "Ingenuity" stopped me in my tracks today. I got off the freeway just read the website name and look up your site. Thank you for the encouragement during layoffs and reinventing ourselves here in Michigan.
Posted about 1 year ago by Mark from Michigan

"Go Fly A Kite" Ingenuity, pass it on.
That was one of the greatest billboards I've ever seen. Thanks!
Posted about 1 year ago by Pat P from Wayne, NJ

As a member of the American Kitefliers Association who has been blessed with the opportunity to fly kites in many parts of the world, my attention was drawn to this billboard in particular. Dr. Franklin was one of the truly great Americans as well as our most famous kite flier. I know he would be proud to be associated with your message and outreach.
Posted about 1 year ago by Jim M. from North Carolina

This site is breath taking; it brought tears to my eyes. Thank you for your effort in making our lives much more meaningful.
Posted over 2 years ago by Charitha from Sri Lanka

Ben Franklin & Leonardo Di Vinci woulda been great pals! They're both considered household saints in my book.
Posted over 2 years ago by Teri K. from Payson, Arizona USA

That is one of the most creative things I have ever seen. Honestly, that's my happy song. When I saw that on the side of the freeway I was happy the rest of the day...and had that wonderful song in my head.
Posted over 2 years ago by Dawn V. from San Diego, California USA

He had lived to its fullness. Wow!
Posted over 2 years ago by Neibu from Nagaland, India

Absolutely lovely!!!!!!
cheers
hugs
Posted over 2 years ago by Chris from Brazil

Thank you for your efforts! It's great to see someone making a difference, without strings attatched.
Posted over 2 years ago by Lisa R. from The Windy City, Chicago

Oh let's go... fly a kite!
Posted over 2 years ago by George B. from Tacoma Washington

Whenever I travel to a place that I feel like there is no hope, I see this certain billboard out of the hundreds of them and it makes me feel like I can do anything!
Posted over 2 years ago by Kim from NJ

Up to the highest height
Posted over 2 years ago by Mary P. from Albequerque, NM

Ingenuity

About This Billboard

“If you would not be forgotten as soon as you’re dead and rotten, either write things worth reading or do things worth the writing,” said Benjamin Franklin. The United States has never forgotten Benjamin Franklin because he did both. He lived these words of wisdom by writing profusely and being a scientist, inventor, statesman, printer, philosopher and economist.

Franklin was born on January 17, 1706. He attended school for only a few years before becoming an apprentice printer to his older brother at the age of 12. When his brother’s paper was looking for original stories, Franklin was too young to submit articles. Therefore he created a fictional widow who slipped “her” stories under the door at night so no one knew who ‘she’ was. The stories were very popular. After several, Franklin admitted he wrote them, but his brother was not happy. The troubles continued to grow between the two and at age 17, Franklin ran away, which was illegal at the time.

In Philadelphia, Franklin continued to be a print apprentice for many years. Later, he married and with his wife ran a print shop, book store and general store. Franklin thrived on work and eventually printed an almanac and a newspaper, contributing a great deal of the material himself. His paper carried the first political cartoon.

In the 1730’s and 1740’s, he worked to improve life in Philadelphia. He was the force behind the first public hospital, lending library, fire-fighting company and fire insurance. He invented many things, including bifocals and a heat-efficient stove. He refused to take out patents so that the items would be available to all. In the 1750’s, he was retired from the printing business, and was very interested in electricity. In June 1752, he conducted the kite experiment. He suspected that lightning was an electrical current in nature and wanted to see if it would pass through metal. He put a metal key on a kite to prove his theory. This helped him realize the danger in lightning and led to another invention still in use today: the lightning rod.

Also, in the 1750’s, Franklin became very interested in politics. He served as the Colonial representative for several states in England from 1757 to 1775. After his return to the colonies, he started working actively for independence. Franklin participated on a committee of five that helped to draft the Declaration of Independence, where he contributed a great deal. In 1776, Franklin signed the Declaration, and then went to France to represent the United States.

In his late seventies, Franklin returned to America and served as a delegate to the Constitutional Convention where he signed the Constitution. One of his last public acts was writing an anti-slavery treatise in 1789. He stands alone as the only person to have signed all four of the documents which helped to create the United States: the Declaration of Independence (1776), the Treaty of Alliance, Amity, and Commerce with France (1778), the Treaty of Peace between England, France, and the United States (1782), and the Constitution (1787).

Franklin died on April 17, 1790 at the age of 84. Twenty-thousand people attended the funeral of the man who was called, “the harmonious human multitude.” No other individual was more involved in the birth of our nation. His legacy is filled with act after act of bold curiosity, brash risk-taking, and raw ingenuity.