'Ben Franklin's Curious Mind' Exhibition To Open January 28 At Bruce Museum

GREENWICH, CONN.

:In the exhibition "Ben Franklin's Curious Mind," on view from January 28 through April 23, the Bruce Museum of Arts and Science celebrates the 300th birthday of one of America's most dynamic, inventive and distinguished citizens. What do bifocals, the lightning rod, the first American political cartoon and glass armonica have in common?

They all came from the fertile mind of Benjamin Franklin. With hands-on interactive displays based on his inventions and achievements, plus original art and artifacts, this exhibition brings to life Franklin's remarkable accomplishments as printer, writer, scientist, inventor, citizen, statesman and Founding Father.

"Ben Franklin's Curious Mind" is divided into three thematic sections. The exhibition features historic objects, artwork and hands-on activities that illuminate the American leader's colorful life. Original artifacts such as Eighteenth Century scientific instruments and Franklin's personal letters are on view along with art and illustrations that highlight Franklin's influence and accomplishments.

One notable highlight is an original copy of the Constitution owned and signed by Benjamin Franklin. The items are on loan from private collections and museums, including the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of American History, American Antiquarian Society, Yale University's Peabody Museum of Natural History, the Gilder Lehrman Collection at the New York Historical Society and the American Numismatic Society.

During a lifetime that spanned the length of the Eighteenth Century, Franklin contributed an extraordinarily diverse array of practical, scientific, political and social innovations to America and the greater trans-Atlantic world.

Born in 1706 in Boston, the 15th child of a candlemaker, Franklin quickly improved his position in the world through self-education, his skills as an artisan and a quick wit. By the time of his death in Philadelphia in 1790, he had established himself as a globally renowned scientist, diplomat, inventor and cultural figure.

Franklin began work as a 12-year-old apprentice to his brother James, printer of the New-England Courant. In the first thematic section, "Power of the Press," visitors can view a 1722 edition of the newspaper that exemplifies the many issues printed by the Franklin brothers and includes an editorial letter on freedom of thought written by 16-year-old Ben under the penname of Silence Dogood.

Franklin continued to work in the printing trade and an early Nineteenth Century printing press, on loan from the Hartford Courant newspaper, represents the mechanical form that Franklin operated for many decades of his life. Printing gave Franklin an outlet for his ideas and earned him a significant fortune. Franklin's Poor Richard's Almanack, colonial paper currency and the Pennsylvania Gazette are a few of the original objects printed by Franklin that are on view. One of the more unusual objects on display is Franklin's 1744 edition of Samuel Richardson's novel Pamela, the first popular novel printed in the American colonies.

Because Franklin accrued a great profit from his printing business, he retired at the early age of 41 and devoted his leisure time to scientific study. In the section "Engineering Solutions" the exhibition looks at his inventive spirit and examines how the broad scope of his studies led to practical and scientific innovations. This section represents Franklin's scientific experiments with a variety of historic instruments, such as a battery of Leyden jars, Franklin bells and an electrostatic generator.

Along with his highly publicized work as a scientist, Franklin also gained increasing notoriety for his social improvements and political work. The variety of Franklin's leadership positions increased rapidly in the middle of the Eighteenth Century and included such roles as postmaster general of North America and commissioned colonel of a Philadelphia militia regiment. During the second half of the century, Franklin became a leading American diplomat to England and France, a formative figure in the new American nation and a strong advocate of slavery abolition.

In the third section of the exhibition, "For the Greater Good," Franklin's social and political contributions in these roles and the resulting proliferation of his image in popular culture are explored. Museum visitors can peer into the aged statesman's role in the American Revolution through personal correspondence. A rare journal kept by a Philadelphia coach maker details the repairs that Franklin ordered for his carriage on a very important date: July 4, 1776.

The Bruce Museum of Arts and Science is at 1 Museum Drive. For information, www.brucemuseum.org or 203-869-0376.