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Benjamin Franklin: Man of Business and Science

Franklin and Business

Benjamin Franklin, printer. Poor Richard : an almanack, for the year of Christ ... 1758. Library of Congress Rare Book and Special Collections Division.

Many associate Franklin with being one of the Founding Fathers and as a man of science, but as a printer running his own business, he was also a man who knew business. Being Ben Franklin, he had many ideas on business and thrift. You can see some of those in his “Hints For Those That Would Be Rich,” where he dispensed all sorts of financial advice, including:

A Penny sav’d is Twopence clear, A Pin a day is a Groat a Year. Save & have. Every little makes a mickle.

Beyond this thrifty advice, he also seems to have had an interest in what we would now consider the self-help genre.

He printed George Fisher’s The American Instructor, or, Young Man’s Best Companion and also wrote his own pieces. Along with “Hints for Those That Would Be Rich,” there is also Advice to a Young Tradesman and Way to Wealth, a collection of essays published in Poor Richard’s Almanack.

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Print Resources

The following titles link to fuller bibliographic information in the Library of Congress Online Catalog. Links to digital content are provided when available.

Internet Resources

The following is a list of selected online resources where researchers will find more information on Benjamin Franklin and his business acumen.