Benjamin Franklin Papers

The Benjamin Franklin Papers (over 800 items) include correspondence and documents, 1705-1788, primarily relating to Franklin's stay in France during the American Revolution and his role in the negotiations between France and the Continental Congress. Some earlier documents and printed materials are also part of the collection.

Franklin Papers at the University of Pennsylvania and the American Philosophical Society

A collection of approximately 14,000 items arrived at the American Philosophical Society in 1840, becoming the nucleus of the current Benjamin Franklin Collections at the APS. At the time of Franklin's death in 1790, the papers were stored at Champlost, a country estate outside of Philadelphia owned by George Fox. A much smaller group of Franklin papers remained at the Fox home after the transfer of the Franklin Papers to the American Philosophical Society. In 1887, this collection of papers passed from Mary Fox to Thomas Hewson Bache. The papers were purchased by the University of Pennsylvania in 1903.

Scope and content of the Benjamin Franklin Papers at the University of Pennsylvania

The Benjamin Franklin papers primarily contains correspondence during Franklin's tenure in France. The Papers are divided into three series: letters to Franklin; letters from Franklin; and miscellaneous. Materials are arranged chronologically within each series.

Description and catalog of the Franklin Papers at the University of Pennsylvania

The Franklin Papers held in the Kislak Center are described in 1908 publication, Calendar of the papers of Benjamin Franklin in the University of Pennsylvania. Being the appendix to the "Calendar of the papers of Benjamin Franklin in the library of the American philosophical society," edited by I. Minis Hays (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania, 1908.) View this item in the online catalog.

For more information, view the finding aid for the Franklin Papers at the University of Pennsylvania.