Biography of Benjamin Franklin

Read the passage. Then, complete each sentence below by typing in the
correct date into the gap.
Benjamin Franklin
Benjamin Franklin was born in Boston, Massachusetts (then a British colony) in 1706.
As a child he loved reading, so in 1718 his parents arranged for him to start learning
the printing trade. After a few years he set up his own printing business, and in 1729
bought a Philadelphia newspaper, The Pennsylvania Gazette, which he not only
printed but also wrote for. Franklin helped to start several projects to improve life for
the people of Philadelphia, including the first public library (1731), and the
Pennsylvania Hospital (1751).
In 1748 he retired from printing and concentrated instead on scientific experiments
and inventions. He had already - in 1736 - invented a heat-efficient stove for
warming homes, but now he became particularly interested in electricity, and in 1752
conducted an experiment with a kite to prove that lightning is a form of electricity. He
also invented bifocals.
During the 1760s he was active in helping the American colonies to throw off British
rule. He was among those who drafted the Declaration of Independence, in 1776, and
the Constitution of the new United States of America, in 1787. One of his last public
actions was to write an attack on slavery, in 1789. Franklin died the following year.

1. In _________ , Franklin began training to become a printer

2. In which year did he help to set up an organisation that allowed people to borrow
books? _________

3. In _________ , he designed something for heating a room.

4. In which year did he draft a statement opposing British control of the American
colonies? _________