Benjamin Franklin papers, 1705-1790.

Format:

Other

Author/Creator:

Franklin, Benjamin, 1706-1790.

Contributor:

Holbrook, Marion Marshall, 1812- former owner.

Holbrook, George Otis, 1850- former owner.

Vergennes, Charles Gravier, comte de, 1719-1787.

Lafayette, Marie Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert Du Motier, marquis de, 1757-1834.

Jones, John Paul, 1747-1792.

Williams, Jonathan, 1750-1815.

Language:

French

Subjects (All):

Relations.

United States--Relations--France--18th century.

United States.

France--Relations--United States--18th century.

France.

Genre:

Manuscripts, French.

Manuscripts, American.

Penn Provenance:

Bequeathed by Benjamin Franklin to his grandson William Temple Franklin. Bequeathed by William Temple Franklin to George Fox who in turn passed on possession to his children, Charles and Mary. Found at the Fox family estate at Champlost in a stable loft by Mrs. Marion Holbrook around 1862 and given to her by Eliza Fox subsequently. Sold by her son George O. Holbrook to a committee of friends of the University of Pennsylvania Library in 1903 and gifted by them to the University the same year.

Physical Description:

872 items (13 volumes)

Place of Publication:

1705-1790.

Language Note:

In French and English.

Biography/History:

Benjamin Franklin was appointed by the Continental Congress as a Commissioner to France in 1776; the United States Congress elected him sole minister plenipotentiary in September 1778. While securing financial and military assistance from France was Franklin's primary responsibility, he was also expected to procure supplies for George Washington, negotiate the exchange of prisoners of war, and solve the problems of Americans in Paris. He was quickly overwhelmed with Europeans who sought commissions to serve as officers in the American army as well as those simply requesting money.

Summary:

The Benjamin Franklin papers primarily contain correspondence during Franklin's tenure in France. Divided into three series, the material is arranged chronologically within each series. The series are: (1) Letters to Bejamin Franklin, (2) Letters from Benjamin Franklin, and (3) Miscellaneous Letters. The correspondence includes material social in nature but also contains official correspondence, especially with Franklin's grand-nephew, Jonathan Williams, Jr., who was the U.S. commercial agent at Nantes. Some items detail negotiations with France, such as the correspondence with the Comte de Vergennes, France's foreign minister. Much correspondence is from European supplicants who sought commissions to serve as officers in the American army as well as those simply requesting money. There is also correspondence with Marquis de Lafayette and John Paul Jones. The latter details John Paul Jones's dispute with French Captain Pierre Landais.

Twenty four printed broadsides from this collection were removed from the 13 main volumes and are housed separately. Records for each are in the catalog.

Finding Aid/Index:

Finding aid available through the World Wide Web.

OCLC:

817129041

Online:

Unique at Penn blog post