FRANKLIN
Benjamin Franklin bottled lightning, charmed France, and helped birth a nation—all while refusing to wear a powdered wig.
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Chapters
15 total- 01Chapter One - The Tenth Son
- 02Chapter Two - Running Away From Home
- 03Chapter Three - The Printer King
- 04Chapter Four - A Curious Mind
- 05Chapter Five - The Lightning Rod
- 06Chapter Six - Postmaster General
- 07Chapter Seven - The Royal Problem
- 08Chapter Eight - The Declaration Dude
- 09Chapter Nine - The French Seduction
- 10Chapter Ten - Treaty of Paris
- 11Chapter Eleven - The Constitutional Grandfather
- 12Chapter Twelve - The Slave Question
- 13Chapter Thirteen - Death and Memory
- 14Chapter Fourteen - Franklin’s America
- 15Chapter Fifteen - The Self-Made Myth
Edition notes and short pages
FRANKLIN
FRANKLIN
The Man Who Bottled Lightning
by James Johnson
Dedication
For the ones who built themselves.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
TO EVERY TEACHER who ever let a smartass ask one more question.
To Philadelphia, for being wild enough to work.
To the thinkers, tinkerers, club-starters, and system-hackers.
To the Enlightenment, for putting the spark in the sky.
And to Ben, for showing us that power doesn’t have to come from power.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
JJ IS THE author of over 300 books on history, psychology, power, systems, and everything in between. Known for his sharp storytelling, clean voice, and no-fluff insight, he writes to make complexity make sense and leave readers seeing the world differently than when they started.
More at jjarchives.com
COPYRIGHT
© 2026 JAMES JOHNSON. All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced, stored, or transmitted by any means — physical, digital, or otherwise — without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations used in critical articles or reviews.
This book is a work of nonfiction. Every reasonable effort has been made to ensure accuracy, but historical interpretation always involves some degree of judgment. When in doubt, assume the author sided with truth over tradition.
Franklin would’ve approved.