HistoricSiteMarkers
Colonial AmericaAmerican Revolution

Benjamin Franklin and James Franklin

Boston, Suffolk County, Massachusetts

Marker Inscription

Here is 1719 stood the printing office of James Franklin publisher of the New England Courant. Here served as an apprentice his brother Benjamin Franklin. Here 1769 to 1776 Edes and Gill published the Boston Gazette.

Erected by Massachusetts Society of Sons of the Revolution

The Story

Here, beginning in 1719, James Franklin ran the printing office of the New England Courant, one of colonial America's boldest and most independent newspapers. His younger brother Benjamin Franklin served here as an apprentice, learning the printing trade that would help make him famous. Later, from 1769 to 1776, Edes and Gill published the Boston Gazette on this spot — a fiercely patriotic paper that helped fan the flames of revolution.

Why it matters

This corner nurtured both a founding father's craft and the revolutionary press that helped spark American independence.

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Related people

  • · Benjamin Franklin
  • · James Franklin
  • · Benjamin Edes
  • · John Gill

Themes & tags

Industry & InventionAmerican RevolutionLandmark

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