Benjamin Franklin Commemorative Coins
Coin Description
"Scientist" shows Franklin's "Join, or Die" political cartoon that he drew to bring the colonies together.
"Founding Father" shows parts of a coin Franklin designed - sort of a coin on a coin!
"Scientist" features a young Franklin doing his famous kite experiment.
"Founding Father" features Franklin as an older man.
The Story
Benjamin Franklin was 70 years old when he signed the Declaration of Independence. But after 11 years as a free nation, the United States still did not have a strong national government to unite the states far into the future. It needed a constitution. Ben Franklin had served in the Constitutional Convention to help create one, and it was finally written and agreed on in 1787.
Franklin, a true founding father, was proud and happy to be among those who signed this second great document. In fact, Franklin is the only man who signed both the Declaration and the Constitution and two major international treaties as well!
Franklin was also a man of science, who experimented with electricity and invented very useful gadgets. His long life allowed him time to do many exciting things in the fields of science, government, business, communications, and the arts.
The United States Mint celebrated the 300th anniversary of this great man’s birth by creating two commemorative coins honoring him in 2006. These coins pay tribute to Franklin as a scientist with the “Scientist” design and as one of our great leaders with the “Founding Father” design.