Events

Past Events

4th of July

Celebrate the Fourth of July with us! 🎆 We are delighted…

4th July Walking Tours - Benjamin Franklin in London

Celebrate the 249th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence by retracing Franklin's footsteps around the City of Westminster.

Honouring Sir Bob Reid

Honouring Sir Bob Reid, Chairman Emeritus of Benjamin Franklin House 1 May 1934 – 28 May 2025

Flag Day

Come celebrate Flag Day with us at the Benjamin…

Franklin's Young Scientists: Forces

Franklin’s Young Scientists is our FREE science club for aspiring scientists in Key Stage 2/3 (ages 10-14).

Online Talk: War, Faith, and the Political Genius of Benjamin Franklin

Join us online for a talk by historian Brady Crytzer, where…

An Evening with Historian George Boudreau

    Join us as we host our friend George Boudreau,…

Walking Tours: American History in London

Explore Benjamin Franklin's London home before heading out on a whistle-stop tour of some fascinating American history sites in Central London.

Family Springtime Open House

    Join us for a FREE day of family fun…

Children's Spring Craft Fair at Fulham Palace

Join a fun-filled spring craft fair, featuring a number of west London museums at Fulham Palace.

Colour and Paint in the Smaller 18th-century Town House with Patrick Baty

Wednesday, 12 March @ 6pm Get tickets here via Eventbrite!   Join…

Ben's Bon Voyage

March 20, 2025 - 6pm Get tickets here via Eventbrite! To…

Ben's 319th Birthday Bash

  Join us for an after-hours tour of Benjamin Franklin…

Robert H. Smith Lecture in Democracy

      Márcia Balisciano is founding…

Thanksgiving at Benjamin Franklin House

Join us on Thanksgiving Day!   9-11am: FREE drop-in social…

2024 US Election Debate with Justin Webb

Join moderator Justin Webb, the BBC's first North America…

Family Event: Halloween!

Trick or treat! Join us at Benjamin Franklin House for a FREE fun-filled day as we explore the history of America's spookiest holiday and craft some terrifyingly good decorations to take home!

Frankly Speaking Debate Competition 2025- Applications Open

A Benjamin Franklin House debate competition in collaboration with the US Embassy London and the DAR Walter Hines Page Chapter.

Benjamin Franklin House Literary Prize 2024 - SUBMISSIONS OPEN

Each year a question or quote exploring Benjamin Franklin’s relevance in our time is open for interpretation in 1000-1500 words.  The competition is open exclusively for young writers, aged 18-25, with a first prize of £750, and a second prize of £500.

Ben's Book Club Returns!

We're proud to be hosting an array of accomplished historians…

Summer Family Events @ Benjamin Franklin House

Every Wednesday in August we will be running a series of historical skills workshops at the House. We will be holding two sessions per workshop with limited tickets available in the morning and afternoon. 

Summer Family Events: Untold Stories - Visualising History

Learn about 36 Craven Street’s lesser-known 18th Century young resident and help us tell their story.

Children's Summer Fair

Join a fun-filled summer craft fair at Fulham Palace, featuring Benjamin Franklin House, the William Morris Society and Leighton House!

Summer Walking Tours

We're pleased to announce the return of our Summer Walking Tours…

Franklin's Young Scientists: The Solar System

The Young Scientists will explore our Solar System; what it is and how it works. We will also design and craft our very own diorama of the Solar System to take home!

Refugee Week Family Event - 'Our Home'

Join us on Saturday 22nd June 2024 to celebrate Refugee Week (theme: “Our Home”) in the heart of London at Benjamin Franklin House, 36 Craven Street.

The Coercive Acts – Response to the Boston Tea Party

You are cordially invited to join the Walter Hines Page Chapter, NSDAR (National Society Daughters of The American Revolution) and the Kew Society as we explore the Coercive Acts of 1774, a key element in the lead-up to the Declaration of Independence.

Franklin's Young Scientists: Forces

Franklin’s Young Scientists is our FREE science club for aspiring scientists in Key Stage 2/3 (ages 10-14). Participants learn all about the experiments carried out by Benjamin Franklin and his British friends as well as trying their hand at practical investigations. A range of core topics from the science curriculum are covered including electricity, forces, sound and the human body.

Education Volunteers Needed!

Are you looking for some experience in delivering exciting creative learning opportunities for young people? If so, Benjamin Franklin House needs you!

Family Event: Christmas!

Join us after-school on Wednesday 13th December at 4:30pm as we celebrate Christmas at Benjamin Franklin's wonderful Grade I-Listed Georgian town house in the heart of London.

Family Event: Thanksgiving!

Join us at Benjamin Franklin House as we celebrate this American holiday and learn about its rich history from its colonial origins to now!

Franklin's Young Scientists: Electricity

Franklin’s Young Scientists is our FREE science club for aspiring scientists in Key Stage 2/3 (ages 10-14).

Dr Tristram Hunt: ‘The Radical Potter: Josiah Wedgwood and the Transformation of Britain’

Join Benjamin Franklin House and Dr Tristram Hunt on 16th November…

Literary Prize 2023: SUBMISSIONS OPEN

The deadline for our Annual Literary Prize is fast approaching,…
Children on stairs at Benjamin Franklin House

After Dark at Craven Street

Thursday 26 and Monday 30th October 2022, 2pm-7pm. Are you…

Family Event: Halloween!

Trick or treat! Join us at Benjamin Franklin House for a FREE fun-filled day as we explore the history of America's spookiest holiday and craft some terrifyingly good decorations to take home!

Three ties that bind? the relationship between the UK, US and France in a complex world

  Join us for the annual Robert H Smith Lecture in Democracy…
Benjamin Franklin exterior with signs out

Volunteers Needed!

Would you like to volunteer at Benjamin Franklin House? We have…

Virtual Talk: A Day in the Life of Benjamin Franklin

Our Education Manager, Henry Wilkinson, will be delivering a FREE virtual talk chronicling Benjamin Franklin's life in London. Using the wealth of information that we can pluck from Franklin's papers, the talk will explore his life in 18th century Britain.

OPEN HOUSE @ Benjamin Franklin House 2023

We're taking part in Open House 2023! We'll be free to enter…

To Begin The World Over Again: The Life of Thomas Paine

Join us on the 15th October for Ian Ruskin's one-man play exploring…

Summer Break @ Ben's House

This summer at Benjamin Franklin House we are running a series of historical skills workshops for all the family to enjoy!

Children's Summer Fair 2023

Join Fulham Palace and Benjamin Franklin House for a fun-filled bank holiday family event!

Franklin's Young Scientists: The Anatomy

Franklin’s Young Scientists is our FREE science club for aspiring scientists in Key Stage 2/3 (ages 7-12). Participants learn all about the experiments carried out by Benjamin Franklin and his British friends as well as trying their hand at practical investigations. A range of core topics from the science curriculum are covered including electricity, forces, sound and the human body.

Recreating Franklin: What it Means to Bring Benjamin Franklin Alive

6 July 2023, 7pm Join BFH Playwright in Residence, Michael…

Franklin's Young Scientists: THE HUMAN BODY

Franklin’s Young Scientists is our FREE science club for aspiring scientists in Key Stage 2/3 (ages 7-14).

Family Event: Fourth of July!

Join us afterschool to celebrate Fourth of July at Benjamin Franklin House! Learn about Franklin's role in American independence and more!

Breakfast Lecture with Mark Skousen

Tuesday June 6 2023, 8:30-9:30am, Benjamin Franklin House. “Great…

Franklin's Young Scientists: LIGHT

Franklin’s Young Scientists is our FREE science club for aspiring scientists in Key Stage 2/3 (ages 7-14). Participants learn all about the experiments carried out by Benjamin Franklin and his British friends as well as trying their hand at practical investigations. A range of core topics from the science curriculum are covered including electricity, forces, sound and the human body.

Family Event: Coronation Celebration!

In 1761, Benjamin Franklin attended the coronation of King George III. 262 years later, London is preparing for the coronation of King Charles III. Join us at Benjamin Franklin House on Monday 1st May at 2:30pm as we take a look at the history of the kings and queens of England.

Fulbright Lecture: Extinction Rebellion, Eco-Drama, and the Myth of "Saving the World"

Lecture is now available for viewing on our YouTube channel. Lecture…

4th of July at the Benjamin Franklin House

Spend 4th of July at the home of Founding Father Benjamin Franklin! As…

The Coronation: 4-7 May 2023

Join us in the heart of Westminster as we celebrate the Coronation…
BFH logo next to painting of Charing Cross in the 18th century.

Summer Walking Tour: Benjamin Franklin's 18th Century London

Discover the sights, sounds and smells of Benjamin Franklin’s…

Franklin and Collinson: Sowing the Seeds of Revolution

The garden has long been associated with this green and pleasant…

Family Event: Easter!

Join us on Easter Monday to learn all about Easter in the 18th Century and create some egg-xcellent arts and crafts!

Book Talk: ‘Poor Richard’s Women’ By Nancy Rubin Stuart

Join us this Women’s History Month as we talk to Nancy Rubin…

Franklin's Young Scientists: SOUND!

Franklin’s Young Scientists is our FREE science club for aspiring scientists in Key Stage 2/3 (ages 7-14).Participants learn all about the experiments carried out by Benjamin Franklin and his British friends as well as trying their hand at practical investigations.

Family Event: Inside Benjamin Franklin's House

Our first family event of 2023 will explore Benjamin Franklin House to uncover what life was like in 18th century London. We will learn about the history behind each room of this Grade-I listed Georgian townhouse to understand what would have been happening here over 250 years ago!

Franklin's Young Scientists: FORCES!

Franklin’s Young Scientists is our FREE science club for aspiring…
Children on stairs at Benjamin Franklin House

Events Calendar 2023

To view all upcoming events for the year, please check out our…

Franklin's Young Scientists: ELECTRICITY!

Franklin’s Young Scientists is our FREE science club for aspiring scientists in Key Stage 2/3 (ages 10-14). Participants learn all about the experiments carried out by Benjamin Franklin and his British friends as well as trying their hand at practical investigations.

Ben's Birthday and the House's Anniversary Bash!

You’d have the Custom broke, you say, That marks with festive…

Family Event: Christmas!

Join us on Monday 19th December at 11am as we celebrate Christmas in Benjamin Franklin's wonderful Grade I-Listed Georgian town house in the heart of London. You and your family will learn all about the rich history of Christmas in the 18th century and discover which Georgian traditions have survived to this day!

Being Human Festival 2022

Did you know that this year marks the 250th anniversary of Benjamin Franklin's visit to the Lake District in 1772?

After Dark: Christmas at Craven Street

Glistening by candlelight, our 18th century Georgian Home is…

Benjamin Franklin House at History Camp America 2022

On Saturday 5th November, we will be taking part in History Camp America 2022! Across the day there will be a series of interesting virtual talks and tours from institutions all over the US. Benjamin Franklin House will be joining from across the pond to deliver a virtual tour of the House and demonstration of Franklin's Glass Armonica.

Thanksgiving: The Origin of Tradition and Native Perspective

Join us on Native American Heritage Day to rethink the story…
Children on stairs at Benjamin Franklin House

The 2022 US Mid-Term Elections: Will They Make Any Difference?

Wednesday 12 October 2022, 17:30 BST/12:30 ET. Online and in-person…
Event poster for our London Thanksgiving event. Leaves border the image and a cartoon turkey in in the centre.

After Dark: Thanksgiving

Looking for the perfect London Thanksgiving? Whether you're an…

Family Event: Thanksgiving

Join us on Sunday 13 November 10 a.m.-11:30 a.m. as we celebrate the traditional American holiday of Thanksgiving. You will learn all about this popular event and also learn how to decorate your house to celebrate it!

Family Event: Halloween

Trick or treat! Join us on 26th & 27th October at Benjamin Franklin House for a fun-filled morning as we explore the history of America's spookiest holiday and craft some terrifyingly good decorations to take home!

After Dark: The Cadavers of Craven Street

Thursday 27 October 2022, from 5pm. Are you ready to explore…

Children's Summer Fair 2022

This year, Benjamin Franklin House is collaborating with the William Morris Society and Fulham Palace for an exciting Children’s Summer Fair to end the Summer Holidays!

Virtual Talk: Benjamin Franklin and Popular Culture

Thursday 1st September 2022 – 5pm BST/12pm ET Join our Front…

Family Event: Portrait Perfect

Strike a pose! Discover the secrets of portraiture and explore…

Family Event: Bones in the Basement!

Uncover the truth behind the bones that were found buried in…

Family Event: Letters From the Past

Quills at the ready! Join us as we learn about Benjamin Franklin's…
Portrait of Benjamin Franklin conducting the kite and key experiment

Family Event: Let's Go Fly a Kite!

Discover the true nature of lightning at Benjamin Franklin…
BFH logo next to painting of Charing Cross in the 18th century.

Summer Walking Tour: Benjamin Franklin's 18th Century London

Thursday 03 August 2023, 3pm.  Discover the sights, sounds…

Ben’s Book Club: ‘Benjamin Franklin’s Last Bet’ By Michael Meyer

Wednesday August 10, 2022, 5pm BST/12pm ET. Register here. Join…

Celebrate 4th July Weekend with us!

Spend 4th July weekend at the home of Founding Father, Benjamin…

Ben’s Book Club: ‘Female Genius’ by Mary Sarah Bilder

Wednesday July 13 2022, 5pm BST/12pm ET. Register here. Join…

Platinum Jubilee Celebrations: Benjamin Franklin's Relationship with the Crown

Join us as we celebrate HM The Queen's Platinum Jubilee! Thursday…

Franklin's Young Inventors Science Club: Light

Saturday 16th July 2022 (10:30am-11:30am). Register here. Join…
Benjamin Franklin actor at Franklin's parlour

Virtual Talk: A Day in the Life of Benjamin Franklin

Thursday 7th July 2022 - 5pm BST/12pm ET Join our Education…

Virtual Talk: The Limits of Diplomacy

Join us as Benjamin Franklin House Director, Dr Marcia Balisciano,…
Illustration of Benjamin Franklin playing the armonica.

Franklin's Young Inventors Science Club: Sound

Saturday 21 May, 10:30am-11.30am. Register here to attend in-person. Join…

Family Event: Dress Like a Georgian!

Tuesday 26th July 2022 at (11am-12pm) & (1:30pm-2:30pm) In…

Family Event: Inside Benjamin Franklin's Georgian House!

Tuesday 31st May 2022 - (11am-12pm) & (1:30pm-2:30pm) This…

Georgian Easter Celebration!

Join us for Easter-themed crafts and games. Take part in a special Easter egg hunt inspired by Benjamin Franklin’s inventions and scientific work.

Ben’s Book Club: ‘The Gun, the Ship & the Pen' by Linda Colley

Wednesday May 18 2022, 5pm BST/12pm ET. Register here.   Join…

Ben’s Book Club: ‘Slave Empire’ by Padraic X. Scanlan

Wednesday February 23 2022, 5pm GMT/12pm ET. Register here.   Join…
An image of a Christmas Tree. Text reads Children's Christmas Fair, Wednesday 11 December 2021, 10am-11.30am at Benjamin Franklin House, 36 Craven Street WC2N 5NF. Join us for crafts, music and other festive treats! Below are the logos for Benjamin Franklin House, The William Morris Society, Emery Walker's House and The Newington Green Meeting House.

Family Day: Children's Christmas Fair

We've teamed up with friends from across the heritage world to bring a range of fun festive craft ideas to you this December!

Thanksgiving at Benjamin Franklin House

25 November 2021, 12pm-5pm It’s time to give thanks! Join…
British and French battleships at war at sea during the 7 Years' War. In this view from astern of the action, looking towards the French coast, the ship sinking in the centre is the French Thesee, with Augustus Keppel's Torbay to the right. Between them in the distance de Conflans' Soleil Royal is engaged with Hawke's 'Royal George', right, flying his blue command flag at the mainmast. Another French ship, the Superbe is sinking in the left distance, largely swamped (as was the Thesee) by water coming through her lower gunports.

Live History Class for Kids: The 7 Years' War

Join our virtual history classes on the 2nd Thursday of the month at 4.30pm GMT to learn about to key events in early American history. Together we will uncover the past and develop historical skills!
An historic map of the original 13 colonies on the east coast of America: New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, North Carolina, South Carolina and Delaware

Live History Class for Kids: The Original 13 Colonies

Join our virtual history classes on the 2nd Thursday of the month at 4.30pm GMT to learn about to key events in early American history. Together we will uncover the past and develop historical skills!

Book Launch: 'Washington at the Plow' by Bruce A. Ragsdale

Bruce A. Ragsdale will discuss his book, 'Washington at the Plow: The Founding Farmer and the Question of Slavery' which depicts the “first farmer of America” as a leading practitioner of the New Husbandry, a transatlantic movement that spearheaded advancements in crop rotation. 
Two young girls conduct experiments using an electrical circuit.

Franklin's Young Inventors Science Club: Electricity and Magnetism

Franklin's Young Inventors is our science club for aspiring scientists in Key Stage 3 (ages 11-14). Participants will learn all about the experiments carried out by Benjamin Franklin and his British friends as well as trying their hand at practical investigations.

Ben's Book Club: 'Running from Bondage' by Karen Cook-Bell

Karen Cook-Bell, Associate Professor of History at Bowie State University, will discuss her book, Running from Bondage, recounting the important stories of enslaved women, who comprised one-third of all runaways, and the ways in which they fled, or attempted to flee, bondage during and after the Revolutionary War.

Ben's Book Club: 'Incomparable World' by S I Martin

S I Martin will do a reading and discuss his book Incomparable World which reimagines 1780s London, showcasing the untold stories of African-American soldiers grappling with their post-war freedom.

Robert H Smith Lecture in American Democracy: Justin Webb

Our annual Robert H Smith Lecture in American Democracy will once again be held in partnership with the LSE Department of Government. This year, the lecture will be on the theme of "Is American Democracy Under Threat?" with journalist Justin Webb. 
Headshot of author Dr Lindsay M Chervinsky, smiling at the camera and the cover of her book The Cabinet

Ben's Book Club: 'The Cabinet' by Dr Lindsay M. Chervinsky

Dr Chervinsky, Senior Fellow at the Robert H. Smith International Center for Jefferson Studies, and Professorial Lecturer at the School of Media and Public Affairs, George Washington University, will discuss her book, The Cabinet: George Washington and the Creation of an American Institution, which reveals how George Washington created one of the most powerful bodies in the federal government.  
Members of the Virginia Company landing on the shores of Virginia to establish the Jamestown Colony. British men disembark from a boat and place a flag on American soil, watched by a native American in the foreground.

Live History Class for Kids: The British in America

Join our virtual history classes on the 2nd Thursday of the month at 4.30pm BST to learn about to key events in early American history. Together we will uncover the past and develop historical skills!
A hand-coloured illustration of Theodor de Bry's engraved illustration of the Native American village of Secoton, which accompanied the text of Thomas Hariot's book of 1588 entitled "A Briefe and True Report of the New Found Land of Virginia." Figures are shown hunting with bows and arrows, gathering food from the fields and performing a ritualistic dance in a circle.

Live History Class for Kids: Pre-Colonial America

Join our virtual history classes on the 2nd Thursday of the month at 4.30pm BST to learn about to key events in early American history. Together we will uncover the past and develop historical skills!
A young boy holds up a collage self-portrait

Family Day: Strike a Pose!

Children will become artists for the morning and create their own portraits using sculpture and collage techniques!
A young boy with his mother completing a lino print

Family Day: Print This!

Join us for this fun-filled family day to learn all about 18th Century printing methods and try your hand at some printing of your own!
The logos for Benjamin Franklin House, The Museum of Methodism and John Wesley's House, Emery Walker's House, The William Morris Society and Newington Green Meeting House. A young boy with his lino print

Children's Summer Fete

The annual Children's Summer Fete, with special guests from the world of heritage including Benjamin Franklin House, the Museum of Methodism & John Wesley’s House, Newington Green Meeting House and Arts & Crafts Hammersmith (a collaboration between the Emery Walker Trust and the William Morris Society), offers a range of fun craft activities for families!
Map of the world with arrows from the west coast of Africa to North and South America and into the UK and North-Western Europe

Transatlantic Slavery Symposium

In collaboration with George Washington’s Mount Vernon and Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello, join us for a series of panel discussions on the historical foundations of the Transatlantic Slave Trade, its development in the Revolutionary Atlantic world, and current best practices in the museums and heritage sector.
Book cover of 'The Illimitable Freedom of the Human Mind' featuring portrait of Thomas Jefferson, beside author headshot of Andrew O'Shaugnessy

Ben’s Book Club: Thomas Jefferson’s Idea of a University with Andrew O’Shaughnessy

Andrew O’Shaughnessy will discuss his new book, 'The Illimitable Freedom of the Human Mind: Thomas Jefferson's Idea For A University', a twin biography of Jefferson in retirement and of the University of Virginia in its earliest years.
Skulls on display in a museum. Photo of Dana Goodburn-Brown, an archaeological conservator, holding a tool

Festival of Archaeology for Kids: Bones in the Basement

Join us for this special virtual event to celebrate the Festival of Archaeology!
Andrew Hanson, a scientist, between text 'Reaction time'

Franklin's Young Inventors: 'Reaction Time' with Andrew Hanson

Franklin’s Young Inventors is our weekly science club for aspiring scientists in Key Stage 3 (ages 11-14). For the final session of the school year, we’re delighted to welcome back special guest Andrew Hanson who will show you how to measure your reaction time!
A black and white mezzotint of a philosopher showing an experience on an air pump. The people watching are huddled around the pump in awe of the experiment.

Fulbright Lecture: Spectacle and Social Order in ‘Scientific’ Prints

In this Fulbright talk, Prof. Louise Siddons will take a close look at mezzotints by Valentine Green after Joseph Wright and others, asking how changing audiences affected the interpretation of the imagery in his prints.
Women and children operating textile machinery. The machines were connected via belts to a steam engine which provided the power.

Live History Class for Kids: Georgian Work and Industry

Join our virtual history classes on the 2nd and 4th Thursday of the month at 4:30pm BST to learn about key aspects of the Georgian period, when Benjamin Franklin was living in London. Together we will uncover the past and develop historical skills!
Painting of William Pitt addressing the House of Commons on the outbreak of war with Austria in 1793. He stands in the centre speaking to a crowded room of richly dressed white men in Georgian white powdered wigs. The room is expensively decorated with gold columns and chandelier.

Live History Class for Kids: Georgian Politics and Government

Join our virtual history classes on the 2nd and 4th Thursday of the month at 4:30pm BST to learn about key aspects of the Georgian period, when Benjamin Franklin was living in London. Together we will uncover the past and develop historical skills!
Paintings of an exhibition at the Royal Academy and a book shop in the 18th century. In the first painting, a crowd of Georgian people look at the paintings, filling every inch of the high walls. In the second painting, people talk to each other and look at books on the shelves, so high there are ladders leaning against the stacks.

Live History Class: Georgian Art and Literature

Join our virtual history classes on the 2nd and 4th Thursday of the month at 4:30pm BST to learn about key aspects of the Georgian period, when Benjamin Franklin was living in London. Together we will uncover the past and develop historical skills!
Illustration of Benjamin Franklin playing the harpsicord. Franklin wears gold breeches and waistcoat and red overcoat, with lots of buttons and braiding. It is very colourful and the background is a psychedelic pattern of green and purple stripes.

Live History Class: Discover Georgian Music

Join this special half term edition of our virtual history classes series all about music in the 18th century! In these classes, we learn about key aspects of the Georgian period, when Benjamin Franklin was living in London. Together we will uncover the past and develop historical skills!
A photograph of Benjamin Franklin House and a drawing of typical Georgian facades.

Live History Class: Georgian Buildings and Architecture

Join our virtual history classes on the 2nd and 4th Thursday of the month at 4:30pm BST to learn about key aspects of the Georgian period, when Benjamin Franklin was living in London. Together we will uncover the past and develop historical skills!
Illustration of Benjamin Franklin playing the glass armonica and photograph of Dan Plan from the Royal Institution completing a science demo.

Science on Stage

Science on Stage is a science enrichment event for upper Key Stage 2, run jointly by Benjamin Franklin House and The Royal Institution. During this year's online event, students will learn all about Benjamin Franklin, the science of sound and the invention of the glass armonica. They will be awe-struck by electrical demonstrations, as they find out how scientists at the Ri have contributed to our understanding of electricity.
Portrait of Benjamin Franklin, looking off into the distance in a gold frame

Franklin in Portraits: Charles Willson Peale and His Museum

Karie Diethorn, Senior Curator and Chief of Museum Branch of the Independence National Historical Park in Philadelphia, will discuss with Dr George Boudreau the significance of this portrait and the Peale Museum.
Book cover of the The Howe Dynasty: The Untold Story of a Military Family and the Women Behind Britain's Wars for America, beside headshot photo of author Julie Flavell

Digital Book Launch: The Howe Dynasty by Julie Flavell

Join us for a very special digital book launch and Q&A with Julie Flavell to celebrate her newest book The Howe Dynasty: The Untold Story of a Military Family and the Women Behind Britain's Wars for America.  
A series of black and white scientific line drawings of parts of the face, eyes and noses, surrounded by various historic medical tools.⁠

Live History Class: Georgian Health and Medicine

Join our virtual history classes on the 2nd and 4th Thursday of the month at 4:30pm BST to learn about key aspects of the Georgian period, when Benjamin Franklin was living in London. Together we will uncover the past and develop historical skills!
The Schoolmaster's Return (1825, etching) which shows a class of schoolboys misbehaving and the schoolmaster coming through the door.

Live History Class for Kids: Education and Etiquette

Join our virtual history classes on the 2nd and 4th Thursday of the month at 4:30pm BST to learn about key aspects of the Georgian period, when Benjamin Franklin was living in London. Together we will uncover the past and develop historical skills!
First page of Stewart v. Graham 1782 "The Petition of Lieutenant William Stewart, of the Impressive-Service at Greenock"

Virtual Talk: The Trials of James Graham in the Revolutionary Atlantic World

Dr. James P. Ambuske, Digital History at George Washington’s Mount Vernon and co-director of the Scottish Court of Session Digital Archive Project at the University of Virginia Law Library, will discuss Graham’s journey from slavery to freedom and the questions that his case raised in an increasingly complicated revolutionary world.
Georgian ceramic vase, white with blue floral design on. Photo of Newington Green Meeting House, a one-storey church building with park at the front

Live History Class: Discover Georgian Ceramics

For this special holiday edition of our virtual history class series, we are delighted to welcome Anya Naumovic from the Newington Green Meeting House to introduce us to 18th century ceramics and show us how to make our own pinch pots!  
Child smiling at the camera while wearing a homemade purple and blue Easter bonnet with two fluffy yellow chickens on and a ribbon

Live History Class: Georgian Easter Celebration

Join us for this special Easter edition of our virtual history class series. During these sessions, we explore key aspects of the Georgian period, when Benjamin Franklin was living in London.
Portrait of Benjamin Franklin by David Martin, reading a paper, wearing a powdered wig

Franklin in Portraits: Charles Willson Peale after David Martin

To celebrate the launch of our virtual exhibition, Franklin in Portraits, join us for a series of talks about Benjamin Franklin’s most famous portraits. We continue our series with a discussion on the differences between two versions of the same portrait: Benjamin Franklin by David Martin and the copy made by Charles Willson Peale in 1785, given to the American Philosophical Society.
A portrait of Benjamin Franklin by Duplessis 1778

House Talk: Benjamin Franklin and the Art of Diplomacy by Dr Márcia Balisciano

Printer, philosopher, author, scientist and inventor are among the guises of the famous Dr. Franklin. But Benjamin Franklin House Director, Dr. Márcia Balisciano, will argue his role as a diplomat was among his most important and lasting contributions.
Polly Hewson's portrait

House Talk: The Life of Polly Hewson

Discover this little-known, yet important figure in Franklin’s life, the daughter of Benjamin Franklin’s landlady at 36 Craven Street.
The famous portrait of Benjamin Franklin carrying out the kite and key experiment

Benjamin Franklin and the Lightning Rod

To celebrate the anniversary of Benjamin Franklin’s famous kite and key experiment, join us in partnership with Christ Church Philadelphia, for a transatlantic panel discussion on the lightning rod and why it was one of the greatest inventions of the 18th century.  
Sarah Pomeroy and book cover of 'Benjamin Franklin, Swimmer'

Virtual Talk: Sarah Pomeroy, Children's Author in Residence

Join us for a presentation by our inaugural Lady Joan Reid Children’s Author in Residence, Professor Sarah B. Pomeroy, who will discuss her book, Benjamin Franklin, Swimmer.
The famous portrait of Benjamin Franklin carrying out the kite and key experiment

Franklin in Portraits: Benjamin West

To accompany our virtual exhibition, Franklin in Portraits, join us for the second in a series of talks about Benjamin Franklin’s most famous portraits over the years.
A drawing of a man with text 'I am, Sir, Your Humble Servant, SILENCE DOGOOD'

House Talk: The Story Behind Benjamin Franklin’s Infamous Pen Name, Silence Dogood

Join Education Manager, Eleanor Hamblen, for an exploration of the works of a young Benjamin Franklin's adopted persona: elderly widow Silence Dogood! 
Text 'give me a second' and clock

Franklin's Young Inventors: 'Give me a second' with Andrew Hanson

Franklin’s Young Inventors is our weekly science club for aspiring scientists in Key Stage 3 (ages 11-14). This week we’re delighted to welcome special guest Andrew Hanson who will show you how to make a time recording machine!
A Ben of All Trades book cover and author photo of Michael J Rosen

Ben's Book Club Family Edition: 'A Ben of All Trades' by Michael J. Rosen

Join us for the August installment of Ben’s Book Club, a monthly virtual gathering looking at themes relating to Benjamin Franklin, the 18th century, and American history. In this month’s special family edition of Ben’s Book Club, we will be talking to Michael J. Rosen about his book, ‘A Ben of All Trades: The Most Inventive Boyhood of Benjamin Franklin’. This rousing biography, illustrated by Matt Tavares, reveals how Benjamin Franklin’s boyhood shaped his amazingly multifaceted life. 
Portrait of Benjamin Franklin as a young man

Franklin in Portraits: Robert Feke

To celebrate the launch of our virtual exhibition, Franklin in Portraits, join us for the first in a series of talks about Benjamin Franklin’s most famous portraits over the years.
The book cover beside author photo.

Ben's Book Club: ‘Thomas Paine and the Clarion Call for American Independence' by Harlow Giles Unger

Join us for the June instalment of Ben’s Book Club, a monthly virtual gathering looking at themes relating to Benjamin Franklin, the 18th century, and American history. This month we will be talking to Harlow Giles Unger about his book ‘Thomas Paine and the Clarion Call for American Independence’, which chronicles how Thomas Paine became the most widely read political writer of his generation.
The book cover of 'Past and Prologue' beside the author photo of Michael D Hattem

Ben’s Book Club: ‘Past and Prologue’ by Michael D. Hattem

Join us for the July instalment of Ben’s Book Club, a monthly virtual gathering looking at themes relating to Benjamin Franklin, the 18th century, and American history.  This month we will be talking to Michael D. Hattem about his book, ‘Past and Prologue: Politics and Memory in the American Revolution’ which illustrates how colonists’ changing understandings of their British and colonial histories shaped the politics of the American Revolution and the origins of American national identity. 
Fanny Burney book cover and Kate Chisholm author photo

Ben's Book Club: 'Fanny Burney: her life' by Kate Chisholm

Join us for the May instalment of Ben’s Book Club, a monthly virtual gathering looking at themes relating to Benjamin Franklin, the 18th century, and American history. This month we will be talking to Kate Chisholm about her book ‘Fanny Burney: her life’, which tells the story of Fanny Burney, who is best known for her book Evelina, one of the most engaging novels of the eighteenth century. Over the course of her long life, she was also an incomparable diarist, witnessing both the madness of George III and the young Queen Victoria's coronation.  
White Fury book cover beside Christer Petley author photo

Ben's Book Club: 'White Fury' by Christer Petley

Join us for the April instalment of Ben’s Book Club, a monthly virtual gathering looking at themes relating to Benjamin Franklin, the 18th century, and American history. This month we will be talking to Christer Petley about his book ‘White Fury’, which tells the story of sugar planter Simon Taylor, one of the wealthiest and most influential slaveholders of the eighteenth-century British empire.
Georgian London Into the Streets book cover beside Lucy Inglis author photo

Ben's Book Club: ‘Georgian London: Into the Streets’ by Lucy Inglis

Join us for the March instalment of Ben’s Book Club, a monthly virtual gathering looking at themes relating to Benjamin Franklin, the 18th century, and American history. This month we will be talking to Lucy Inglis about her book ‘Georgian London: Into the Streets’, which takes readers on a tour of London's most formative age - the age of love, sex, intellect, art, great ambition and fantastic ruin.
John Wesley's House exterior and interior room, a furnished Georgian room

Live History Class for Kids: Discover the Georgian Home with John Wesley's House

For this special half term edition of our Live History Class series, we're delighted to welcome Gemma Smith to transport us back to Georgian times with a virtual tour of John Wesley's House!
The pillory at Charing Cross - engraving of a crowd watching a public punishment

Live History Class for Kids: Crime and Punishment

Join our virtual history classes on the 2nd and 4th Thursday of the month at 3pm GMT to learn about key aspects of the Georgian period, when Benjamin Franklin was living in London. Together we will uncover the past and develop historical skills!
A View of the Rotunda House & Gardens at Ranelagh - people dancing around a maypole

Live History Class for Kids: Georgian Fun and Games

Join our virtual history classes on the 2nd and 4th Thursday of the month at 3pm GMT to learn about key aspects of the Georgian period, when Benjamin Franklin was living in London. Together we will uncover the past and develop historical skills!
Regency drawing of family eating at a table

Live History Class for Kids: Georgian Food and Drink

Join our virtual history classes on the 2nd and 4th Thursday of the month at 3pm GMT to learn about key aspects of the Georgian period, when Benjamin Franklin was living in London. Together we will uncover the past and develop historical skills!
Georgian family portrait with three children, mother and father

Live History Class for Kids: Georgian Children and Families

Join our virtual history classes on the 2nd and 4th Thursday of the month at 3pm GMT to learn about key aspects of the Georgian period, when Benjamin Franklin was living in London. Together we will uncover the past and develop historical skills!
Regency people viewing the Royal Academy art on the walls

Live History Class for Kids: Georgian Society and Class

Join our virtual history classes on the 2nd and 4th Thursday of the month at 3pm GMT to learn about key aspects of the Georgian period, when Benjamin Franklin was living in London. Together we will uncover the past and develop historical skills!
Georgian Kings

Live History Class for Kids: Georgian Kings and Queens

Join our virtual history classes on the 2nd and 4th Thursday of the month at 3pm GMT to learn about key aspects of the Georgian period, when Benjamin Franklin was living in London. Together we will uncover the past and develop historical skills!
Tacky's Revolt book cover beside author photo of Vincent Brown

Ben's Book Club: 'Tacky's Revolt' by Vincent Brown

Join us for the February instalment of Ben’s Book Club, a monthly virtual gathering looking at themes relating to Benjamin Franklin, the 18th century, and American history. This month we will be talking to Vincent Brown about his book ‘Tacky’s Revolt: The Story of an Atlantic Slave War’, a gripping account of the largest slave revolt in the eighteenth-century British Atlantic world, an uprising that laid bare the interconnectedness of Europe, Africa, and America, shook the foundations of empire, and reshaped ideas of race and popular belonging.
The Fortunes of Francis Barber book cover beside author cover of Michael Bundock

Ben's Book Club: 'The Fortunes of Francis Barber' by Michael Bundock

Join us for the January instalment of Ben’s Book Club, a monthly virtual gathering looking at themes relating to Benjamin Franklin, the 18th century, and American history. This month we will be talking to Michael Bundock about his compelling narrative, ‘The Fortunes of Francis Barber: The story of the Jamaican slave who became Samuel Johnson’s heir’, which chronicles a young boy's journey from the horrors of Jamaican slavery to the heart of London's literary world, and reveals the unlikely friendship that changed his life.
Screenshot of how to make a paper origami crane

Virtual Children's Christmas Fair: Leighton House Museum

We've teamed up with our friends from across the heritage world to bring a range of fun festive craft ideas to you this December!
Homemade angels made with craft papers and cardboard

Virtual Children's Christmas Fair: Arts and Crafts Hammersmith

We've teamed up with our friends from across the heritage world to bring a range of fun festive craft ideas to you this December!
Christmas wreath crafts in Franklin's parlour, decorated for Christmas

Virtual Children's Christmas Fair: Benjamin Franklin House

We've teamed up with our friends from across the heritage world to bring a range of fun festive craft ideas to you this December!
Angel craft made of paper plate

Virtual Children's Christmas Fair: John Wesley's House

We’ve teamed up with friends from across the heritage world again to bring a range of fun festive craft ideas to you this December!
Snow globe in a jar

Virtual Children's Christmas Fair: Newington Green Meeting House

We’ve teamed up with friends from across the heritage world again to bring a range of fun festive craft ideas to you this December!
Virtual Children's Christmas Fair with logos of participants and cartoon Christmas tree

Virtual Children's Christmas Fair

We've teamed up with our friends from across the heritage world to bring a range of fun festive craft ideas to you this December!
Man performing a science experiment with smoke shooting out of a beaker

Franklin's Young Inventors: Special Guest

Franklin's Young Inventors is our weekly science club for aspiring scientists in Key Stage 3 (ages 11-14). This autumn we are delivering our science club virtually via Zoom on Tuesdays at 4.30pm GMT or Saturdays at 11.30am GMT throughout term time. Participants will learn all about the experiments carried out by Benjamin Franklin and his British friends as well as trying their hand at practical investigations. This week we're delighted to welcome a very special guest, Hamid the Supersonic Science Professor, who will deliver his amazing Bubble Science show!
Happy Thanksgiving graphic with pumpkins and autumnal leaves

Thanksgiving Quiz

Join us for a fun virtual America-themed quiz for Thanksgiving!  Enter as an individual or a team. Winners will receive exclusive Benjamin Franklin House treats.  All proceeds will go toward advancing our mission to bring history and innovation to life at the only surviving Franklin home.
Child holding up pumpkin face craft on paper plate

Virtual Family Day: Halloween at Benjamin Franklin House

Join our virtual family day this half term to learn about the history of Hallowe'en, hear a spooky tale and find out how to make some ghoulishly good decorations. 
Book cover of Christmas Traditions beside author photo of George Goodwin

Ben's Book Club: 'Christmas Traditions' by George Goodwin

Join us for the December instalment of Ben’s Book Club, a monthly virtual gathering looking at themes relating to Benjamin Franklin, the 18th century, and American history. This month we will be taking a festive break by talking to George Goodwin, our Author in Residence, about his book Christmas Traditions, an entertaining and enlightening guide to the sacred and secular traditions of Christmas, with many of the latter being 19th-century Anglo-American creations that owe much to Washington Irving and Charles Dickens.
Democrats and Republicans Abroad logos

US Presidential Debate 2020

US Presidential Debate with representatives from Republicans Overseas and Democrats Abroad and moderator, veteran pollster, Sir Robert Worcester    In association with the Eccles Centre for American Studies at the British Library
George Goodwin and 'Washington, Franklin and the British' talk graphic

Washington, Franklin, and the British

In our second partnership event with the George Washington Library at Mount Vernon, Library Director Dr Kevin Butterfield will be in conversation with our Author in Residence, George Goodwin (author of Benjamin Franklin in London). On the day, visit the George Washington's Mount Vernon Livestream Events page or our social media pages to tune in live.
muscles diagram

Franklin's Young Inventors Science Club: Muscles

Franklin's Young Inventors is our science club for aspiring scientists in Key Stage 3 (ages 11-14). Participants will learn all about the experiments carried out by Benjamin Franklin and his British friends as well as trying their hand at practical investigations.
model skeleton

Franklin's Young Inventors Science Club: Skeleton

Franklin's Young Inventors is our science club for aspiring scientists in Key Stage 3 (ages 11-14). Participants will learn all about the experiments carried out by Benjamin Franklin and his British friends as well as trying their hand at practical investigations.
child gluing pictures onto food plate sheet

Franklin's Young Inventors Science Club: Balanced Diet

Franklin's Young Inventors is our science club for aspiring scientists in Key Stage 3 (ages 11-14). Participants will learn all about the experiments carried out by Benjamin Franklin and his British friends as well as trying their hand at practical investigations.

CANCELLED - Franklin's Young Inventors Science Club: Sound

Franklin's Young Inventors is our science club for aspiring scientists in Key Stage 3 (ages 11-14). Participants will learn all about the experiments carried out by Benjamin Franklin and his British friends as well as trying their hand at practical investigations.

Franklin's Young Inventors Science Club: Forces

Franklin's Young Inventors is our science club for aspiring scientists in Key Stage 3 (ages 11-14). Participants will learn all about the experiments carried out by Benjamin Franklin and his British friends as well as trying their hand at practical investigations.
Children watching science experiment with tank full of red dye

Franklin's Young Inventors Science Club: Energy Transfer

Franklin's Young Inventors is our science club for aspiring scientists in Key Stage 3 (ages 11-14). Participants will learn all about the experiments carried out by Benjamin Franklin and his British friends as well as trying their hand at practical investigations.
Scientist lighting a match underneath a test tube of liquid

Franklin's Young Inventors Science Club: Fuels and Costs

Franklin's Young Inventors is our science club for aspiring scientists in Key Stage 3 (ages 11-14). Participants will learn all about the experiments carried out by Benjamin Franklin and his British friends as well as trying their hand at practical investigations.
Plant in jar of water lit from behind

Franklin's Young Inventors Science Club: Photosynthesis

Franklin's Young Inventors is our science club for aspiring scientists in Key Stage 3 (ages 11-14). Participants will learn all about the experiments carried out by Benjamin Franklin and his British friends as well as trying their hand at practical investigations.
Children's work showing parts of a flower

Franklin's Young Inventors Science Club: Pollination

Franklin's Young Inventors is our science club for aspiring scientists in Key Stage 3 (ages 11-14). Participants will learn all about the experiments carried out by Benjamin Franklin and his British friends as well as trying their hand at practical investigations.
Mini Tesla coil being fired with blue lightning

Franklin's Young Inventors Science Club: Electric Current

Franklin's Young Inventors is our science club for aspiring scientists in Key Stage 3 (ages 11-14). Participants will learn all about the experiments carried out by Benjamin Franklin and his British friends as well as trying their hand at practical investigations.
Ganong's potometer

Franklin's Young Inventors Science Club: Static Electricity

Franklin's Young Inventors is our science club for aspiring scientists in Key Stage 3 (ages 11-14). Participants will learn all about the experiments carried out by Benjamin Franklin and his British friends as well as trying their hand at practical investigations.
Lord Falconer photo

Robert H Smith Family Foundation Lecture in American Democracy - Democracy and the Supreme Court: judges and the politicians

Join us for the annual Robert H Smith Family Foundation lecture in American Democracy which aims to promote the importance of international diplomacy and democracy in the spirit of Benjamin Franklin as a diplomat and politician. This year, our virtual event, hosted in partnership with the LSE Department of Government, will discuss 'Democracy and the Supreme Court: judges and the politicians' with Lord Charles Falconer
Edward J. Larson photo

Franklin & Washington: Edward J. Larson in conversation with Dr. Márcia Balisciano

During their lifetimes and in the years since, Benjamin Franklin and George Washington have been the subject of great literary interest. Yet each has typically been a minor player in the chronicles of the other – until now.
The Knife Man book cover beside author photo of Wendy Moore

Ben's Book Club: 'The Knife Man' by Wendy Moore

Join us for the October installment of Ben’s Book Club, a monthly virtual gathering looking at themes ​related to Benjamin Franklin, the 18th ​century, and American ​history. This month we will be talking to Wendy Moore about her first book 'The Knife Man', a fascinating biography of the John Hunter. This celebrated anatomist trained Dr William Hewson, a fellow resident of 36 Craven Street during Benjamin Franklin's stay who ran a private anatomy school from the garden.
A World On Fire book cover beside Amanda Foreman author photo

Ben's Book Club: 'A World on Fire' by Amanda Foreman

Join us for the November installment of Ben’s Book Club, a monthly virtual gathering looking at themes ​related to Benjamin Franklin, the 18th ​century, and American ​history. This month we will be talking to Dr Amanda Foreman about her brilliant narrative, 'A World on Fire', in which she tells the fascinating story of the American Civil War--and the major role played by Britain and its citizens in that epic struggle.
A portrait of Franklin

Ben's Book Club: Benjamin Franklin’s Autobiography with Dr George Boudreau

Join us for our first edition of Ben’s Book Club, a monthly virtual gathering looking at themes ​related to Benjamin Franklin, the 18th ​century, and American ​history. This month we will be exploring Benjamin Franklin’s Autobiography with the help of Dr George Boudreau, public historian and Benjamin Franklin expert.
Queue of people on the street outside Benjamin Franklin House

(SOLD OUT) Open House London, Saturday 19 & Sunday 20 September

Open House London is the capital’s largest annual festival…
Children looking at a plant in a beaker of water for a science experiment

Family Day: Watch it Grow!

Benjamin Franklin was a keen botanist and frequently exchanged seeds with other scientists. Join us to learn about what plants need to grow and decorate your own plant pot to take away!
Polly, a woman in a Georgian silk dress, leaning over the desk in Franklin's parlour

Family Day: Dress Like a Georgian!

Join Polly Hewson, a character from Franklin’s household, to learn about Georgian dress and etiquette. Design your own period outfits for Franklin and his fashionable friends in London!
Model skeleton in the Student Science Centre

Family Day: Hewson's School of Anatomy

Find out about Dr. William Hewson who ran an anatomy school at 36 Craven Street during Franklin’s stay in London!
Benjamin Franklin and son William flying a kite

Family Day: Up, up and away!

Follow in Franklin's scientific footsteps and join us to carry out investigations into the forces which affect flight!
Virtual Children's Summer Fete poster with logos of participants

Virtual Children's Summer Fete 2020

Although we're not able to hold the annual Benjamin Franklin House Children's Summer Fete this year, we've still teamed up with our friends from across the heritage world to bring a range of fun craft ideas to you virtually!
Newington Green Meeting House logo

Virtual Children's Summer Fete: Newington Green Meeting House

Mary Wollstonecraft was just one of the revolutionary figures who visited the Newington Green Meeting House. Find out more about their craftivism series this summer and create your own protest banner!
Leighton House Museum logo

Virtual Children's Summer Fete: Leighton House Museum

Leighton House was the magical home of celebrated Victorian artist Frederic, Lord Leighton. He was inspired by the myths of Ancient Greece and Rome. Follow in his footsteps, and make and create in response to these great tales!
Emery Walker's House and The William Morris Society logos

Virtual Children's Summer Fete: Arts & Crafts Hammersmith (a partnership between Emery Walker's House and the William Morris Society)

William Morris and Emery Walker were good friends and members of the Arts and Crafts movement. Their houses are a few streets away from each other in Hammersmith. Find out how to create your own mobile and sunflower inspired by their designs!
The Museum of Methodism & John Wesley's House logo

Virtual Children's Summer Fete: John Wesley's House

Gemma from the Museum of Methodism and John Wesley's House will be showing us how to make a rattle drum!
BFH logo

Virtual Children's Summer Fete: Benjamin Franklin House

Did you know that Benjamin Franklin started out as a printer? Find out how to create your own simple monoprint!
Votes for Women poster

Virtual Talk: American Sheet Music at the British Library

Wednesday July 29th, 3pm London/10am New York In this talk, Eccles librarian Jean Petrovic will share American Sheet Music items held at the British Library and explore their importance,
Portrait of Benjamin Franklin by Peale

Virtual Talk: Benjamin Franklin and Black Lives Matter

House Director, Dr. Márcia Balisciano, will explain how Franklin became the American founder who campaigned against slavery, spending his last days as the President of the Pennsylvania Society for Promoting the Abolition of Slavery.
Benjamin Franklin bust with party hat on and red and blue balloons

American Independence Day Tours

Join us for a special reopening celebration of Independence Day at Benjamin Franklin House and enjoy a tour of the world’s only remaining Franklin home!
Franklin's desk in parlour

We've Reopened!

We are excited to announce that following new UK government guidelines on museums and galleries, Benjamin Franklin House will be reopening to the public.
Diagram of the orbits of planets in the solar system

Live Science Class for Kids: Ben Franklin and the Solar System

Join our series of weekly virtual classes to learn how Ben Franklin’s inventions and scientific discoveries illuminate the national curriculum! You can recreate all the featured science demonstrations at home using household materials.
Volcano eruption with plume of smoke rising above an island and the sea

Live Science Class for Kids: Ben Franklin and Volcanoes

Join our series of weekly virtual classes to learn how Ben Franklin’s inventions and scientific discoveries illuminate the national curriculum! You can recreate all the featured science demonstrations at home using household materials.
Table of numbers and figures handwritten in cursive

Virtual Talk - True Grid: François-Marc-Louis Naville and his moral tables

Harro Maas, professor in history and methodology of economics at the Centre Walras-Pareto for the history of economic and political thought at the University of Lausanne,  will use these words from the diary of François-Marc-Louis Naville, a turn-of-the nineteenth-century Genevese pastor and pedagogical innovator, as a cue to examine his use of Benjamin Franklin’s tools of moral calculation and a lesser known tool, Marc-Antoine Jullien’s moral thermometer, to improve his moral character.
A portrait of Franklin

Live History Class for Kids: Collaboration with the New York Historical Society

We are delighted to be collaborating with the New York Historical Society on a special installment of their History @ Home series to uncover the many different faces of Benjamin Franklin.
Painting beside exterior of John Wesley's House

Live Science Class for Kids: Guest Presenter from John Wesley's House

We are very exciting to welcome a guest presenter from The Museum of Methodism & John Wesley's House for this week’s installment of our weekly virtual science classes. You can recreate the featured demonstration at home using household materials.
Exterior of Newington Green Meeting House beside painting of man

Live Science Class for Kids: Guest Presenter from Newington Green Meeting House

We are very exciting to welcome a guest presenter from Newington Green Meeting House for this week's installment of our weekly virtual science classes. You can recreate the featured demonstration at home using household materials.
Painting of men at a card table

Virtual Talk: Fuelling Democracy - Ben Franklin and Coffee Houses

Join us for a talk by Caitlin Hoffman, Operations Manager, on how Benjamin Franklin used the stimulating environment of coffee houses to help shape his early political ideals. These public and social establishments were centres of the 18th century Enlightenment and provided a foundation of early American politics.
Benjamin Franklin's red Moroccan wallet

Virtual Talk: The Rise of the Private Banker in Franklin's London

Dr Perry Gauci, Tutor in Modern History at Lincoln College, Oxford…
Rory Sutherland

Virtual Talk: The value of being luckily wrong

There is only so much we understand. There is only so much we make sense of in advance. Are we spending too much time trying to be right, and too little time simply maximising our chances of getting lucky. Join Rory Sutherland, Vice Chairman of Ogilvy UK and Board Member of Benjamin Franklin House, for this fascinating talk.
Diagram of a long arm

Live Science Class: Ben Franklin's Long Arm

Join our series of weekly virtual classes to learn how Ben Franklin’s inventions and scientific discoveries illuminate the national curriculum! You can recreate all the featured science demonstrations at home using household materials.
Sky with clouds

Live Science Class: Ben Franklin and Storm Clouds

Join our series of weekly virtual classes to learn how Ben Franklin’s inventions and scientific discoveries illuminate the national curriculum! You can recreate all the featured science demonstrations at home using household materials.
Northern Lights in the sky

Live Science Class for Kids: Ben Franklin and the Northern Lights

Join our series of weekly virtual classes to learn how Ben Franklin’s inventions and scientific discoveries illuminate the national curriculum! You can recreate all the featured science demonstrations at home using household materials.
Starlite Motel photo from the 1960s

Virtual Talk: The Motel in America

Join Dr. Cara Rodway for this talk exploring the early development of a distinctly American form of lodging, the motel. A child of the automobile age, the 'motor hotel' first flourished during the Depression and experienced its heyday after World War Two.
Painting of the war of 1812

Virtual Talk: ‘A Mere Matter of Marching’?: The War of 1812, The Battle of Queenston Heights

Mallory Horrill, PhD student at University College London, Institute of the Americas and House Manager and Curator of the Emery Walker Trust will be speaking on the Battle of Queenston Heights, a seminal battle in the War of 1812.
Painting of Thomas Paine

Virtual Talk: The Story of Thomas Paine by Paul Myles

Paul Myles will speak on the story of Thomas Paine and how he became a prominent figure in the American Revolution. To join directly on Wednesday June 3rd at 10am EST/ 3pm BST, please find the Zoom link and password below: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89871081800?pwd=WDc1NllJMmVPL0h1c21ETndxV2VyUT09 Password: Paine
Exteriors of Benjamin Franklin House, Newington Green Meeting House, and John Wesley's House

'Changing the World' Writing Resources for KS2-3: Webinar for Teachers and Home Educators

This webinar will introduce teachers and home educators to writing resources for KS2-3 which were created in partnership by Benjamin Franklin House, Newington Green Meeting House and the Museum of Methodism & John Wesley's House.
A portrait of Benjamin Franklin by Duplessis 1778

His Final Chapter: Benjamin Franklin's Busy Final Five Years

In this lecture, Dr. George Boudreau will explore Dr. Franklin's last years, a sometimes overlooked, but essential part of the great man's life.  To join the talk directly on Wednesday May 20th at 5.00pm GMT/12.00pm EST follow the zoom link here: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83777285418
Exterior of Benjamin Franklin House

Virtual Talks Available Online!

Find out about upcoming virtual events hosted by Benjamin Franklin House. If you missed one of our past events, they are available on demand on their respective event pages and through our YouTube channel.
Historical map of the Atlantic Ocean

Live Science Class for Kids: Ben Franklin and the Gulf Stream

Did you know that Ben Franklin crossed the Atlantic 8 times in his life? He kept busy on these long journeys by charting the Gulf Stream. Join this virtual class for KS3 (US Grades 6-8) to learn more about this ocean current and why it is so important to our climate today, developing an understanding of Sustainable Development Goal 13: climate action and Sustainable Development Goal 14: life below water. Create your own convection current at home!
Swimming fins

Live Science Class for Kids: Ben Franklin's Swim Fins

Did you know that Ben Franklin was a keen swimmer as a young man? Join this virtual class for KS2-3 (US Grades 2-8) to learn how he used his knowledge of water and air dynamics to create devices to help him swim more quickly. Build on this understanding to create paper boats and race them!
Franklin stove in a fireplace

Live Science Class for Kids: Ben Franklin's Fuel-efficient Stove

Did you know Ben Franklin was an environmentalist ahead of his time? Ben discouraged waste and even designed a special stove to save fuel. Join this virtual class for KS3 (US Grades 6-8) how we are following in his footsteps today by developing renewable energy sources and working towards Sustainable Development Goal 7: affordable and clean energy. Create your own anemometer to measure wind speed!
Bifocals left on an open book

Live Science Class for Kids: Ben Franklin's Bifocals

Have you ever wondered how glasses work? Join this virtual class for KS2-3 (US Grades 2-8) to learn how light helps us to see and how Ben made one of the first pairs of bifocal glasses. Use the science of refraction to carry out magic tricks!
Illustration of Benjamin Franklin playing the armonica

Live Science Class for Kids: Ben Franklin's Glass Armonica

Did you know that Ben Franklin invented a musical instrument called the glass armonica? Join this virtual class for KS2-3 (US Grades 2-8) to uncover his process of invention and how he harnessed the science of sound to play mesmerising music. Try making your own music with glasses and by creating a musical instrument!
Illustration of Benjamin Franklin in a storm with lightning

Live Science Class for Kids: Ben Franklin's Lightning Rod

Did you know that Ben Franklin was one of the fathers of electricity? Join this virtual class for KS2-3 (US Grades 2-8) to learn about Ben’s famous kite and key experiment and how this led to the invention of the lightning rod. Then try your hand at some practical activities to explore static electricity!
Book cover of Benjamin Franklin in London

Virtual Talk: Benjamin Franklin in London - the British life of America's Founding Father

George Goodwin, our Honorary Author in Residence at Benjamin Franklin House, captures the fullness of Dr Franklin’s life in the heaving metropolis of 18th century London. He describes Franklin’s friendship with men such as Joseph Priestley and the notorious Francis Dashwood, charts Franklin’s political cooperation with Prime Ministers William Pitt the Elder and the Marquess of Rockingham, and details the final antagonism with the ‘mangling ministers’ in Lord North’s administration which ultimately made Franklin the fiercest of American patriots. In a highly illustrated talk, George tells Benjamin Franklin’s London story with wit and verve.
Selection of badges and buttons from election campaigns

Virtual Talk: Reflecting on the US Primaries

Philip Davies, Professor Emeritus of American Studies, De Montfort University, discusses what the primary season holds and reflects on the months since the opening contests in Iowa and New Hampshire.
Stamp of Benjamin Franklin

Virtual Talk: What Would Benjamin Franklin Think About Facebook?

Amy Werbel, Fulbright Scholar to the United Kingdom and Professor at the State University of New York-Fashion Institute of Technology, ponders how the prospect of greater censorship of social media, Franklin’s experiences and views, shed necessary light on our best path forward in tumultuous times.
Painting of Georgian men at a dinner

Virtual Talk: Franklin and the Joys of 18th Century Cooking

Join the House’s Operations Manager, Caitlin Hoffman, in exploring the savoury (and unsavoury!) 18th Century diet and how Benjamin Franklin might be considered an early foodie. Discover why the Georgians drank beer in the morning and how Franklin introduced some of his favourite foods from the colonies to his London hosts. To join directly on Wednesday May 6th at 3pm GMT/10am EST use the Zoom Link below: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/958544403
Portrait of Benjamin Franklin as a young man

Virtual Talk: Benjamin Franklin, The Early Years

Join the House’s Education Manager, Eleanor Hamblen, for an…
Photo of woman and man at WWI military hospital

Virtual Talk: Endell Street - The trailblazing women who ran a military hospital in WWI

Join author and journalist Wendy Moore, who acts as a judge for the Benjamin Franklin House Literary Prize, as she discusses her latest book, Endell Street (published in the US as No Man's Land). This military hospital was run entirely by women and played a key role in the treatment of injured British soldiers during World War One. It was situated just minutes away from Franklin’s former home on Craven Street.
Siffred portrait of Benjamin Franklin

Virtual Talk: Character virtues for the 21st century?

Benjamin Franklin in the 18th century had an abiding faith in the power of good character to improve quality of life for an individual and society at large. As a young man, Benjamin Franklin identified 13 character virtues.  What were they?  Did they improve his character and are they instructive for ours?  Join (founding) Benjamin Franklin House Director, Dr. Márcia Balisciano, for a fun and informative talk with virtual Q&A.
Children on stairs at Benjamin Franklin House

Temporary Closure of Benjamin Franklin House

Our priority is protecting our visitors, staff, volunteers - and of course our precious, historic building.  To do our part to discourage the spread of the COVID-19 virus, we will be closing Benjamin Franklin House for all offerings effective Tuesday, 17 March 2020.
Polymath Festival logo

Polymath Festival with Benjamin Franklin House

As part of the Polymath Festival, Benjamin Franklin House stages a virtual immersive tour of the world's only remaining home of Benjamin Franklin to tell the rich story of Benjamin Franklin’s 16 polymathic years in London.
Holiday fair poster

Holiday Fair

Wednesday, 11 December 2019, 12pm - 5pm Join us for an afternoon of festive cheer with beautiful gifts and mulled wine at the world's only surviving Franklin home. Entry £3
Irina Bokova

2019 Robert H Smith Lecture in Democracy: Why Heritage Matters?

Tuesday 22 October, 7.15pm - 8:30pm Delivering the 2019 Robert H Smith Lecture in Democracy, Irina Bokova, former Director-General of UNESCO, explores how issues of education for all, gender equality, tolerance and the fight against violent extremism are crucially linked to the preservation of heritage.
Emerge logo

Emerge Festival

Friday 27 September, 6:30pm - 9:30pm As part of the Emerge Festival, a celebration of London-wide culture, we will offer evening views of the House, along with a demonstration of Franklin’s glass armonica.
Benjamin Franklin portrait carrying out the kite and key experiment

Virtual Talk: Franklin the Innovator

Join us on a whistle-stop tour of Franklin’s many ingenious inventions, from the lightening rod to the glass armonica and the Franklin stove. House Education Manager, Eleanor Hamblen, will reflect on how Franklin’s scientific process led him to become one of the key figures of the Enlightenment and how his discoveries have shaped our modern world.
Children in Franklin's parlour

Family Day: Toys in Franklin's Time

Tuesday 30 July, 10.30am-12.30pm Join us to learn how children passed their time 300 years ago with Georgian toys and games. Design and create some your own traditional toys to take away.
Children holding up Christmas wreaths

Family Day: Children's Christmas Party

Family Day: Children’s Christmas Party Saturday 30 November,…
A young boy holds up the pumpkin face he has made using a paper plate and coloured paper.

Family Day: Halloween at Benjamin Franklin House

Halloween-themed fun and games for all the family!
Skull on display in museum

Museum Lates - Craven Street Bones

Explore the darker side of the 18th century pursuit of knowledge with the team at Benjamin Franklin House. As you make your way through our Grade I, Georgian building, you’ll discover why over 1200 bones were unearthed in the basement. Drink included.
Candles and papers on the desk in Franklin's parlour

Festive Candlelit Tours

Step back in time and experience the House in true eighteenth-century style this winter with our festive candlelit tours.
Garden with family on a path

The Shakers: from Manchester to Maine

Thursday 21 November, 6.30pm-8.30pm Join Philip Davies, Emeritus Professor of American Studies at De Montfort University as we look at the lives of ‘The Shakers’. Ann Lee and eight followers left Manchester for America in 1774.  The United Society of Believers in Christ’s Second Appearing, otherwise known as Shakers, had emerged in the industrialising northwest of England during the later years of that international spiritual ferment, the Great Awakening.
Children's illustration with map of sea with sail ship

Family Day: Float Ben's Boat!

Tuesday 20 August, 10:30am - 12:30pm Benjamin Franklin crossed the Atlantic Ocean eight times in his life, charted the Gulf Stream, and investigated canals. During his time in London, he swam in the Thames and conducted experiments using the ponds on Clapham Common. Children will recreate some of Franklin’s investigations involving water and design their own boat!
Book cover of Benjamin Franklin at Home in London

Family Day: Frankin's Georgian Home

Tuesday 13 August, 10:30am - 12:30pm Join Polly Hewson, a character from Franklin’s household, on a tour of the building to learn about everyday life in 18th Century London. Inspired by our Virtual Georgian Interior, children will design furnishings to fill the historic rooms. 
Children colouring and painting

Family Day: Children's Summer Fete

Saturday 13 July 11am - 4pm Our annual Summer Fete, in collaboration with special guests from the world of heritage, will include activities for all the family. Join us in the lovely gardens of Leighton House Museum so bring a picnic!
Eggs wrapped in colourful tissue paper with ribbon ties

Family Day: Georgian Easter Celebration

Join us for Easter-themed crafts and games. Take part in a special…
Student playing with a plasma ball

Family Day: Spark your Curiosity

Join us for hands-on family fun exploring the wonders of electricity,…
Benjamin Franklin in fur cap portrait

The Long Goodbye: Benjamin Franklin's Death and Creating the American Identity

Wednesday April 17 2019, 5.30pm  Early morning on 17 April 1790, Benjamin Franklin died at his home in Philadelphia.  Almost a generation older than most of America's founders, he was the first to inspire a national, and indeed international, period of mourning.  In arranging Franklin's memorial, his own and Craven Street family set in place lasting ideas on remembrance and identity. 
Print of bridge being built

The Battles of Blackfriars Bridge: London Improvement in the Age of Franklin

Thursday April 4th 2019, 6.30pm - 8pm Dr Perry Gauci, Tutor in Modern History at Lincoln College, Oxford University, will speak about the stormy public debates surrounding the first Blackfriars Bridge, which opened in 1769. The bridge caused deep divisions within the metropolis, but its completion highlighted how Londoners managed to find common cause in pursuit of civic improvement in Franklin's day.
Screenshot of US news desk with President Trump on the background screen

Election 2020 - Carol Gould on American Politics

Wednesday June 12th 2019, 6.30pm As the 2020 presidential race gains momentum, Carol Gould, a political commentator since 2004, will discuss the current state of play in American politics, including race relations, international affairs, and (in the spirit of Benjamin Franklin) freedom of the press.
Printing press with young man illustration

SOLD OUT - Family Day: Printing Workshop

Tuesday February 19th 2019, 10:30 am - 12:30pm Did you know that Ben Franklin started out as a printer? Nowadays we think of a printer as something that connects to a computer but the mechanical printing press was cutting edge technology in Franklin’s time. Join us for this fun-filled family day to learn all about 18th Century printing methods and try your hand at some printing of your own!
Siffred portrait of Benjamin Franklin

Franklin and his British Friends

Wednesday 29th of May. 6:30pm  Dr. Márcia Balisciano, Director of Benjamin Franklin House will introduce Franklin's British milieu, those who challenged and sustained him during his long London sojourn.  Fellow members of the Lunar Society like Josiah Wedgwood, Erasmus Darwin and Matthew Bolton, reformed rogues like Sir Francis Dashwood, and artists like the blind organist John Stanley will all feature in this illustrated talk.
Thomas Paine painting

The Rise of Thomas Paine and the Case of The Officers of Excise

Wednesday March 6th at 6:30pm Introducing his new book, The Rise of Thomas Paine, Paul Myles will tell the story of how the relatively unknown Englishman-Paine- came to be thrust onto the international stage and his literary role in the American War of Independence.
Stairs at Benjamin Franklin House

Museums at Night - 'Candle Lit' Architectural Tours

Thursday 16 & Friday 17 May, 6pm, 7pm & 8pm The atmospheric…
Benjamin Franklin bust with party hat on and red and blue balloons

Independence Day: Thursday 4th July

Thursday 4 July, 12pm, 1pm, 2pm, 3:15pm and 4:15pm Join us for a celebration of Independence Day at Benjamin Franklin House. Enjoy cake and a glass of bubbly following a 30 minute tour of the world’s only remaining Franklin home. As a founder of the United States, Franklin was the only statesman to have signed all four documents that created a new nation, including The Declaration of Independence, the Treaty of Alliance with France, the Treaty of Paris, and The Constitution. The first of these was signed on 4 July 1776.
David Martin portrait of Benjamin Franklin

The Final Plea, Thursday January 10th 6:30-8pm

Join us on Thursday 10 January 2019 at 6.30pm for a performance…
Benjamin Franklin with cartoon party hat on

House 14th and Franklin's 314th Birthday Celebration, Friday 17th January

A celebration of Benjamin Franklin's 314th birthday and the 14th anniversary of the opening of Benjamin Franklin House to the public as a dynamic museum and educational facility.
Painting of men in Georgian powdered wigs

Talk: Benjamin Franklin’s influence at the Constitutional Convention

Dr Nicholas Cole is a Senior Research Fellow at Pembroke College,…
Families in Franklin's parlour at a craft day

Family Day - Investigate! Bubbles, slime and other materials.

Benjamin Franklin questioned the world around him. Join us to…
Benjamin Franklin portrait beside photo of Ulysses Grant

Franklin & Grant: Americans Against Slavery

Franklin & Grant: Americans Against Slavery 2018 Benjamin…
Tea set on tray in the kitchen

Family Day: A Georgian Tea Party

Join us to investigate the traditions of tea drinking from the…
Illustration of Benjamin Franklin playing the armonica

Family Day: Instrumental Inventions

Benjamin Franklin was a prolific inventor and a lover of music,…
Fireworks on a night sky

Fireworks, Franklin & the Fourth

In the run up to American Independence Day, Dr. Simon Werret…
Candles and paper on desk

Festive Candlelit Tours, December 6th, 13th and 20th at 6.30pm

Step back in time and experience the House in true eighteenth-century…
Thanksgiving dinner turkey and plates set

Thanksgiving Dinner, Thursday 28 November, 7.30pm

An American Thanksgiving feast with all the trimmings will take…
Democrats and Republicans Abroad logos

The US Elections, Washington Politics and the Prospects for 2020, Wednesday 14 November, 6.30pm

At a time when there seem to be few fixed points on the political…
Skull on display in museum

Museums at Night- The Craven Street Bones

Museums at Night- The Craven Street Bones Explore the darker side of the 18th century's pursuit of knowledge with the team at Benjamin Franklin House. As you make your way through the Grade I, Georgian building you'll discover why over 1200 bones were unearthed in the basement. Drink included.
Carved face pumpkin with candle in

Family Day: Hallowe'en at Benjamin Franklin House

Tuesday 23 October, 4-5pm Children will meet Polly Hewson, daughter of Franklin's landlady, to hear some ghoulishly good Hallowe'en stories followed by gruesome games including Pumpkin Trick or Treat and Pin the Spider on the Web.
Mandrake Embrocation - historical advert for cures for headache, toothache, and earache

To cure all ills?

For centuries, unqualified practitioners have sold miracle cures,…
Two women with a harp and a flute

Concordia Concert

Friday 20 September, 7pm We will be hosting an evening in keeping with Franklin’s love of 18th century music in association with our Craven Street neighbours, the Concordia Foundation, which serves young musicians.
Children painting

Summer Fete

Our annual Summer Fete will take place in collaboration with…
Children investigating bones in a dig box

Family Day: Bones in the Basement

Saturday 20 July 10.30am-12pm Come along and search for bones in the basement at Benjamin Franklin House. Become an archaeologist for the morning and help uncover the history of this Georgian townhouse.
US flags flying across the windows at Benjamin Franklin House

Independence Day Party

Join us for a celebration of Independence Day at Benjamin Franklin…
Franklin's desk in parlour

London Festival Of Architecture

In celebration of the London Festival of Architecture we will…
Print of London in 1700s

London History Day

To celebrate the 2018 London History Day theme of ‘courage,’…
Children on stairs at Benjamin Franklin House

Toys in Franklin's Time

Come and see how children passed thier time with traditional…