FRAMED 1856 FACSCIMILE OF BEN FRANKLIN\'S 1723 1st PRINTING - NEW ENGLAND COURANT For Sale

Up forsaleis this 1856 Facsimile ofBenjamin Franklin\'sFeb. 11, 1723 first issue of the New England Courant (No. 80). This 8.5\"x12\" broadsheet was printed on Sept. 17, 1856 on a press once used by Franklin in Boston. The rare folio was printed on both sides of antique buff news stock, with text printed in 2 columns under the banner title with an elaborate woodcut pictorial initial (preceding the first column of the recto). The colophon to the facsimile is printed along the bottom of the verso.
Ben Franklin as Printmaker: Before Benjamin Franklin became a prominent American politician and diplomat, he was a successful printmaker. After starting as an apprentice printer in Boston at age 12, he later set up a printing house in Philadelphia with Hugh Meredith. In 1729 (at age 23) Franklin became the publisher of The Pennsylvania Gazette, and then authored and printed his famous Poor Richard’s Almanack starting in 1733. He went on to become a successful printer, publisher and editor.
Franklin’s printing career was highly lucrative, making him wealthy and allowing him to retire from the daily business at age 42. This provided him the means and time for his other pursuits such as science, working on his many inventions, and politics. Franklin printed paper currency for the colonies of Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware. He considered his printing work fundamental to his life and legacy, as he indicated in his autobiography and his self-identification as a printer in his will. His printing and writing career served as a foundation for his subsequent public service and diplomatic achievements that established his pivotal role as an American Founding Father.
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