Benjamin Franklin was basically the closest thing 18th-century America had to a rock star. He was everywhere—printing presses, diplomatic courts in France, lightning storms, and the very foundations of the U.S. government. But even the man who "snatched lightning from the sky" couldn't outrun the clock. So, when did Benjamin Franklin die? He passed away on April 17, 1790. He was 84 years old, which, for the late 1700s, was an incredibly long life. Most people back then were lucky to see 50, let alone eight decades of invention and revolution.
His death wasn't some sudden, shocking event. Honestly, it was a slow burn. He’d been struggling with his health for years, specifically a brutal combination of gout and kidney stones. If you’ve ever had a kidney stone, you know the vibe—it’s excruciating. Now imagine dealing with that in a time before modern painkillers or non-invasive surgery.
The Quiet Exit of a Giant
By the time 1790 rolled around, Franklin was mostly confined to his bed in his home on Market Street in Philadelphia. He wasn't exactly living it up. Because of the "stone" (as he called his bladder stone), he spent his final months mostly on opium to dull the sharp, stabbing pain. It’s kinda wild to think about the man who helped draft the Declaration of Independence spending his last days in a hazy, drug-induced fog just to keep from screaming.
His breathing started getting ragged in mid-April. He developed what doctors now believe was an empyema—basically a nasty collection of pus in the pleural cavity around his lungs. It caused a massive abscess that eventually burst. On that Tuesday night, around 11:00 PM, his long, weird, brilliant life finally came to an end.
He died in the company of his grandsons.
What killed him, exactly?
We usually just say "old age," but the medical specifics are grittier. Dr. John Jones, Franklin’s physician, recorded the details. He noted that about sixteen days before the end, Franklin was struck with a high fever and a sharp pain in his chest. This was the beginning of the lung infection.
🔗 Read more: Finding the Best Slice: What to Know About Domino's Pizza Wilmington Ohio
The abscess in his lung broke, and he actually regained a tiny bit of strength for a moment—the "rally before the end" that nurses still talk about today. He tried to get out of bed, famously telling his daughter, Sarah Bache, that "a dying man can do nothing easy." Shortly after, he slipped into a coma and died.
Why the Date April 17, 1790, Changed Philadelphia
Philadelphia didn’t just lose a neighbor; it lost its soul. When the news broke the next morning, the city went into a state of total mourning. This wasn't just a political funeral. It was a mass gathering of every social class.
The funeral took place on April 21. It was huge.
- Roughly 20,000 people showed up.
- To put that in perspective, the entire population of Philadelphia at the time was only about 28,000.
- Basically, the whole city emptied out to follow his coffin to Christ Church Burial Ground.
The procession included everyone from the highest government officials to common laborers and printers. Franklin always identified as a printer first, even after being a world-famous diplomat. He actually wrote his own epitaph years earlier, comparing his body to the "cover of an old book, its contents torn out," hoping it would "appear once more in a new and more elegant edition."
The Strange Controversy Over His Will
You’d think a guy as smart as Franklin would have a straightforward will. Nope. He left a legacy that was both generous and incredibly petty. He left most of his estate to his daughter Sarah, but he famously snubbed his son, William Franklin.
William had remained a Loyalist during the Revolution while Ben was a Patriot. Ben never really forgave him for that "betrayal." In his will, he left William some land in Nova Scotia and some books, but basically told him that if the British had won, William would have been rich anyway, so he didn't need Ben's money. It’s a cold reminder that even the most "jolly" Founding Father could hold a serious grudge until the day he died.
Then there were the "Franklin Trusts." He left £1,000 each to the cities of Boston and Philadelphia. But there was a catch—the money had to be invested and couldn't be fully touched for 200 years.
Myths About Franklin’s Death
People love a good conspiracy or a dramatic legend. One common myth is that Franklin died from syphilis. There is absolutely zero historical evidence for this. While he was definitely a "ladies' man" during his years in Paris, his medical records clearly point to pleurisy and complications from his bladder stone.
Another weird rumor is that he died while performing an experiment. Not true. He was far too frail by 1790 to be flying kites or messing with static electricity. He was a bedridden old man reading books and writing letters until his hands literally couldn't hold the pen anymore.
📖 Related: Black Chelsea Boots for Men: Why You Probably Don't Need Another Pair of Shoes
The French Mourned Him Harder Than Americans?
Kinda, yeah. While America was sad, France went into a state of national hysteria. They viewed Franklin as the embodiment of the Enlightenment. When word reached Paris that he had died, the National Assembly went into three days of official mourning. Mirabeau gave a legendary speech calling him the "sage whom two worlds claim."
In America, the Senate actually refused to join the House in a formal mourning period. There was some political friction; some members felt it wasn't "republican" to mourn an individual so heavily. It’s a bit of a slap in the face considering everything he did, but that was the political climate of the 1790s.
Living the Legacy
If you want to truly understand the impact of when did Benjamin Franklin die, you have to look at what he left behind. He wasn't just a guy on the $100 bill.
- He founded the first subscription library.
- He created the first volunteer fire department in Philly.
- He invented bifocals because he was tired of switching glasses.
- He mapped the Gulf Stream.
His death marked the end of an era of "Renaissance Men." After Franklin, the world started to specialize. You were either a scientist or a politician. Franklin was the last guy who could realistically be both at the highest possible level.
Actionable Steps for History Buffs
If you’re interested in the "Old Ben" era of history, don't just stop at a Wikipedia page. History is best experienced where it happened.
Visit the Grave: If you're ever in Philadelphia, go to the Christ Church Burial Ground. It’s tradition to throw a penny onto his grave for good luck (a nod to his "a penny saved is a penny earned" mantra).
Read the Autobiography: But stop where he stopped. He never actually finished it. It ends well before his death, which provides a fascinating look at how he wanted to be remembered versus the reality of his final years.
Check out the American Philosophical Society: This is the organization he founded. They hold a massive amount of his original papers and artifacts. Seeing his actual handwriting makes the date April 17, 1790, feel a lot more real and a lot less like a dry fact from a textbook.
Explore the Bicentennial Report: Look up the results of his 200-year trust funds. In 1990, the money was finally distributed to trade schools and scholarships in Philadelphia and Boston. It’s a rare example of a "long game" investment that actually worked out.
The death of Benjamin Franklin wasn't just a biological end; it was the moment the United States lost its most pragmatic visionary. He died at a turning point, just as the new Constitution he helped create was beginning to take flight. He didn't get to see the 19th century, but he basically designed the framework for it.
👉 See also: The 12 Astrology Signs Explained (Simply): How the Zodiac Actually Works
Check out the local archives or digital collections at the University of Pennsylvania (which he also founded) to see the original newspapers from the week he died. The "black borders" on the front pages of the 1790 gazettes tell a story of grief that words today can't quite capture.