A Visit To The Only Surviving Residence Of benjamin Franklin

‘A Republic, if you can keep it’. These were the words of Benjamin Franklin when asked in 1787 whether the newly concluded Constitutional Convention had created a monarchy or a republic.

4th July 2026 marks the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence in 1776 and the birth of the United States of America. I felt a fitting visit would be to Benjamin Franklin House on Craven Street, the home of founding father Benjamin Franklin for 16 years and his only surviving residence in the world. 

Benjamin Franklin’s Early life

Benjamin Franklin was born in 1706 in Boston, Massachusetts, the 15th child out of the 17 his father had.

He started working in his father’s candle shop at the age of 12, before being apprenticed to his brother James as a printer. Always a voracious reader, he taught himself to write and started writing articles and essays in his brother’s newspaper. In 1723 Franklin ran away to Philadelphia to become a journeyman printer and in 1724 made his first trip to London to continue his apprenticeship. He worked in a printers in what is now the Lady Chapel of St Bartholomew the Great church. 

A Journey To Worldwide Fame

Back in Philadelphia in 1728, Franklin opens his own print shop. He swiftly gained considerable fame and wealth by publishing The Pennsylvania Gazette and his annual Poor Richard’s Almanack. Never a man to rest on his laurels, he also organised the first fire department in Philadelphia and, in 1737, was appointed Philadelphia’s Postmaster-General. In 1753, he was appointed Deputy Postmaster General for the British colonies.

He also starts inventing. For example, in 1741, he designed the Franklin Stove and in 1752 he creates his most famous invention: the lightning rod. He leaves business and becomes a councilman for Pennsylvania in 1748 and in 1751 is elected to the Pennsylvania Assembly.

In 1757 he arrives in London as an agent for the Pennsylvania Assembly, along with two enslaved men, Peter and King. It is actually his time in London that turns him into a staunch abolitionist. They have an interesting exhibition in the basement about Peter and King and Franklin’s developing views on slavery.

He initially traveled to London to challenge the absentee Penn family proprietors over colonial tax exemptions in Pennsylvania. However, he ended up also advocating for Georgia, New Jersey, and Massachusetts and becoming effectively the chief voice for the colonies in London. 

36 Craven Street 

He moved into 36 (then number 7) Craven Street, lodging with the Stevenson family (widow and landlady Margaret and her daughter Polly), who very much became his London family. He would dine with them and converse regularly. Franklin referred to Margaret as his ‘good dame’. 

Constructed in the 1730s, it was a moderate Georgian townhouse for the time. Today, it is Grade I listed and has many wonderful original features, such as the oak floorboards, wooden shutters, panelling and the original open-string oak staircase. 

Franklin was apparently a great advocate for getting your heart rate up for improving your health. His primary exercise was walking up and down the stairs at Craven Street. This stairway exercise was often combined with his famous ‘air baths’, where he would stand or sit completely naked near an open window to allow fresh air to circulate over his body to invigorate his body.

During his time in London in the 1720s he also enjoyed swimming in the Thames. He famously completed a 3.5 mile swim from Chelsea to Blackfriars, entertaining companions on boats with feats such as swimming with his wrists behind his back and underwater acrobatics.

A Social Hub 

Today the house is quiet and has a sense of historic calm to it, but in Franklin’s day it sounds like it would have been a whirl of activity. 

He threw himself into London society from his base here, hosting visitors from across the British Empire. He frequented the Royal Society, saw plays, debated in coffeehouses and dined with the great and good of the day. His charm, individuality and ability to adapt to different scenarios led to him become a sought after guest. Below is the parlour on the ground floor where guests would be received at Craven Street.

Below is the ‘card room’ where, it is likely, more discreet discussions would have taken place.

It could probably rightly be argued that these rooms became effectively the first American embassy, where Franklin petitioned and cajoled various British officials and dignitaries. 

For example, in 1766 during the Stamp Act crisis William Pitt the Elder visited Franklin at Craven Street. The former Prime Minister was due to give an address to encourage Parliament to repeal the act as an unfair taxation without representation and wanted to seek Franklin’s advice. This speech ended up leading to the repeal of the unpopular act. 

The Glass Armonica And Lightning rod

Below is the room is known as the ‘lab’.

This was Franklin’s bedroom, but also where he would tinker with his various inventions. 

It was here at Craven Street that he invented his glass armonica. Inspired by the tunes made by a wet finger run around the rim of a wine glass, he created this instrument, which is a series of glass bowls mounted horizontally, which would then be turned by a foot pedal. Dampened fingers would then produce the sounds which are really quite ethereal. I had a try at playing it and can confirm the sound had a haunting quality to it.

The glass armonica quickly captured the attention of London’s elite and Franklin would hold private demonstrations in his parlour. Mozart and Beethoven even wrote pieces specifically for it. You can watch a video here of someone playing it.

Its popularity waned in the 19th century with its strange, eerie tones going out of fashion. It is also speculated that lead-based paints used for the bands on some armonicas would have led to lead poisoning for those playing it, giving the instrument an unfortunate reputation. 

It was here at Craven Street that Franklin also refined the design for his lightning rod. His experiments with electricity had already gained him international fame, before even coming to London. He managed to persuade St Paul’s Cathedral to put one on the dome to protect it from lightning strikes. It was the first in Europe and soon became common on churches and other buildings around the world. 

Franklin Leaves London 

During his time in London he became increasingly frustrated with the British Government’s attitude to the colonies, but always held out hope for reconciliation, insisting ‘I am a Briton’ for much of his time here.

In 1773 the tensions came to a head. He secretly obtained and shared letters by Massachusetts Governor Thomas Hutchinson that revealed a contempt for colonial self-governance. Franklin assisted in their publication and was summoned before the Privy Council to be berated by the Solicitor General. Franklin left Craven Street in March 1775 and by the end of that year he was helping to draft a Declaration of Independence.  He was, in fact, the only Founding Father to have signed all three foundational documents of the United States; the Declaration of Independence, the Treaty of Paris, and the U.S. Constitution.

A Building Through The Centuries

In the Victorian period the house became a small hotel, particularly catering to those travelling through the newly constructed Charing Cross Station, finished in 1864. 

In the 1950s it houses the British Society for International Understanding, a Cold War not-for-profit fostering Anglo-American ties, a rather fitting continuation of Franklin’s time on Craven Street. 

By the 1970s it had fallen into disrepair. Thankfully, in 1978, a determined group of friends and supporters came together to save it. They were successful in acquiring the freehold and the museum opened in 2006, exactly 300 years after Franklin’s birth. 

Bodies In The Basement

One final bizarre twist in the story of the building was discovered during an archaeological dig in 1998. Another resident of the house in Franklin’s time was William Hewson, Polly’s husband, who ran a private anatomy school. Hewson was a pioneer in the study of blood coagulation and lymphatic circulation. He later became known as the ‘father of haematology’. 

Like many doctors and anatomists of the period, Hewson would often acquire bodies from bodysnatchers, otherwise known as ‘resurrection men’, who would dig up bodies from graveyards to sell. Hewson died in 1774 from sepsis contracted during a dissection. 

In 1998 during a dig in the basement, which would have been part of the garden in the 18th century, archaeologists found the remains of fifteen bodies, including adults, children and animals. Cut marks and their condition showed that they had been bodies used for anatomical study. Some have been displayed in the basement, a reminder of the houses’ layered history. 

Also in the basement are a couple of other artefacts. They have, for example, the wallet used by Franklin whilst he was here in London. 

Visiting Benjamin Franklin House 

As is often the case with historic houses, it has few artefacts or original furniture pieces. A tour, I would say, is the best way to experience it and bring the house to life. 

On Wednesdays and Thursday self-guided tours are on offer from 11am-4pm. On Fridays there are guided architectural tours and at the weekends there are guided historical experience sessions. These apparently include a performer and projections to evoke the stories of the past.

Find out more on their website here. 

They also have various events on as part of America 250. You can find out more about those here.

Thank you for reading, more blog posts on London’s unique history below…