Benjamin Franklin's last bet: the favorite founder's divisive death, enduring afterlife, and blueprint for American prosperity
Description
The incredible story of Benjamin Franklin’s parting gift to the working-class people of Boston and Philadelphia—a deathbed wager that captures the Founder’s American Dream and his lessons for our current, conflicted age
Benjamin Franklin was not a gambling man. But at the end of his illustrious life, the Founder allowed himself a final wager on the survival of the United States: a gift of two thousand pounds to Boston and Philadelphia, to be lent out to tradesmen over the next two centuries to jump‑start their careers. Each loan would be repaid with interest over ten years. If all went according to Franklin’s inventive scheme, the accrued final payout in 1991 would be a windfall.
In Benjamin Franklin’s Last Bet, Michael Meyer traces the evolution of these twin funds as they age alongside America itself, bankrolling woodworkers and silversmiths, trade schools and space races. Over time, Franklin’s wager was misused, neglected, and contested—but never wholly extinguished. With charm and inquisitive flair, Meyer shows how Franklin’s stake in the “leather-apron” class remains in play to this day, and offers an inspiring blueprint for prosperity in our modern era of growing wealth disparity and social divisions.
Benjamin Franklin was not a gambling man. But at the end of his illustrious life, the Founder allowed himself a final wager on the survival of the United States: a gift of two thousand pounds to Boston and Philadelphia, to be lent out to tradesmen over the next two centuries to jump‑start their careers. Each loan would be repaid with interest over ten years. If all went according to Franklin’s inventive scheme, the accrued final payout in 1991 would be a windfall.
In Benjamin Franklin’s Last Bet, Michael Meyer traces the evolution of these twin funds as they age alongside America itself, bankrolling woodworkers and silversmiths, trade schools and space races. Over time, Franklin’s wager was misused, neglected, and contested—but never wholly extinguished. With charm and inquisitive flair, Meyer shows how Franklin’s stake in the “leather-apron” class remains in play to this day, and offers an inspiring blueprint for prosperity in our modern era of growing wealth disparity and social divisions.
More Details
ISBN:
9781328568892
Staff View
Grouping Information
Grouped Work ID | 6aba0f1f-7e49-a691-ea58-fee4c335e2ee |
---|---|
Grouping Title | benjamin franklins last bet the favorite founders divisive death enduring afterlife and blueprint for american prosperity |
Grouping Author | michael meyer |
Grouping Category | book |
Grouping Language | English (eng) |
Last Grouping Update | 2024-04-22 19:35:24PM |
Last Indexed | 2024-05-02 05:27:49AM |
Solr Fields
accelerated_reader_point_value
0
accelerated_reader_reading_level
0
author
Meyer, Michael, 1972-
author_display
Meyer, Michael
available_at_ashland
Ashland Vaughn Public Library
detailed_location_ashland
Ashland Adult Nonfiction
display_description
"Benjamin Franklin was not a gambling man. But at the end of his illustrious life, the Founder allowed himself a final wager on the survival of the United States: a gift of two thousand pounds to Boston and Philadelphia, to be lent out to tradesmen over the next two centuries to jump-start their careers. Each loan would be repaid with interest over ten years. If all went according to Franklin's inventive scheme, the accrued final payout in 1991 would be a windfall. In Benjamin Franklin's Last Bet, Michael Meyer traces the evolution of these twin funds as they age alongside America itself, bankrolling woodworkers and silversmiths, trade schools and space races. Over time, Franklin's wager was misused, neglected, and contested--but never wholly extinguished"--
format_ashland
Book
format_category_ashland
Books
id
6aba0f1f-7e49-a691-ea58-fee4c335e2ee
isbn
9781328568892
itype_ashland
BOOK - HARDCOVER
last_indexed
2024-05-02T10:27:49.090Z
lexile_score
-1
literary_form
Non Fiction
literary_form_full
Non Fiction
local_callnumber_ashland
973.3 MEY
owning_library_ashland
Ashland Vaughn Public Library
owning_location_ashland
Ashland Vaughn Public Library
primary_isbn
9781328568892
publishDate
2022
publisher
Mariner Books
recordtype
grouped_work
subject_facet
Endowments
Franklin, Benjamin, -- 1706-1790 -- Death and burial
Legacies
Working class -- Massachusetts -- Boston
Working class -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia
Franklin, Benjamin, -- 1706-1790 -- Death and burial
Legacies
Working class -- Massachusetts -- Boston
Working class -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia
title_display
Benjamin Franklin's last bet : the favorite founder's divisive death, enduring afterlife, and blueprint for American prosperity
title_full
Benjamin Franklin's last bet : the favorite founder's divisive death, enduring afterlife, and blueprint for American prosperity / Michael Meyer
title_short
Benjamin Franklin's last bet
title_sub
the favorite founder's divisive death, enduring afterlife, and blueprint for American prosperity
topic_facet
Death and burial
Endowments
Franklin, Benjamin
Legacies
Working class
Endowments
Franklin, Benjamin
Legacies
Working class
Solr Details Tables
item_details
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ils:.b21057345 | .i34691820 | Lac Courte Oreilles Adult Nonfiction | 973.3 MEY | 1 | false | false | Available | lcanf | |||||
ils:.b21057345 | .i3468217x | Ashland Adult Nonfiction | 973.3 MEY | 1 | false | false | Available | Oct 10, 2022 | asanf |
record_details
Bib Id | Format | Format Category | Edition | Language | Publisher | Publication Date | Physical Description | Abridged |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
ils:.b21057345 | Book | Books | English | Mariner Books | 2022 | xxiii, 338 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm |
scoping_details_ashland
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ils:.b21057345 | .i34691820 | On Shelf | Available | false | true | true | false | false | false | 9999 | ||
ils:.b21057345 | .i3468217x | On Shelf | Available | false | true | true | false | false | true | 9999 |