Franklin's Father Josiah: Life of a Colonial Boston Tallow Chandler, 1657-1745 Transactions, America

Josiah Franklin, a tallow chandler and soapmaker, remains a marginal figure in most biographies of his well-known son, Benjamin Franklin, due largely to a lack of written documentation. Biographers of Franklin included him mainly from a genealogical viewpoint, and few of them gave him further attention. Here, Huang has reconstructed Josiah Franklin's life based on fragmented yet valuable manuscripts in several archival sites in the Boston area, such as his bills, letters, subscriptions, participation in petitions, and court warrants for his legal disputes. He has also drawn information from newspapers, diaries, business accounts, inventories, deeds, and probate records which were useful to assess his trade and financial circumstances. This robust publication complete with illustrations is a one-of-a-kind resource that sheds new light and offers novel insights into one of the most important families in American history.