Video:Profile of Ben Franklin's Ghost
with Thea LewisSightings of Ben Franklin's Ghost are often reported at the American Philosophical Society in Philadelphia. Watch this About.com video to learn more about why Ben Franklin couldn't leave the society behind even in the afterlife.See Transcript
Transcript:Profile of Ben Franklin's Ghost
Ben Franklin Haunts the American Philosophical Society
It would be hard to find a more brilliant, or a more colorful historical figure than Benjamin Franklin. Maybe that’s why people don’t mind so much that he haunts the American Philosophical Society in Philadelphia. Hello. I'm Thea Lewis of Queen City Ghostwalk for About.com, and today I'm going to tell you the story of the Ghost of Benjamin Franklin.
Franklin founded the society, where most of his books and original writings are kept to this day. It seems he was so fond of the place he decided to stay long right along with them.
Sightings of Ben Franklin's Ghost
Stories of his ghost date back to the1880s, when a cleaning woman reported seeing his ghost wandering the halls and hurrying along through the bookshelves. Franklin’s spirit really gets around- folks say his statue outside the Society building sometimes leaves its perch to walk the darkened streets alone. He’s also been seen dancing or skipping along the route he would have taken from the Society Building and Independence Hall to his shop and home.
People often mistake this apparition as a reenactor, until, after one glimpse, they turn, and Ben Franklin... is gone.
Thanks for watching. To learn more about ghosts and the paranormal, visit us on the web at About.com.