This Yiddish translation of Benjamin Franklin's autobiography is the third in a series of artifacts that will be featured regularly here, illustrating objects in the NMAJH Registry of Jewish Americana, a digital catalog of artifacts, documents and photographs from collections around the country.




Benjamin Franklin: Life Story and the Liberation of America
Progress, publisher
Warsaw, Poland, 1901
National Museum of American Jewish History, Philadelphia

Franklin’s autobiography has been published throughout the world in numerous languages. This Yiddish translation comes from Warsaw, Poland and was printed at a time when large waves of Eastern European Jews immigrated to America.

This object is currently on view through May 31, 2006 in our exhibition Benjamin Franklin and Religious Liberty that explores Franklin’s relationship with the Jewish community and illustrates his role in forging a pluralistic America. This exhibition is being held in conjunction with “Ben Franklin 300 Philadelphia,” a region-wide celebration of all-things Franklin. To learn more about this exhibition, click here to view the press release.