This Day in History: <br />Benjamin Franklin Flies <br />a Kite During Thunderstorm June 10, 1752 Decades before signing the <br />Declaration of Independence, <br />Franklin spent nearly ten years <br />conducting electricity experiments. While flying his kite in the storm, <br />the U.S. founding father was able <br />to collect an ambient electrical <br />charge in a leyden jar. Among other things, making <br />the connection between lightning <br />and electricity led to Franklin's <br />invention of the lightning rod. By the time of the<br />experiment, Franklin <br />was already a successful <br />businessman and politician. His career as a statesman <br />before, during and after <br />the American Revolution <br />spanned several decades. One of the leading figures <br />of the Age of Enlightenment, <br />Franklin died in 1790 at the age of 84.
