Benjamin Franklin was born on January 17, 1706 in Boston, Massachusetts. Since this was on a Sunday, his father had him immediately baptized, to avoid any superstitious curse on him. Franklin was the 15th of 17 children. When he was a boy, Franklin liked to write his name in a fancy manner. But one day an old man who was visiting them saw the elaborate signature and remarked, "What fool wrote this?" After that, Ben started writing his name in a plain style. At age 10 Ben helped his father in his shop cutting candlewicks and filling molds. He spent much of his time reading and also became a fantastic swimmer. This led to one of his first inventions; paddles that helped him swim fast