Franklin stove
The freestanding iron stove that gave more heat than an open fireplace.
Benjamin Franklin designed an iron stove that stood freely in the room and heated it better than an open fireplace, where most of the heat disappeared up the chimney. He took no patent because he wanted everyone to benefit from it.
The stove became a model for later iron stoves. It shows how inventors of the Enlightenment tried to improve everyday life.
Materials: Cast iron
Manufacture: Designed by Benjamin Franklin in Philadelphia in 1742 and cast at ironworks in Pennsylvania.
The open front with an iron firebox.
The flue behind.
The decorative cast plates.