Benjamin Franklin - Watertown, MA
Posted by: 
neoc1
N 42° 22.425 W 071° 08.778
19T E 323288 N 4693505
The Benjamin Franklin Memorial Obelisk is cenotaph located on a hillside between Pine Avenue and Gentian Path in Mount Auburn Cemetery.
Waymark Code: WM11R98
Location: Massachusetts, United States
Date Posted: 12/08/2019
Views: 2
The Benjamin Franklin Memorial Obelisk is a 25' tall granite cenotaph erected ca. 1855 by philanthropist Thomas Dowse to commemorate Benjamin Franklin, a man he greatly admire for his "illustrious example of industry, integrity, and self-culture."
The obelisk is sited at the edge of a steep hill. The base on the east side is level with the top of the hill. The west side of the obelisk is approached by a flight of stairs. The obelisk shaft on the east side is inscribed FRANKLIN. The west side contains the inscription:
TO THE MEMORY
OF
BENJAMIN FRANKLIN
THE PRINTER
THE PHILOSOPHER
THE STATESMAN
THE PATRIOT
WHO
BY HIS WISDOM
BLESSED HIS COUNTRY & HIS AGE
AND
BEQUEATHED TO THE WORLD
AN ILLUSTRIOUS EXAMPLE
OF
INDUSTRY
INTEGRITY
AND
SELF-CULTURE
BORN IN BOSTON MDCCVI
DIED IN PHILADELPHIA MDCCXC