"Benjamin Franklin". Painting by Robert Thom from the series Graphic Communications Through the Ages preserved in the Cary Graphic Arts Collection, Rochester Institute of Technology.
On October 2, 1729 printer and polymath Benjamin Franklin seized the opportunity to purchase The Pennsylvania Gazette from his former boss, Samuel Keimer. Under Franklin The Pennsylvania Gazette became the most successful newspaper in the colonies. Another successful publication that brought wealth to Franklin was Poor Richard’s Almanack. It was published continuously from 1732 to 1758. This sold exceptionally well for a pamphlet published in the American colonies, with print runs reaching 10,000 copies per year. However, Franklin's most profitable business was becoming the official printer of Pennsylvania in 1730 and of New Jersey in 1740.
