In addition to being a printer, a scientist, a philanthropist, a diplomat, a statesman, a popular philosopher, and “a man of towering eminence," Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790) was one of the founding fathers of the United States. Though as a young man Franklin left Boston for Philadelphia, his ties with the city of Boston remain strong. The Franklin Plaque commemorates the site of Franklin’s boyhood home at the corner of Union and Hanover Streets. As an adult, Franklin inherited the house and allowed his sisters to live in it. The bronze plaque was designed by Arthur A. Shurcliff  (1870-1957), the landscape architect who designed the Paul Revere Mall where the plaque is located. It was commissioned by the City of Boston and was unveiled in 1946.