Bastardry ran in Benjamin Franklin’s family!

>[Franklin](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/25/Benjamin_Franklin_by_Joseph_Duplessis_1778.jpg) was consistent in a different way. Franklin’s son [William](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f7/WilliamFranklin.jpeg) was born out of wedlock, as was William’s son, [William Temple Franklin](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e9/William_temple_franklin_by_john_trumbull.gif). The latter, while living with his grandfather Ben in France, committed adultery with a neighbor’s wife, so *his* son was illegitimate also. As Franklin received news of the illegitimate son of the illegitimate son of his own illegitimate son, he might have seen that the sins were visited unto the fourth generation – but Franklin never accepted the Christian concept of sin. __________________________ **Source:** Olasky, Marvin. “Tempests to Come.” *Fighting for Liberty and Virtue: Political and Cultural Wars in Eighteenth-Century America*. Crossway Books, 1995. 204. Print. __________________________ **Further Reading:** [Benjamin Franklin FRS FRSE](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benjamin_Franklin) [William Franklin FRSE](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Franklin) [William Temple Franklin, known as Temple Franklin](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Temple_Franklin) ___________________________ **If you enjoy this type of content, please consider donating to my [Patreon](https://www.patreon.com/HistoryLockeBox)!**