Benjamin Franklin only slept 4 hours a night, and 25 other facts about the Founding Fathers

(Image credit: Mark Wilson/Getty Images)

Benjamin Franklin had a lot more qualities than just being a founding father — he was apparently an excellent swimmer, and he only slept from 1:00 a.m. to 5:00 a.m. each night.

The most interesting fact about Franklin, though, might be his career as a printer. Yes, before Franklin was featured on money, he helped print it, John Green explains in this week's list show video from our sister site, Mental Floss. Franklin eventually owned a printing press responsible for creating all of the money in colonial Delaware and Pennsylvania. And to stop counterfeiters, Franklin intentionally spelled "Pennsylvania" wrong on the bills, hoping counterfeiters would correct the "error."

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Meghan DeMaria

Meghan DeMaria is a staff writer at TheWeek.com. She has previously worked for USA Today and Marie Claire.