It was on this date in 1752 that Benjamin Franklin went kite-flying in a thunderstorm. Attached to the kite was a key that was struck by lightning. This lead to his invention of the lightning rod. And it was on this date in 1924 in Cleveland where the first radio broadcast from a presidential convention took place.
Mark Pennell sits at the helm of his time machine.Mark's Almanac is a 90-second time travel that highlights the world's history from the very serious to the sometimes sublime.
Mark's Almanac for June 10, 2021
![Franklin with a key and kite during a thunderstorm.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/ea1260e/2147483647/strip/true/crop/960x568+0+0/resize/880x521!/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fd7%2F99%2Fdb29adfd4d4d835d8f51cb761845%2Fgeneral-bwest-franklinkeykite.jpg)
THE FRANKLIN INSTITUTE