American Colony?

[registered]

In "Benjamin Franklin's Memoirs", there is a sentence: "There were many new churches built as our Colony grew. I never refused to give money for the building of any of them."
Here, Colony, what does it mean?

[5jj]

It could be any or all of the first three meanings here: http://education.yahoo.com/reference.../entry/colony:.
The precise meaning will depend on whether Franklin was writing about a time before or after the American colonies gained their independence.

[riquecohen]

In "Benjamin Franklin's Memoirs", there is a sentence: "There were many new churches built as our Colony grew. I never refused to give money for the building of any of them."
Here, Colony, what does it mean?

It refers to Pennsylvania, one of the thirteen original colonies, which was Franklin's home from the time he was about seventeen.

[JohnParis]

Franklin was, most likely, writing about a time before the American revolution. Otherwise, he would have used the word "state" or "commonwealth."

John

[Ouisch]

As mentioned above, prior to the signing of the Declaration of Independence in 1776, the original areas settled by the British in America were referred to as "colonies." There are, apparently, some older folks in England who still refer to the United States as "the colonies"; I recall a trip to England in 1988 when I stayed for one night at a small bed and breakfast near Liverpool. The proprietor (an older gentleman, probably in his 70s) referred to me more than once as a "Colonist" and while I was eating a delicious full English breakfast the next morning he asked me somewhat sarcastically "I suppose you have steak for breakfast in the Colonies?" (Like I was going to admit that I had, once in a while while dining out - before I was old enough to worry about my cholesterol, enjoyed steak and eggs for breakfast when every eye in the room was staring at me.)

[SoothingDave]

What you should have said:

"Darn right! We have steak for every meal, Usually wrapped in bacon. Proper bacon, that is."

[registered]

Thanks! I get it!
I'm curious how can that old man be so conservative, like he is living in the world of 200 years ago!

[SoothingDave]

Ben Franklin lived 200 years ago.

Benjamin Franklin - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia