In the 18th century Franklin and other Europeans knew a great deal about it. Early in the century, Alessandro Volta invented the first source of continuous electric current - the battery. Later, Hans Christian Oersted discovered that an electric current produced magnetism. But it was Michael Faraday who described the nature of the phenomena. In his electromagnetic induction theory he stated that an electric current flows in a conductor if that conductor is in a moving magnetic field and is part of a circuit.
Static electricity is electricity at rest.
It is produced by friction, by rubbing. All matter contains positively charged particles called protons and negatively charged particles called electrons. In an uncharged atom , the protons and electrons balance each other and the atom is neutral. If this neutral atom loses an electron, because it has an excess of protons, it is said to be positively charged. If the neutral atom gains an electron, it is said to be negatively charged.