Today's blog post comes from National Archives social media intern Anna Fitzpatrick. Before the Emancipation Proclamation freed the slaves, many men and women in bondage ran away from their owners to freedom. These escape attempts were dangerous, and not all of them were successful. Abolitionists sometimes helped slaves in their flight to freedom, like these … Continue reading Emancipation Proclamation: Flight to Freedom
Today's blog post comes from National Archives social media intern Anna Fitzpatrick. January 1 marks the 150th anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation. While this document is remembered for freeing the slaves in the Southern states, petitioners had been attempting to end slavery since the nation’s founding. Petitions by anti-slavery groups were sent to the newly … Continue reading Emancipation Proclamation: Petitioning for Freedom
In the last post, we brought the Adams-Vergennes story up to their abrupt break in late July 1780. Adams departed for the Netherlands, where he hoped to raise additional funds for the United States war effort and make the United States less dependent on France. Meanwhile, Vergennes appealed to Franklin and through Franklin to Congress, … Continue reading In their own words: Adams, Franklin, and Vergennes (part IIc)
This is part of a series, written by Jim Zeender, devoted to letters written by the Founding Fathers in their own words and often in their own hand. Jim is a senior registrar in National Archives Exhibits. John Adams of Massachusetts and Benjamin Franklin of Pennsylvania crossed paths during “critical moments” in the earliest days … Continue reading In their own words: John Adams and Ben Franklin, Part I
Today's post was written by National Archives volunteer Paul Richter. It is the first in a series tracing the development of the Constitution in honor of the 225th anniversary of this document. Eleven years after the Declaration of Independence announced the birth of the United States, the survival of the young country seemed in doubt. … Continue reading Constitution 225: No quorum, no Constitution!
The Medal of Honor is the highest honor in recognition of “gallantry in action.” Yet when President Abraham Lincoln signed “An act to further promote the efficiency of the Navy” into law on December 21, 1861, the creation of this honor is just a paragraph in section seven. Only 200 “medals of honor” were … Continue reading Medal of Honor is now on display at the National Archives
Today's "What's Cooking Wednesday" guest post is from Jefferson Moak, an archivist at the National Archives at Philadelphia. On a hot summer day, who’s not looking for an ice cream vendor or a Rita’s Water . . . Ice? Ice creams and water ices have been with Americans for over 100 years. In the early … Continue reading Cold Wars: Popsicle v. Good Humor