Well, here we are. 250 years ago yesterday, a group of men voted to formally declare that the American colonies were independent of British rule. They spent a couple days editing Thomas Jefferson’s draft, and 250 years ago tomorrow, they told everyone about it.
No surprise, our “50 Weeks That Shaped America” series this week is on The Declaration of Independence. And rather than wait until next Tuesday to publish, we dropped it into the feed, in full, this morning for you to listen ahead of the 4th of July.
Our pals at WBUR also just posted the full video on YouTube, so if you want to watch the show, you can do that here.
As always, some America250 links for you to peruse as you get ready for fireworks, hot dogs, complicated feelings about this country’s history, and more…
This part is usually for paying subscribers only, but we’re opening it up for everyone today. If you do want to become a paying subscriber, though, that would be great!
America 250 Links
50 Unique Experiences Across the U.S. to Celebrate America’s 250th
Babies born this year to receive ‘Freedom 250’ Social Security cards, Trump administration says
More America 250 History To Think About 🤔
Flashback 250: The Great U.S. History Quiz - The New York Times
America at 250: A View from Britain, with “The Rest Is History” | The New Yorker Radio Hour
Food defined social hierarchy in 1776. Here’s what was on the table
One last thing: we’re recording a mailbag episode shortly, so if you have any questions, be in touch through the chat thread below, or just email us back.
Happy 4th everyone. Thanks for being part of this semi-quincentennial with us.
-Jody-