THE LOUISIANA PURCHASE
Expansion, Exploration and the Price of Growth “The republic grew across a continent already inhabited-and every mile of growth enlarged…
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THE REPUBLIC TAKES ROOT
Between 1789 and 1801, Americans created institutions the Constitution had only sketched: departments, courts, a cabinet, public credit, a national…
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THE REVOLUTION OF 1800
The election of 1800 pitted Adams against Jefferson amid fierce newspaper warfare, accusations of tyranny and warnings that either religion…
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My American Dream: A Journey of Opportunity, Achievement, Service, and Gratitude
BY Gobind Munjal As the United States celebrates the historic milestone of its 250th year of independence, I reflect with…
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ADAMS, FEAR AND THE LIMITS OF DISSENT
ohn Adams became president in 1797 after a bitter election. France, angered by Jay's Treaty, seized American ships. American envoys…
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REVOLUTION ABROAD, NEUTRALITY AT HOME
The French Revolution divided Americans. DemocraticRepublicans celebrated its republican promise; Federalists increasingly recoiled from its violence and feared radicalism at…
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THE WHISKEY REBELLION
Hamilton's excise tax on distilled spirits fell heavily upon western farmers, for whom whiskey was a marketable form of grain…
Read MoreTHE FRONTIER AND INDIGENOUS SOVEREIGNTY
The new government inherited conflict in the Ohio country, where Indigenous nations rejected American claims based upon the Treaty of…
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TWO VISIONS, ONE CABINET HAMILTON’S AMERI
Hamilton envisioned a diversified economy of commerce, manufacturing and agriculture supported by public credit, national institutions and close trade with…
Read MoreHAMILTON BUILDS NATIONAL CREDIT
The Revolution left the United States burdened with national and state debts. Hamilton believed public credit was essential to independence,…
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THE EARLY REPUBLIC
Washington, Hamilton, Jefferson and the Test of Self-Government “The Constitution provided a framework. The first generation had to turn parchment…
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A LIVING FRAMEWORK
The Constitution is the world's oldest written national constitution still in continuous operation, but continuity has required change. Twenty-seven amendments…
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THE BILL OF RIGHTS
J ames Madison introduced amendments in the First Congress, drawing upon state declarations of rights and ratification proposals. Congress sent…
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RATIFICATION: THE PEOPLE ARGUE
The Convention signed the Constitution on September 17, 1787. It would take effect after ratification by nine state conventions. The…
Read More“WE THE PEOPLE” – AND WHO COUNTED
"We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union… The Preamble begins not "We…
Read MoreTHE COMPROMISE WITH SLAVERY
The Constitution avoided the words slave and slavery, but it protected the institution through structure and compromise. This was not…
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A GOVERNMENT OF DIVIDED POWER
The framers sought a national government strong enough to tax, regulate commerce, conduct foreign affairs, provide defense and enforce law.…
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THE CONVENTION: COMPROMISE IN A CLOSED ROOM
Fifty-five delegates attended at various times; thirty-nine ultimately signed. They were lawyers, merchants, planters, physicians, soldiers and public officials-experienced and…
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THE PROMISE AND THE CONTRADICTION
The assertion that all men are created equal was revolutionary in scope and radically incomplete in application. The political community…
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A DOCUMENT WITH FOUR MOVEMENTS
1. THE RIGHT TO DECLARE The opening states that when one people separates from another, respect for the "opinions of…
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THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE
The Idea That Gave Birth to a Nation “The war won a nation. The Declaration gave the nation its soul.”…
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YORKTOWN AND AN UNCERTAIN PEACE
I n 1781, British General Charles Cornwallis established a base at Yorktown, Virginia. Washington and the French commander Rochambeau moved…
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WAR MOVES SOUTH
After failing to crush the Revolution in the North, Britain shifted its main effort southward, expecting substantial Loyalist support. Savannah…
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MANY PEOPLES, DIFFERENT REVOLUTIONS
WOMEN Women managed farms and businesses, produced military supplies, raised funds, carried messages and cared for the sick. Camp followers…
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SARATOGA, ALLIANCE AND VALLEY FORGE
In 1777, Britain pursued a plan to isolate New England by advancing from Canada down the Hudson corridor. American forces…
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DISASTER, RETREAT AND A WINTER GAMBLE
Britain returned in overwhelming strength to New York during the summer of 1776. Washington's army suffered defeat on Long Island…
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Revolution : The War for Independence, 1775-1783
“Independence was declared in words. It had to be sustained by sacrifice, endurance, alliance and war.” AN ARMY BEFORE A…
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“The argument had become a rebellion. The rebellion had not yet become independence.”
By early 1775, Massachusetts resistance had become organized and armed. Provincial leaders gathered military supplies at Concord; militia companies trained…
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TEA AND PUNISHMENT
In 1773, Parliament passed the Tea Act. It allowed the financially troubled East India Company to sell tea directly in…
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TROOPS, BLOOD AND THE POWER OF AN IMAGE
The Townshend duties of 1767 taxed imported glass, lead, paper, paint and tea. Colonists renewed boycotts, while customs enforcement intensified.…
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