America’s biggest idea
The history of the United States is built upon a set of ideas and ideals, expressed by a group of British colonists scattered along the Atlantic seaboard during the...
Articles of Confederation
The Articles of Confederation, often called this Nation's first constitution, defined the former colonies as a confederation of 13 sovereign states bound loosely in a...
Deciphering the code
Messages in secret code traveled across the Atlantic between the peace commissioners and Congress throughout the Revolutionary War. Ciphers like this were used to...
Declaration of Independence
Drafted by Thomas Jefferson between June 11 and June 28, 1776, the Declaration of Independence is at once the nation's most cherished symbol of liberty and...
Here come the stars and the stripes
In the spring of 1780, the second Great Seal committee consulted Francis Hopkinson, designer of the American flag and a signer of the Declaration of Independence. His...
Here come the stars and the stripes
In the spring of 1780, the second Great Seal committee consulted Francis Hopkinson, designer of the American flag and a signer of the Declaration of Independence. His...
Second Design for the Great Seal
On July 4, 1776, the Continental Congress passed a resolution directing that Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, and Thomas Jefferson form a committee to design a seal,...