Ben Franklin's World

As we look ahead to the 250th anniversary—the semiquincentennial—of the Declaration of Independence in 2026, communities and commissions across the United States are asking big questions: How should we commemorate this historic milestone?
What’s the right balance between celebration and education? And how can this moment bring people together across political divides, generational gaps, and complex histories? To explore these questions, I’ve invited my friend, colleague, and Clio Digital Media co-founder Karin Wulf to guest host a special conversation with two people who are leading the way: Gregg Amore, Chair of the Rhode Island 250 Commission, and Carly Fiorina, Chair of the Virginia 250 Commission. Together, they reveal how their states are planning commemorative programs that center civic engagement, local storytelling, and inclusive history—and how the 250th can be more than a moment. It can be a spark. Karin’s Website | Book |Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/427 EPISODE OUTLINE00:00:00  Introduction00:01:10  Welcome & Episode Overview00:04:45  Guest Introductions00:07:32 Virginia & Rhode Island's Commemorative Plans00:11:21 State Efforts and Collaborations00:16:32 Engaging Young People00:20:11 Educational Initiatives00:22:13 Ken Burns's The American Revolution00:24:30 Navigating the Political Climate00:32:05 Reflections on the Bicentennial00:35:00 Challenges to Achieving Commemorative Goals00:42:51 Conclusion and Future Opportunities00:46:53 Final ThoughtsRECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES🎧 Episode 250: Virginia, 1619🎧 Episode 373: The Gaspee Affair🎧 Episode 417: Roger Williams, Rogue Puritan🎧 Episode 416: Lineage: Genealogy in Early America🎧 Episode 424: Dunmore's Proclamation & the American Revolution in Virginia🎧 Episode 425: Ken Burns's The American RevolutionSUPPORT OUR WORK🎁 Make a Donation to Ben Franklin’s WorldREQUEST A TOPIC📨 Topic Request Form📫 [email protected] YOU'RE READY🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter 👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener Community🌍 Join the History Explorers ClubLISTEN 🎧🍎 Apple Podcasts 💚 Spotify 🎶 Amazon Music🛜 PandoraCONNECT🦋 Liz on Bluesky👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn🛜 Liz’s WebsiteSAY THANKS💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts💚 Leave a rating on Spotify*Book links are affiliate links. Every purchase supports the podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcribed - Published: 2 December 2025

Each November, we Americans come together to celebrate Thanksgiving, a holiday that invites us to reflect on gratitude, community, and the stories we tell about our past. But what do we really know about the origins of this holiday? What did the “First Thanksgiving” look like, and who were the people who made it happen? In honor of Thanksgiving, we’re revisiting our 2018 conversation with Rebecca Fraser, author of The Mayflower: The Families, The Voyage, and the Founding of America. This rich conversation offers a look at the English Separatists or Pilgrims who settled in Massachusetts. It explores who they were, why they came to North America, and what their life was like in the early years of Plymouth Colony. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/213RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES🎧 Episode 095: A Tale of Two Bostons🎧 Episode 104: The Saltwater Frontier🎧 Episode 121: The Dutch Moment in the 17th-Century Atlantic World🎧 Episode 182: The Great Awakening in New England🎧 Episode 290: The World of the Wampanoag, Part 1🎧 Episode 291: The World of the Wampanoag, Part 2SUPPORT OUR WORK🎁 Make a Donation to Ben Franklin’s WorldREQUEST A TOPIC📨 Topic Request Form📫 [email protected] YOU'RE READY🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter 👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener Community🌍 Join the History Explorers ClubLISTEN 🎧🍎 Apple Podcasts 💚 Spotify 🎶 Amazon Music🛜 PandoraCONNECT🦋 Liz on Bluesky👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn🛜 Liz’s WebsiteSAY THANKS💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts💚 Leave a rating on Spotify*Book links are affiliate links. Every purchase supports the podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcribed - Published: 25 November 2025

As Thanksgiving approaches, many Americans are gathering to reflect on gratitude, family—and of course—food. It's the time of year when we may think about the so-called "First Thanksgiving" and imagine scenes of Pilgrims and Native peoples gathering in Massachusetts to share in the bounty of their fall harvests. But how much do we really know about the food systems and agricultural knowledge of Indigenous peoples of North America? In what ways were the Wampanoag people able to contribute to this harvest celebration—and what have we gotten wrong about their story? Michael Wise, Associate Professor of History at the University of North Texas and author of Native Foods: Agriculture, Indigeneity, and Settler Colonialism in American History, joins us to challenge four persistent myths about Indigenous food practices. Discover how Native communities shaped and stewarded the land and its agriculture long before European colonists arrived—and why this history matters more than we might think. Michael’s Website | Book |Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/426 EPISODE OUTLINE00:00:00  Introduction00:01:10  Episode Introduction00:03:43 Guest Introduction00:04:30 Myths about Indigenous Agriculture00:11:29  Indigenous and European Gender Roles00:15:56 Wampanoag Agriculture00:17:29 Wampanoag Corn Cultivation00:25:59 Wampanoag Cuisine00:27:52 Indigenous Disspossession in New England00:32:58 Cherokee Agriculture00:37:13 The Cherokee Hunter Myth00:40:53 The Origin of the Myths about Native American Agriculture00:45:40 Future Projects00:47:13 Closing Thoughts & Resources RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES🎧 Episode 131: Thomas Jefferson's Empire of Liberty🎧 Episode 189: The Little Ice Age🎧 Episode 278: Polygamy: An Early American History🎧 Episode 290: The World of the Wampanoag, Pt 1🎧 Episode 291: The World of the Wampanoag, Pt 2🎧 Episode 323: American Expansion and the Political Economy of Plunder SUPPORT OUR WORK🎁 Make a Donation to Ben Franklin’s World REQUEST A TOPIC📨 Topic Request Form📫 [email protected] WHEN YOU'RE READY🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter👩‍💻 BFW Listener Community🌍 The History Explorers Club  LISTEN 🎧🍎 Apple Podcasts 💚 Spotify 🎶 Amazon Music🛜 Pandora CONNECT🦋 Liz on Bluesky👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn🛜 Liz’s Website SAY THANKS💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts💚 Leave a rating on Spotify*Book links are affiliate links. Every purchase supports the podcast. = Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcribed - Published: 18 November 2025

What does it take to bring the American Revolution to life? How can an event that took place 250 years ago be conveyed to us through modern-day film? Ken Burns and his team worked to answer these questions in their new, epic six-part documentary, Ken Burns’ The American Revolution. Their work promises to deepen, complicate, and transform our understanding of the Revolution over 12 hours of film. But how did Burns and his team make this film? What stories did they choose to tell? And what challenges did they face in telling those stories? Sarah Botstein and David Schmidt, the two co-directors of Ken Burns’ The American Revolution, join us for a behind-the-scenes tour of their film and how they made it. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/425 EPISODE OUTLINE00:00:00  Introduction00:03:09 Guest Introduction00:04:42 Becoming Involved in the Documentary00:07:57 Approach to Telling the Story of the Revolution 00:18:57 Images and Representation00:21:53 Challenges Faced00:27:03 Choosing Which Stories to Include00:39:00 Relevance and Meaning of the Revolution00:45:45 Time Warp00:52:15 ConclusionRECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES🎧 Episode 307: History and the American Revolution🎧 Episode 314: Native Americans in Early American Cities🎧 Episode 327: Ken Burns' Benjamin Franklin🎧 Episode 352: James Forten and the Making of the United States🎧 Episode 382: Hessians🎧 Episode 408: The Memory of 1776SUPPORT OUR WORK🎁 Make a Donation to Ben Franklin’s WorldREQUEST A TOPIC📨 Topic Request Form📫 [email protected] YOU'RE READY🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter 👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener CommunityLISTEN 🎧🍎 Apple Podcasts 💚 Spotify 🎶 Amazon Music🛜 PandoraCONNECT🦋 Liz on Bluesky👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn🛜 Liz’s WebsiteSAY THANKS💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts💚 Leave a rating on Spotify*Book links are affiliate links. Every purchase supports the podcast.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcribed - Published: 11 November 2025

In November 1775, as tensions between the British Empire and its rebellious colonies continued to escalate, Virginia’s royal governor made a radical—and to some, terrifying—proclamation: Any enslaved person who fled a revolutionary enslaver and joined the British Army would gain their freedom. Known to history as Dunmore’s Proclamation, this single decree changed the course of the American Revolution in the South. It offered a lifeline to thousands of enslaved men, women, and their families, ignited fierce debates about loyalty and liberty, and revealed deep contradictions at the heart of a revolution that claimed to fight for freedom. In honor of the 250th anniversary of Lord Dunmore’s Proclamation, we’re taking a deeper look at the man behind it: John Murray, Fourth Earl of Dunmore, and at the Revolution in Virginia, which he helped fuel. Our guide for this exploration is Andrew Lawler, an award-winning journalist and author of A Perfect Frenzy: A Royal Governor, His Black Allies, and the Crisis that Spurred the American Revolution. Andrew's Website | Book |Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/424 RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES🎧 Episode 109: The American Enlightenment & Cadwallader Colden🎧 Episode 162: Dunmore's New World🎧 Episode 252: The Highland Soldier in North America🎧 Episode 322: Running From Bondage in Revolutionary America🎧 Episode 333: Disruptions in Yorktown🎧 Episode 398: The Shawnee-Dunmore War, 1774SUPPORT OUR WORK🎁 Make a Donation to Ben Franklin’s WorldREQUEST A TOPIC📨 Topic Request Form📫 [email protected] YOU'RE READY🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter 👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener CommunityLISTEN 🎧🍎 Apple Podcasts 💚 Spotify 🎶 Amazon Music🛜 PandoraCONNECT🦋 Liz on Bluesky👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn🛜 Liz’s WebsiteSAY THANKS💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts💚 Leave a rating on Spotify*Book links are affiliate links. Every purchase supports the podcast. = Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcribed - Published: 4 November 2025

What did it take to end the War for Independence? When we think of the American Revolution's final chapter, we think of the Siege of Yorktown. Between September 28 and October 19, 1781, British forces endured a siege by the Franco-American forces that ultimately led to a triumphant Franco-American victory, British recognition of American independence, and the birth of a new nation. But the real story of the Yorktown victory is far more layered. It involved international alliances, enslaved people seeking freedom, and years of hardship. Today, we're revisiting the events of October 1781 as we revisit Episode 333. In this episode, we join three historians–Marcus Nevius, Ed Ayers, and Gretchen Johnson– who help us uncover: How American, French, and British forces converged at Yorktown The vital role of the French army and navy in securing victory And what this final battle looked like on the ground for soldiers, civilians, and Black Virginians alike Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/333   EPISODE OUTLINE 00:00:00  Introduction 00:03:59 Siege of Yorktown 00:05:13 The British Military Approach 00:08:50 The Importance of Virginia's Regions 00:18:57 The Impact of War on Yorktown 00:28:03 Dunmore's Proclamation and the British Strategy 00:33:44 The British Invasion of Virginia 00:48:00 Aftermath and Legacy 00:55:49 Conclusion RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES 🎧 Episode 162: Dunmore's New World 🎧 Episode 208: Turning Points of the American Revolution 🎧 Episode 250: Virginia, 1619 🎧 Episode 289: Maroonage in the Great Dismal Swamp 🎧 Episode 306: The Horse's Tail 🎧 Episode 332: Occupied Philadelphia SUPPORT OUR WORK 🎁 Make a Donation to Ben Franklin's World REQUEST A TOPIC 📨 Topic Request Form 📫 [email protected] WHEN YOU'RE READY 🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter  👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener Community LISTEN 🎧 🍎 Apple Podcasts  💚 Spotify  🎶 Amazon Music 🛜 Pandora CONNECT 🦋 Liz on Bluesky 👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn 🛜 Liz's Website SAY THANKS 💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts 💚 Leave a rating on Spotify *Book links are affiliate links. Every purchase supports the podcast.

Transcribed - Published: 28 October 2025

Have you ever noticed how conversations about the American Revolution often center on great battles, founding documents, and famous statesmen? What if, instead, we explored that world through the eyes—and the hands—of everyday people who shaped it through art? Zara Anishanslin, Associate Professor of History and Art History at the University of Delaware and Director of its Museum Studies and Public Engagement Program, joins us to uncover the hidden world of artists, artisans, and makers who painted, stitched, and crafted the Revolution into being. Drawing from her book The Painter’s Fire: A Forgotten History of the Artists Who Championed the American Revolution, Zara helps us see how creativity and craftsmanship tell a fuller—and more human—story of America’s founding.Zara’s Website | Book |Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/423  EPISODE OUTLINE 00:00:00  Introduction 00:41.79  Welcome & Episode Overview 00:02:59  Meet Our Guest 00:07:11  The Transatlantic Network of Revolutionary Artists 00:11:28  Why Revolutionary Artwork Didn't Survive 00:14:13  Prince Demah & His Mother Daphny 00:21:21  How Art Patronage Worked in the 18th Century 00:24:01  Finding Prince Demah a Teacher in London 00:27:40  Life as a Black Artist in London 00:41:22  Prince Demah's Life in Revolutionary Boston 00:49:24  Robert Edge Pine: The English Artist Who Supported America 00:59:24  How Revolutionary Art Differs from Later Commemorative Art 01:04:55  What Artists Reveal About the Revolution 01:07:29  Closing Thoughts & Resources RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES🎧 Episode 084: How Historians Read Historical Sources🎧 Episode 106: The World of John Singleton Copley🎧 Episode 201: Art, Politics, and Everyday Life in Early America🎧 Episode 299: Colonial Virginia Portraits🎧 Episode 390: Objects of Revolution🎧 Episode 422: Plantation GoodsSUPPORT OUR WORK🎁 Make a Donation to Ben Franklin’s WorldREQUEST A TOPIC📨 Topic Request Form📫 [email protected] YOU'RE READY🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter 👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener CommunityLISTEN 🎧🍎 Apple Podcasts 💚 Spotify 🎶 Amazon Music🛜 PandoraCONNECT🦋 Liz on Bluesky👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn🛜 Liz’s WebsiteSAY THANKS💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts💚 Leave a rating on Spotify*Book links are affiliate links. Every purchase supports the podcast.   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcribed - Published: 21 October 2025

What does it mean to be caught between two worlds? Between loyalty and liberty, artistry and commerce, and between the British North American colonies and the British Empire? We’re revisiting our exploration of the life of John Singleton Copley, one of early America’s most celebrated portrait artists. Copley’s story reveals much about the upheaval of the American Revolution and the choices people made as events unfolded around them.Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/106 RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES🎧 Bonus: The Boston Stamp Act Riots of 1765🎧 Episode 075: How Archives Work (Paul Revere)🎧 Episode 084: How Historians Read Historical Sources🎧 Episode 136: Material Culture and the Making of America🎧 Episode 201: Art, Politics, and Everyday Life in Early America🎧 Episode 299: Colonial Virginia PortraitsSUPPORT OUR WORK🎁 Make a Donation to Ben Franklin’s WorldREQUEST A TOPIC📨 Topic Request Form📫 [email protected] YOU'RE READY🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter 👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener CommunityLISTEN 🎧🍎 Apple Podcasts 💚 Spotify 🎶 Amazon Music🛜 PandoraCONNECT🦋 Liz on Bluesky👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn🛜 Liz’s WebsiteSAY THANKS💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts💚 Leave a rating on Spotify*Book links are affiliate links. Every purchase supports the podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcribed - Published: 14 October 2025

When we talk about slavery in Early America, we often focus on plantations: their large, fertile fields, their cash crops, and the people who labored on those fields to produce those cash crops under conditions of enslavement. But what about the ordinary objects that made slavery work? The shoes, axes, cloth, and hoes? What can these everyday objects reveal about the economic and social systems that sustained slavery in the early United States?  Seth Rockman, a Professor of History at Brown University and author of Plantation Goods: A Material History of Slavery, which was a finalist for the 2025 Pulitzer Prize in History, joins us to rethink how Northern manufacturing, labor, and commerce were entangled with the southern slave economy. Seth’s Website | Book |Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/422 RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES🎧 Bonus: Lonnie Bunch: History & Historians in the Public🎧 Episode 084: How Historians Read Historical Sources🎧 Episode 244: Shoe Stories from Early America🎧 Episode 281: The Business of Slavery🎧 Episode 390: Objects of Revolution🎧 Episode 406: Threads of PowerSUPPORT OUR WORK🎁 Make a Donation to Ben Franklin’s WorldREQUEST A TOPIC📨 Topic Request Form📫 [email protected] YOU'RE READY🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter 👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener CommunityLISTEN 🎧🍎 Apple Podcasts 💚 Spotify 🎶 Amazon Music🛜 PandoraCONNECT🦋 Liz on Bluesky👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn🛜 Liz’s WebsiteSAY THANKS💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts💚 Leave a rating on Spotify*Book links are affiliate links. Every purchase supports the podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcribed - Published: 7 October 2025

When we talk about slavery in Early America, we often focus on plantations: their large, fertile fields, their cash crops, and the people who labored on those fields to produce those cash crops under conditions of enslavement. But what about the ordinary objects that made slavery work? The shoes, axes, cloth, and hoes? What can these everyday objects reveal about the economic and social systems that sustained slavery in the early United States?  Seth Rockman, a Professor of History at Brown University and author of Plantation Goods: A Material History of Slavery, which was a finalist for the 2025 Pulitzer Prize in History, joins us to rethink how Northern manufacturing, labor, and commerce were entangled with the southern slave economy. Seth's Website | Book | Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/422   RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES 🎧 Bonus: Lonnie Bunch: History & Historians in the Public 🎧 Episode 084: How Historians Read Historical Sources 🎧 Episode 244: Shoe Stories from Early America 🎧 Episode 281: The Business of Slavery 🎧 Episode 390: Objects of Revolution 🎧 Episode 406: Threads of Power SUPPORT OUR WORK 🎁 Make a Donation to Ben Franklin's World REQUEST A TOPIC 📨 Topic Request Form 📫 [email protected] WHEN YOU'RE READY 🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter  👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener Community LISTEN 🎧 🍎 Apple Podcasts  💚 Spotify  🎶 Amazon Music 🛜 Pandora CONNECT 🦋 Liz on Bluesky 👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn 🛜 Liz's Website SAY THANKS 💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts 💚 Leave a rating on Spotify *Book links are affiliate links. Every purchase supports the podcast.

Transcribed - Published: 7 October 2025

When we picture the early United States, we often imagine a young nation fighting for political independence. But what about economic independence—and what did it take to achieve it? Historian Lindsay Schakenbach Regele of Miami University in Ohio joins us to explore how manufacturing became central to the nation's post-Revolution identity. Drawing from her book Manufacturing Advantage: War, the State, and the Origins of American Industry, 1776–1848, Lindsay reveals how the federal government championed industries like firearms and textiles as tools of sovereignty, security, and self-reliance. Tune in to discover: Why early leaders saw manufacturing as essential to independence. 2. How state-sponsored factories shaped key sectors like arms and textiles. 3. How these efforts laid the foundation for America’s industrial and social transformation This episode sheds light on the surprising role of government in jumpstarting the U.S. economy. Lindsay’s Website | Book |Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/298 RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES🎧 Episode 098: Birth of the American Tax Man🎧 Episode 113: Building the Empire State🎧 Episode 140: Nathaniel Bowditch🎧 Episode 281: The Business of Slavery🎧 Episode 292: Craft SUPPORT OUR WORK🎁 Make a Donation to Ben Franklin’s WorldREQUEST A TOPIC📨 Topic Request Form📫 [email protected] YOU'RE READY🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter 👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener CommunityLISTEN 🎧🍎 Apple Podcasts 💚 Spotify 🎶 Amazon Music🛜 PandoraCONNECT🦋 Liz on Bluesky👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn🛜 Liz’s WebsiteSAY THANKS💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts💚 Leave a rating on Spotify*Book links are affiliate links. Every purchase supports the podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcribed - Published: 30 September 2025

What if loyalty, not rebellion, was the default position in revolutionary British North America? It’s easy to forget that before 1776, most colonists identified as proud Britons. They didn’t see themselves as future Americans or revolutionaries; they saw themselves as subjects of a global empire. And in the colony of Georgia, many clung to that identity longer than we might expect. Greg Brooking, a historian of the American Revolution in the South and a high school history and social studies teacher, joins us to explore the American Revolution in Georgia with details from his book From Empire to Revolution: Sir James Wright and the Price of Loyalty in Georgia. Greg’s Website | Book |Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/421 RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES🎧 Episode 126: The Reintegration of American Loyalists🎧 Episode 171: Native Americans, British Colonists, and Trade in North America🎧 Episode 280: The British Are Coming🎧 Episode 409: The Battles of Lexington & Concord, 1775🎧 Episode 413: Dr. Joseph Warren & the Battle of Bunker HillSUPPORT OUR WORK🎁 Make a Donation to Ben Franklin’s WorldREQUEST A TOPIC📨 Topic Request Form📫 [email protected] YOU'RE READY🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter 👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener CommunityLISTEN 🎧🍎 Apple Podcasts 💚 Spotify 🎶 Amazon Music🛜 PandoraCONNECT🦋 Liz on Bluesky👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn🛜 Liz’s WebsiteSAY THANKS💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts💚 Leave a rating on Spotify*Book links are affiliate links. Every purchase supports the podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcribed - Published: 23 September 2025

When we think of the American Revolution, we often focus on the patriots who fought for independence. But what about the Loyalists—those who chose to remain faithful to the British crown? In this episode, we revisit a thought-provoking conversation with historian Brad Jones of Fresno State University, author of Resisting Independence: Popular Loyalism in the Revolutionary British Atlantic. Brad challenges the long-held view of Loyalists as passive or fearful, instead revealing Loyalism as a vibrant political identity shaped by faith, governance, and a broader sense of British belonging.  Listen as we explore: Why the Revolution was also a civil war among neighbors. How Protestantism influenced Loyalist thought. What loyalty meant across the diverse communities of the British Atlantic.  This episode offers a deeper, more nuanced view of the Revolution—and the people who resisted it.Brad’s Website | Book |Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/330RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES🎧 Episode 119: The Heart of the Declaration🎧 Episode 122: The Men Who Lost America🎧 Episode 151: Defining the American Revolution🎧 Episode 232: The Acadian Diaspora🎧 Episode 238: Benedict Arnold🎧 Episode 306: The Horse's Tail SUPPORT OUR WORK🎁 Make a Donation to Ben Franklin’s WorldREQUEST A TOPIC📨 Topic Request Form📫 [email protected] YOU'RE READY🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter 👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener CommunityLISTEN 🎧🍎 Apple Podcasts 💚 Spotify 🎶 Amazon Music🛜 PandoraCONNECT🦋 Liz on Bluesky👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn🛜 Liz’s WebsiteSAY THANKS💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts💚 Leave a rating on Spotify*Book links are affiliate links. Every purchase supports the podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcribed - Published: 16 September 2025

When we think of the American Revolution, we often focus on the patriots who fought for independence. But what about the Loyalists—those who chose to remain faithful to the British crown? In this episode, we revisit a thought-provoking conversation with historian Brad Jones of Fresno State University, author of Resisting Independence: Popular Loyalism in the Revolutionary British Atlantic. Brad challenges the long-held view of Loyalists as passive or fearful, instead revealing Loyalism as a vibrant political identity shaped by faith, governance, and a broader sense of British belonging.  Listen as we explore: Why the Revolution was also a civil war among neighbors. How Protestantism influenced Loyalist thought. What loyalty meant across the diverse communities of the British Atlantic.  This episode offers a deeper, more nuanced view of the Revolution—and the people who resisted it. Brad's Website | Book | Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/330 RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES 🎧 Episode 119: The Heart of the Declaration 🎧 Episode 122: The Men Who Lost America 🎧 Episode 151: Defining the American Revolution 🎧 Episode 232: The Acadian Diaspora 🎧 Episode 238: Benedict Arnold 🎧 Episode 306: The Horse's Tail SUPPORT OUR WORK 🎁 Make a Donation to Ben Franklin's World REQUEST A TOPIC 📨 Topic Request Form 📫 [email protected] WHEN YOU'RE READY 🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter  👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener Community LISTEN 🎧 🍎 Apple Podcasts  💚 Spotify  🎶 Amazon Music 🛜 Pandora CONNECT 🦋 Liz on Bluesky 👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn 🛜 Liz's Website SAY THANKS 💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts 💚 Leave a rating on Spotify *Book links are affiliate links. Every purchase supports the podcast.

Transcribed - Published: 16 September 2025

When we think about the founding of the United States, we often focus on the Constitution, the Founding Fathers, and those first landmark elections. But how did the United States actually build its federal government, the entire apparatus of state that could collect revenue, manage international diplomacy, provide law and order, and extend its reach across a rapidly expanding nation? Who were the people who made that government work? And how did their service to the nation shape what it meant to be an American citizen? Peter Kastor, a Professor of History and American Cultural Studies at Washington University in St. Louis, and the Founder of the Creating a Federal Government, 1789-1829 digital project, joins us to explore the remarkable and often overlooked story of how the United States built its federal government between 1789 and 1829. Peter’s Website | Digital Project |Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/420 RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES🎧 Episode 098: Birth of the American Tax Man🎧 Episode 202: The Early History of the United States Senate🎧 Episode 279: The Cabinet: Creation of an American Institution🎧 Episode 259: American Legal History🎧 Episode 315: History and American Democracy🎧 Episode 338: The Early History of the United States Senate  🎧 Episode  393: Politics and Political Culture in the Early American Republic SUPPORT OUR WORK🎁 Make a Donation to Ben Franklin’s WorldREQUEST A TOPIC📨 Topic Request Form📫 [email protected] YOU'RE READY🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter 👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener CommunityLISTEN 🎧🍎 Apple Podcasts 💚 Spotify 🎶 Amazon Music🛜 PandoraCONNECT🦋 Liz on Bluesky👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn🛜 Liz’s WebsiteSAY THANKS💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts💚 Leave a rating on Spotify*Book links are affiliate links. Every purchase supports the podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcribed - Published: 9 September 2025

When we think about the founding of the United States, we often focus on the Constitution, the Founding Fathers, and those first landmark elections. But how did the United States actually build its federal government, the entire apparatus of state that could collect revenue, manage international diplomacy, provide law and order, and extend its reach across a rapidly expanding nation? Who were the people who made that government work? And how did their service to the nation shape what it meant to be an American citizen? Peter Kastor, a Professor of History and American Cultural Studies at Washington University in St. Louis, and the Founder of the Creating a Federal Government, 1789-1829 digital project, joins us to explore the remarkable and often overlooked story of how the United States built its federal government between 1789 and 1829. Peter's Website | Digital Project | Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/420   RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES 🎧 Episode 098: Birth of the American Tax Man 🎧 Episode 202: The Early History of the United States Senate 🎧 Episode 279: The Cabinet: Creation of an American Institution 🎧 Episode 259: American Legal History 🎧 Episode 315: History and American Democracy 🎧 Episode 338: The Early History of the United States Senate  🎧 Episode  393: Politics and Political Culture in the Early American Republic SUPPORT OUR WORK 🎁 Make a Donation to Ben Franklin's World REQUEST A TOPIC 📨 Topic Request Form 📫 [email protected] WHEN YOU'RE READY 🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter  👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener Community LISTEN 🎧 🍎 Apple Podcasts  💚 Spotify  🎶 Amazon Music 🛜 Pandora CONNECT 🦋 Liz on Bluesky 👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn 🛜 Liz's Website SAY THANKS 💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts 💚 Leave a rating on Spotify *Book links are affiliate links. Every purchase supports the podcast.

Transcribed - Published: 9 September 2025

Each September, Constitution Day marks the signing of the U.S. Constitution on September 17, 1787. But beyond celebration, this commemoration invites deeper reflection: Whose voices helped shape this foundational document? And who was imagined as part of the political community it created? In honor of Constitution Day and Constitution Month, we’re revisiting a pivotal conversation from Episode 339 with constitutional historian Mary Sarah Bilder. Drawing from her book, Female Genius: Eliza Harriot and George Washington at the Dawn of the Constitution, Mary challenges us to reconsider who influenced the Constitution and how women publicly engaged with its political possibilities. Join us as we explore: Eliza Harriot’s advocacy for “female genius” and intellectual equality. Why the Constitution’s gender-neutral language mattered. And, the debates over representation, education, and citizenship in 1787Mary’s Website | Book |Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/339 RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES🎧 Episode 107: Madison's Hand🎧 Episode 137: The Washingtons' Runaway Slave, Ona Judge🎧 Episode 255: Birthright Citizens🎧 Episode 259: American Legal History & the Bill of Rights🎧 Episode 285: Elections & Voting in Early AmericaSUPPORT OUR WORK🎁 Make a Donation to Ben Franklin’s WorldREQUEST A TOPIC📨 Topic Request Form📫 [email protected] YOU'RE READY🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter 👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener CommunityLISTEN 🎧🍎 Apple Podcasts 💚 Spotify 🎶 Amazon Music🛜 PandoraCONNECT🦋 Liz on Bluesky👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn🛜 Liz’s WebsiteSAY THANKS💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts💚 Leave a rating on Spotify*Book links are affiliate links. Every purchase supports the podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcribed - Published: 2 September 2025

Each September, Constitution Day marks the signing of the U.S. Constitution on September 17, 1787. But beyond celebration, this commemoration invites deeper reflection: Whose voices helped shape this foundational document? And who was imagined as part of the political community it created? In honor of Constitution Day and Constitution Month, we're revisiting a pivotal conversation from Episode 339 with constitutional historian Mary Sarah Bilder. Drawing from her book, Female Genius: Eliza Harriot and George Washington at the Dawn of the Constitution, Mary challenges us to reconsider who influenced the Constitution and how women publicly engaged with its political possibilities. Join us as we explore: Eliza Harriot's advocacy for "female genius" and intellectual equality. Why the Constitution's gender-neutral language mattered. And, the debates over representation, education, and citizenship in 1787 Mary's Website | Book | Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/339   RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES 🎧 Episode 107: Madison's Hand 🎧 Episode 137: The Washingtons' Runaway Slave, Ona Judge 🎧 Episode 255: Birthright Citizens 🎧 Episode 259: American Legal History & the Bill of Rights 🎧 Episode 285: Elections & Voting in Early America SUPPORT OUR WORK 🎁 Make a Donation to Ben Franklin's World REQUEST A TOPIC 📨 Topic Request Form 📫 [email protected] WHEN YOU'RE READY 🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter  👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener Community LISTEN 🎧 🍎 Apple Podcasts  💚 Spotify  🎶 Amazon Music 🛜 Pandora CONNECT 🦋 Liz on Bluesky 👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn 🛜 Liz's Website SAY THANKS 💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts 💚 Leave a rating on Spotify *Book links are affiliate links. Every purchase supports the podcast.

Transcribed - Published: 2 September 2025

What happens when the very people meant to uphold justice become the ones exploiting it? In the 1760s, North Carolina farmers watched sheriffs pocket their tax payments, judges rule in favor of corrupt land speculators, and government officials literally steal their land, all while claiming to represent the Crown’s interests. Nathan Schultz, a public historian and the Site Manager at the Alamance Battleground State Historic Site in North Carolina, joins us to explore the North Carolina Regulator Movement. Show Notes:  https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/419 RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES🎧 Episode 330: Loyalism in the British Atlantic World🎧 Episode 356: The Moravian Church in North America🎧 Episode 373: The Gaspee Affair🎧 Episode 374: The American Revolutionary War in the West🎧 Episode 380: The Tory's Wife🎧 Episode 409: The Battles of Lexington & Concord, 1775 SUPPORT OUR WORK🎁 Make a Donation to Ben Franklin’s WorldREQUEST A TOPIC📨 Topic Request Form📫 [email protected] YOU'RE READY🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter 👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener CommunityLISTEN 🎧🍎 Apple Podcasts 💚 Spotify 🎶 Amazon Music🛜 PandoraCONNECT🦋 Liz on Bluesky👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn🛜 Liz’s WebsiteSAY THANKS💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts💚 Leave a rating on Spotify*Book links are affiliate links. Every purchase supports the podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcribed - Published: 26 August 2025

Revolutionary upheaval didn't just reshape governments—it transformed daily life for ordinary families across colonial America.  In this revisited episode, historian Cynthia Kierner reveals the remarkable story of Jane Spurgin, a woman navigating loyalty, survival, and family obligations in Revolutionary-era North Carolina. Through Jane's experience as a Loyalist's wife, we discover how political conflicts reached into homes and communities, forcing women to make difficult choices between personal safety and family loyalty. As we prepare to explore the North Carolina Regulator Movement, Jane's story illuminates the human cost of colonial resistance and the often-overlooked voices of women caught in the crossfire of revolution.  Guest: Cynthia Kierner, Professor of History at George Mason University and author of The Tory's Wife: A Woman and Her Family in Revolutionary America Cynthia's Website | Book | Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/380   RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES 🎧 Episode 085: American Loyalists in Canada 🎧 Episode 126: The Reintegration of American Loyalists 🎧 Episode 237: Motherhood in Early America 🎧 Episode 325: Everyday People of the American Revolution 🎧 Episode 330: Loyalism in the British Atlantic World SUPPORT OUR WORK 🎁 Make a Donation to Ben Franklin's World REQUEST A TOPIC 📨 Topic Request Form 📫 [email protected] WHEN YOU'RE READY 🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter  👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener Community LISTEN 🎧 🍎 Apple Podcasts  💚 Spotify  🎶 Amazon Music 🛜 Pandora CONNECT 🦋 Liz on Bluesky 👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn 🛜 Liz's Website SAY THANKS 💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts 💚 Leave a rating on Spotify *Book links are affiliate links. Every purchase supports the podcast.

Transcribed - Published: 19 August 2025

Revolutionary upheaval didn't just reshape governments—it transformed daily life for ordinary families across colonial America.  In this revisited episode, historian Cynthia Kierner reveals the remarkable story of Jane Spurgin, a woman navigating loyalty, survival, and family obligations in Revolutionary-era North Carolina. Through Jane's experience as a Loyalist's wife, we discover how political conflicts reached into homes and communities, forcing women to make difficult choices between personal safety and family loyalty. As we prepare to explore the North Carolina Regulator Movement, Jane's story illuminates the human cost of colonial resistance and the often-overlooked voices of women caught in the crossfire of revolution.  Guest: Cynthia Kierner, Professor of History at George Mason University and author of The Tory's Wife: A Woman and Her Family in Revolutionary America Cynthia’s Website | Book Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/380 RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES🎧 Episode 085: American Loyalists in Canada🎧 Episode 126: The Reintegration of American Loyalists🎧 Episode 237: Motherhood in Early America🎧 Episode 325: Everyday People of the American Revolution🎧 Episode 330: Loyalism in the British Atlantic WorldSUPPORT OUR WORK🎁 Make a Donation to Ben Franklin’s WorldREQUEST A TOPIC📨 Topic Request Form📫 [email protected] YOU'RE READY🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter 👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener CommunityLISTEN 🎧🍎 Apple Podcasts 💚 Spotify 🎶 Amazon Music🛜 PandoraCONNECT🦋 Liz on Bluesky👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn🛜 Liz’s WebsiteSAY THANKS💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts💚 Leave a rating on Spotify*Book links are affiliate links. Every purchase supports the podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcribed - Published: 19 August 2025

We often learn about slavery in early America through broad economic or political terms—cotton, sugar, markets, revolutions. But what happens when we turn our focus to the lived experiences of enslaved people themselves? What did slavery feel and look like on the ground? What did survival look like day to day? And what do we make of the enslaved people who were forced into positions of authority over others, like the plantation drivers who were tasked with extracting labor from their fellow enslaved workers? Randy Browne, an award-winning historian and Professor of History at Xavier University, joins us to investigate plantation slavery and its driving system with details from his book The Driver's Story: Labor and Power in the World of Atlantic Slavery. Randy's Website | Book | Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/418   RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES 🎧 Episode 281: The Business of Slavery 🎧 Episode 282: Tacky's Revolt 🎧 Episode 289: Maroonage & the Great Dismal Swamp 🎧 Episode 295: The Whitney Plantation & Museum 🎧 Episode 312: The Domestic Slave Trade 🎧 Episode 324: New Netherland & Slavery SUPPORT OUR WORK 🎁 Make a Donation to Ben Franklin's World REQUEST A TOPIC 📨 Topic Request Form 📫 [email protected] WHEN YOU'RE READY 🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter  👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener Community LISTEN 🎧 🍎 Apple Podcasts  💚 Spotify  🎶 Amazon Music 🛜 Pandora CONNECT 🦋 Liz on Bluesky 👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn 🛜 Liz's Website SAY THANKS 💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts 💚 Leave a rating on Spotify *Book links are affiliate links. Every purchase supports the podcast.

Transcribed - Published: 12 August 2025

We often learn about slavery in early America through broad economic or political terms—cotton, sugar, markets, revolutions. But what happens when we turn our focus to the lived experiences of enslaved people themselves? What did slavery feel and look like on the ground? What did survival look like day to day? And what do we make of the enslaved people who were forced into positions of authority over others, like the plantation drivers who were tasked with extracting labor from their fellow enslaved workers? Randy Browne, an award-winning historian and Professor of History at Xavier University, joins us to investigate plantation slavery and its driving system with details from his book The Driver’s Story: Labor and Power in the World of Atlantic Slavery. Randy’s Website | Book Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/418 RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES🎧 Episode 281: The Business of Slavery🎧 Episode 282: Tacky's Revolt🎧 Episode 289: Maroonage & the Great Dismal Swamp🎧 Episode 295: The Whitney Plantation & Museum🎧 Episode 312: The Domestic Slave Trade🎧 Episode 324: New Netherland & Slavery SUPPORT OUR WORK🎁 Make a Donation to Ben Franklin’s World REQUEST A TOPIC📨 Topic Request Form📫 [email protected] WHEN YOU'RE READY🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter 👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener Community LISTEN 🎧🍎 Apple Podcasts 💚 Spotify 🎶 Amazon Music🛜 Pandora CONNECT🦋 Liz on Bluesky👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn🛜 Liz’s Website SAY THANKS💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts💚 Leave a rating on Spotify *Book links are affiliate links. Every purchase supports the podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcribed - Published: 12 August 2025

When we think about slavery in early America, we often rightfully focus on the human toll–the violence, the exploitation, the dehumanization that defined the institution. But slavery wasn’t just a system of forced labor; it was also a business. Next week, in Episode 418, we’ll be investigating a different facet of the business of slavery: the story of slave drivers–enslaved people who were forced or took up positions of authority over others. To better understand the system slave drivers operated within, I thought we should revisit Episode 281 with historian Caitlin Rosenthal. Caitlin is an Associate Professor of History at the University of California, Berkeley. Her book, Accounting for Slavery: Masters and Management, won the Simkins Award from the Southern Historical Association and the Economic Historical Society’s First Book Prize. Caitlin’s Website | Book Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/403 RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES🎧 Episode 173: Colonial Port Cities & Slavery🎧 Episode 176: The Value of the Enslaved from Womb to Grave🎧 Episode 312: The Domestic Slave Trade🎧 Episode 324: New Netherland and Slavery🎧 Episode 386: Sleeping with the Ancestors🎧 Episode 387: California and SlaverySUPPORT OUR WORK🎁 Make a Donation to Ben Franklin’s WorldREQUEST A TOPIC📨 Topic Request Form📫 [email protected] YOU'RE READY🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter 👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener CommunityLISTEN 🎧🍎 Apple Podcasts 💚 Spotify 🎶 Amazon Music🛜 PandoraCONNECT🦋 Liz on Bluesky👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn🛜 Liz’s WebsiteSAY THANKS💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts💚 Leave a rating on Spotify*Book links are affiliate links. Every purchase supports the podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcribed - Published: 5 August 2025

When we think of early American champions of religious liberty, one name often rises above the rest: Roger Williams. Best known as the founder of Rhode Island and a fierce advocate for the separation of church and state, Williams was a man who defied convention at every turn. He turned down a prestigious post in Boston, challenged Puritan orthodoxy, and was ultimately banished—only to build a new colony rooted in his radical ideas of liberty of conscience and religious toleration. In this episode, we explore the life and legacy of this “nonconformist among nonconformists” with the co-editors of Reading Roger Williams: Rogue Puritans, Indigenous Nations, and the Founding of America:  Linford Fisher, Associate Professor of History at Brown University Sheila McIntyre, Professor of History at SUNY Potsdam Julie Fisher, scholar of Native American history Together, they help us uncover: How Williams challenged both church and colonial authority His relationships with Indigenous communities and his work as a translator And why his ideas still matter for understanding religious freedom in America today. Guests' Book Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/417 RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES🎧 Episode 118: The Business of Slavery in Rhode Island🎧 Episode 290: The World of the Wampanoag, Pt. 1🎧 Episode 291: The World of the Wampanoag, Pt. 2🎧 Episode 356: The Moravian Church in North America🎧 Episode 373: The Gaspee Affair🎧 Episode 392: Religion and Race in Early America SUPPORT OUR WORK🎁 Make a Donation to Ben Franklin’s World REQUEST A TOPIC📨 Topic Request Form📫 [email protected] WHEN YOU'RE READY🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter 👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener Community LISTEN 🎧🍎 Apple Podcasts 💚 Spotify 🎶 Amazon Music🛜 Pandora CONNECT🦋 Liz on Bluesky👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn🛜 Liz’s Website SAY THANKS💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts💚 Leave a rating on Spotify *Book links are affiliate links. Every purchase supports the podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcribed - Published: 29 July 2025

Why do we trace our family histories? What drives our desire to know who our ancestors were and how we’re connected to past people and events? Genealogy is often seen as a modern pursuit, spurred by DNA tests and online records–but in reality, early Americans were deeply invested in understanding and documenting their familial ties. Their desire to understand these ties, however, extended far beyond sheer curiosity. Last week, in Episode 416, we were joined by Karin Wulf, who shared with us her now-finished project on genealogy and family history in Lineage: Genealogy and the Politics of Connection in the British Atlantic World. Karin’s book is built on the research she shared with us in 2016, so I thought it would be fun to return to her first conversation with us about her research so we can see how her thoughts, ideas, and her book project changed over time as she did more research and thinking on the subject. Karin’s Website | Book | Instagram Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/114 RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES🎧 Episode 231: The Religious Lives of the Adams Family🎧 Episode 236: Mixed-Race Britons & the Atlantic Family🎧 Episode 278: Polygamy: An Early American History🎧 Episode 354: The Sewing Girl's Tale🎧 Episode 416: Lineage: Genealogy in Early America SUPPORT OUR WORK🎁 Make a Donation to Ben Franklin’s World REQUEST A TOPIC📨 Topic Request Form📫 [email protected] WHEN YOU'RE READY🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter 👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener Community LISTEN 🎧🍎 Apple Podcasts 💚 Spotify 🎶 Amazon Music🛜 Pandora CONNECT🦋 Liz on Bluesky👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn🛜 Liz’s Website SAY THANKS💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts💚 Leave a rating on Spotify *Book links are affiliate links. Every purchase supports the podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcribed - Published: 22 July 2025

Have you ever wondered why genealogy captivates so many people? Whether it’s tracing a family tree back generations or holding on to stories told around the dinner table, genealogy offers a powerful sense of connection—a connection that can shape identities, claims of property, and even arguments for freedom. But genealogy isn’t just a modern-day hobby. In early America, genealogy was a deeply consequential practice with social, political, and legal implications. Karin Wulf, a Professor of History and the Eighth Director and Librarian of the John Carter Brown Library at Brown University, joins us to explore the ways early Americans were interested in their family histories with details from her book, Lineage: Genealogy and the Power of Connection in Early America. Karin’s Website | Book | Instagram Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/403 RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES🎧 Episode 114: The History of Genealogy🎧 Episode 231: The Religious Lives of the Adams Family🎧 Episode 236: Mixed-Race Britons & the Atlantic Family🎧 Episode 278: Polygamy: An Early American History🎧 Episode 296: The Boston Massacre: A Family History🎧 Episode 354: The Sewing Girl's Tale   SUPPORT OUR WORK 🎁  Make a Donation to Ben Franklin’s World  REQUEST A TOPIC📨 Topic Request Form📫 [email protected] WHEN YOU'RE READY🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter 👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener Community LISTEN 🎧🍎 Apple Podcasts 💚 Spotify 🎶 Amazon Music🛜 Pandora CONNECT🦋 Liz on Bluesky👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn🛜 Liz’s Website SAY THANKS💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts💚 Leave a rating on Spotify *Book links are affiliate links. Every purchase supports the podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcribed - Published: 15 July 2025

Have you ever wondered why genealogy captivates so many people? Whether it's tracing a family tree back generations or holding on to stories told around the dinner table, genealogy offers a powerful sense of connection—a connection that can shape identities, claims of property, and even arguments for freedom. But genealogy isn't just a modern-day hobby. In early America, genealogy was a deeply consequential practice with social, political, and legal implications. Karin Wulf, a Professor of History and the Eighth Director and Librarian of the John Carter Brown Library at Brown University, joins us to explore the ways early Americans were interested in their family histories with details from her book, Lineage: Genealogy and the Power of Connection in Early America. Karin's Website | Book | Instagram Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/403   RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES 🎧 Episode 114: The History of Genealogy 🎧 Episode 231: The Religious Lives of the Adams Family 🎧 Episode 236: Mixed-Race Britons & the Atlantic Family 🎧 Episode 278: Polygamy: An Early American History 🎧 Episode 296: The Boston Massacre: A Family History 🎧 Episode 354: The Sewing Girl's Tale   SUPPORT OUR WORK 🎁  Make a Donation to Ben Franklin's World  REQUEST A TOPIC 📨 Topic Request Form 📫 [email protected] WHEN YOU'RE READY 🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter  👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener Community LISTEN 🎧 🍎 Apple Podcasts  💚 Spotify  🎶 Amazon Music 🛜 Pandora CONNECT 🦋 Liz on Bluesky 👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn 🛜 Liz's Website SAY THANKS 💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts 💚 Leave a rating on Spotify *Book links are affiliate links. Every purchase supports the podcast.

Transcribed - Published: 15 July 2025

The Declaration of Independence is one of the most iconic documents in United States history. But what do we really know about how it came to be? In our most recent episode, historian Emily Sneff helped us explore the Declaration through your questions–questions that revealed just how complex, living, and contested this document still is. So in today’s Revisited episode, we take a listen to the podcast that Emily helped to produce back in 2017: Episode 141: A Declaration in Draft. Originally part of the Omohundro Institute’s Doing History: To the Revolution! Series, this episode features three distinguished scholars: Danielle Allen, Patrick Spero, and Peter Onuf, Together, these scholars reveal that many hands and minds shaped the Declaration of Independence. They also help us dive into some of the document’s contradictions around slavery and equality. Emily’s Website  Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/415 RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES🎧 Episode 018: Our Declaration🎧 Episode 245: Celebrating the Fourth🎧 Episode 277: Whose Fourth of July?🎧 Episode 388: John Hancock🎧 Episode 394: The Pursuit of Happiness🎧 Episode 415: The Many Declarations of Independence REQUEST A TOPIC📨 Topic Request Form📫 [email protected] WHEN YOU'RE READY🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter 👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener Community LISTEN 🎧🍎 Apple Podcasts 💚 Spotify 🎶 Amazon Music🛜 Pandora CONNECT🦋 Liz on Bluesky👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn🛜 Liz’s Website SAY THANKS💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts💚 Leave a rating on Spotify Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcribed - Published: 8 July 2025

Preview of Karin Wulf’s book, Lineage: Genealogy and the Power of Connection in Early America. In eighteenth-century America, genealogy was more than a simple record of family ties--it was a powerful force that shaped society. Lineage delves into an era where individuals, families, and institutions meticulously documented their connections. Whether driven by personal passion or mandated by churches, local governments, and courts, these records appeared in diverse forms-from handwritten notes and account books to intricate silk threads and enduring stone carvings. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcribed - Published: 3 July 2025

When you picture the Declaration of Independence, what comes to mind? Most people envision a single, iconic document–parchment, signatures, maybe even a scene from National Treasure. But what if I told you, the Declaration of Independence isn’t just one document, but many documents? And that each version of the Declaration tells a different story–a story not just about American independence, but about the people who printed, read, preserved, and even re-wrote the Declaration? Emily Sneff is one of the leading experts on the Declaration of Independence. She has spent more than a decade researching the Declaration’s origins, and its different copies. She’s the former research manager of the Declaration Resources Project at Harvard, a consulting curator for Revolution 250 exhibits at the Museum of the American Revolution and the American Philosophical Society, and I’m proud to say, she’s is one of our former interns here at Ben Franklin’s World. Emily’s Website  Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/415 RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES🎧 Episode 018: Our Declaration🎧 Episode 141: A Declaration in Draft 🎧 Episode 245: Celebrating the Fourth of July🎧 Episode 277: Whose Fourth of July?🎧 Episode 388: John Hancock🎧 Episode 394: The Pursuit of Happiness REQUEST A TOPIC📨 Topic Request Form📫 [email protected] WHEN YOU'RE READY🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter 👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener Community LISTEN 🎧🍎 Apple Podcasts 💚 Spotify 🎶 Amazon Music🛜 Pandora CONNECT🦋 Liz on Bluesky👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn🛜 Liz’s Website SAY THANKS💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts💚 Leave a rating on Spotify Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcribed - Published: 1 July 2025

When you picture the Declaration of Independence, what comes to mind? Most people envision a single, iconic document–parchment, signatures, maybe even a scene from National Treasure. But what if I told you, the Declaration of Independence isn't just one document, but many documents? And that each version of the Declaration tells a different story–a story not just about American independence, but about the people who printed, read, preserved, and even re-wrote the Declaration? Emily Sneff is one of the leading experts on the Declaration of Independence. She has spent more than a decade researching the Declaration's origins, and its different copies. She's the former research manager of the Declaration Resources Project at Harvard, a consulting curator for Revolution 250 exhibits at the Museum of the American Revolution and the American Philosophical Society, and I'm proud to say, she's is one of our former interns here at Ben Franklin's World. Emily's Website  Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/415   RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES 🎧 Episode 018: Our Declaration 🎧 Episode 141: A Declaration in Draft  🎧 Episode 245: Celebrating the Fourth of July 🎧 Episode 277: Whose Fourth of July? 🎧 Episode 388: John Hancock 🎧 Episode 394: The Pursuit of Happiness REQUEST A TOPIC 📨 Topic Request Form 📫 [email protected] WHEN YOU'RE READY 🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter  👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener Community LISTEN 🎧 🍎 Apple Podcasts  💚 Spotify  🎶 Amazon Music 🛜 Pandora CONNECT 🦋 Liz on Bluesky 👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn 🛜 Liz's Website SAY THANKS 💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts 💚 Leave a rating on Spotify

Transcribed - Published: 1 July 2025

How do we uncover queer lives from the distant past, especially in an era when language and records often erased or obscured them? What did queerness look like in early America, and how might it have intersected with power, religion, and empire on the eve of the American Revolution?  John McCurdy, a Professor of History and Philosophy at Eastern Michigan University and the author of Vicious and Immoral: Homosexuality, the American Revolution, and the Trials of Robert Newburgh, joins us to explore these questions through the remarkable story of British Army Chaplain Robert Newburgh. John's EMU Webpage | Book  Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/414  RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES🎧 Episode 002: "That's So Gay" Exhibit, Library Company🎧 Episode 004: Sex and the Founding Fathers🎧 Episode 013: Charity & Sylvia: A Same-Sex Marriage in Early America🎧 Episode 278: Polygamy: An Early American History🎧 Episode 354: The Sewing Girl's Tale🎧 Episode 359: Transing Gender in Early America REQUEST A TOPIC📨 Topic Request Form📫 [email protected] WHEN YOU'RE READY🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter 👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener Community LISTEN 🎧🍎 Apple Podcasts 💚 Spotify 🎶 Amazon Music🛜 Pandora CONNECT🦋 Liz on Bluesky👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn🛜 Liz’s Website SAY THANKS💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts💚 Leave a rating on Spotify Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcribed - Published: 24 June 2025

June 17, 2025, marks the 250th anniversary of the Battle of Bunker Hill, the first full-scale battle of what would become the American War for Independence. Although technically a British victory, Bunker Hill proved that colonial soldiers could hold their own against the might of the British Empire. New England militiamen inflicted 1,054 casualties on the British, 50 percent of the British force. The New Englanders sustained 411 casualties that day, including the man who stood at the heart of this battle: Dr. Joseph Warren. Who was Dr. Joseph Warren, and why did he risk his life in the first major battle of the Revolutionary War? What drove this physician, political thinker, and revolutionary leader to become the face of the American Revolution in Boston? Christian Di Spigna, Executive Director of the Dr. Joseph Warren Foundation, joins us to explore these questions and commemorate this important anniversary with details from his book, Founding Martyr: The Life and Death of Dr. Joseph Warren, the American Revolution's Lost Hero. Christian's Foundation | Book  Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/413   RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES 🎧 Episode 130: Paul Revere's Ride Through History 🎧 Episode 301: From Innoculation to Vaccination, Part 1 🎧 Episode 350: The Revolutionary Samuel Adams 🎧 Episode 388: John Hancock 🎧 Episode 409: The Battles of Lexington & Concord REQUEST A TOPIC 📨 Topic Request Form 📫 [email protected] WHEN YOU'RE READY 🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter  👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener Community LISTEN 🎧 🍎 Apple Podcasts  💚 Spotify  🎶 Amazon Music 🛜 Pandora CONNECT 🦋 Liz on Bluesky 👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn 🛜 Liz's Website SAY THANKS 💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts 💚 Leave a rating on Spotify

Transcribed - Published: 17 June 2025

June 17, 2025, marks the 250th anniversary of the Battle of Bunker Hill, the first full-scale battle of what would become the American War for Independence. Although technically a British victory, Bunker Hill proved that colonial soldiers could hold their own against the might of the British Empire. New England militiamen inflicted 1,054 casualties on the British, 50 percent of the British force. The New Englanders sustained 411 casualties that day, including the man who stood at the heart of this battle: Dr. Joseph Warren. Who was Dr. Joseph Warren, and why did he risk his life in the first major battle of the Revolutionary War? What drove this physician, political thinker, and revolutionary leader to become the face of the American Revolution in Boston? Christian Di Spigna, Executive Director of the Dr. Joseph Warren Foundation, joins us to explore these questions and commemorate this important anniversary with details from his book, Founding Martyr: The Life and Death of Dr. Joseph Warren, the American Revolution’s Lost Hero. Christian’s Foundation | Book  Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/413 RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES🎧 Episode 130: Paul Revere's Ride Through History🎧 Episode 301: From Innoculation to Vaccination, Part 1🎧 Episode 350: The Revolutionary Samuel Adams🎧 Episode 388: John Hancock🎧 Episode 409: The Battles of Lexington & Concord REQUEST A TOPIC📨 Topic Request Form📫 [email protected] WHEN YOU'RE READY🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter 👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener Community LISTEN 🎧🍎 Apple Podcasts 💚 Spotify 🎶 Amazon Music🛜 Pandora CONNECT🦋 Liz on Bluesky👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn🛜 Liz’s Website SAY THANKS💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts💚 Leave a rating on Spotify Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcribed - Published: 17 June 2025

Juneteenth, the holiday that commemorates the end of slavery in the United States, is nearly upon us, and it offers us the perfect moment for reflection. What do we know about Juneteenth? Where did this holiday begin? And how has it grown from a regional commemoration into a national conversation about freedom, equality, and memory? In this episode, we return to our conversation with Annette Gordon-Reed in Episode 304. A native Texan and Pulitzer Prize-winning historian, Annette brings both personal insight and deep historical knowledge to her book On Juneteenth, which is a rich meditation on Texas history, African American identity, and the long arc of emancipation. Annette’s Website | Book | Bluesky Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/304 RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES🎧 Episode 067: Cattle Colonialism🎧 Episode 115: The Early History of Texas🎧 Episode 117: The Life and Ideas of Thomas Jefferson🎧 Episode 139: The Other Slavery🎧 Episode 281: The Business of Slavery🎧 Episode 282: Tacky's Revolt REQUEST A TOPIC📨 Topic Request Form📫 [email protected] WHEN YOU'RE READY🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter 👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener Community LISTEN 🎧🍎 Apple Podcasts 💚 Spotify 🎶 Amazon Music🛜 Pandora CONNECT🦋 Liz on Bluesky👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn🛜 Liz’s Website SAY THANKS💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts💚 Leave a rating on Spotify Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcribed - Published: 10 June 2025

It might surprise you, but in the 18th century, people across the globe were reckoning with colder-than-usual weather brought on by the Little Ice Age—a centuries-long chill that made heating homes more urgent than ever. At the same time, early Americans were cutting down trees at an unsustainable pace to stay warm. Enter Benjamin Franklin. In this episode, Harvard historian Joyce Chaplin joins us to explore how Franklin tackled this problem by designing five different stove models, and what these innovations reveal about early American science, sustainability, and life with fire. Joyce’s Website | Book Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/412 RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES🎧 Episode 015: Round About the Earth: Circumnavigation from Magellan to Orbit🎧 Episode 086: Benjamin Franklin in London🎧 Episode 169: The Religious Life of Benjamin Franklin🎧 Episode 189: The Little Ice Age🎧 Episode 207: Young Benjamin Franklin🎧 Episode 397: Native Nations REQUEST A TOPIC📨 Topic Request Form📫 [email protected] WHEN YOU'RE READY🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter 👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener Community LISTEN 🎧🍎 Apple Podcasts 💚 Spotify 🎶 Amazon Music🛜 Pandora CONNECT🦋 Liz on Bluesky👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn🛜 Liz’s Website SAY THANKS💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts💚 Leave a rating on Spotify Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcribed - Published: 3 June 2025

To commemorate the 250th anniversary of the Second Continental Congress, this episode revisits the origins of the United States Congress and how early Americans built a representative government from revolutionary ideals. Historians Matt Wasniewski and Terrence Ruckner of the Office of the Historian of the U.S. House of Representatives join us to explore how Congress evolved from its colonial and revolutionary predecessors into the bicameral legislature established by the Constitution. House History Office Website Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/202 RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES🎧 Episode 040: For Fear of an Elected King🎧 Episode 078: Washington Brotherhood🎧 Episode 153: Governments of the American Revolution🎧 Episode 179: Governance During the Critical Period🎧 Episode 338: The Early History of the United States Senate REQUEST A TOPIC📨 Topic Request Form📫 [email protected] WHEN YOU'RE READY🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter 👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener Community LISTEN 🎧🍎 Apple Podcasts 💚 Spotify 🎶 Amazon Music🛜 Pandora CONNECT🦋 Liz on Bluesky👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn🛜 Liz’s Website SAY THANKS💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts💚 Leave a rating on Spotify Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcribed - Published: 27 May 2025

Two hundred fifty years ago, in May 1775, delegates from thirteen British North American colonies gathered in Philadelphia for the Second Continental Congress.  Why was Philadelphia chosen as the seat of Congress? What made the city a critical hub for revolutionary ideas, commerce, and culture? And how has Philadelphia's early history shaped the broader narrative of American Independence?  Paul Kahan, a historian of American political, economic, and urban history, joins us to explore Philadelphia's early American history with details from his book. Philadelphia: A Narrative History, the first comprehensive history book about Philadelphia in over 40 years. Paul's Website | Book  Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/411   RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES 🎧 Episode 153: Committees and Congresses: Governments of the American Revolution 🎧 Episode 242: A History of Early Delaware 🎧 Episode 332: Experiences of Revolution, Pt 1: Occupied Philadelphia 🎧 Episode 352: James Forten and the Making of the United States 🎧 Episode 379: Women Healers in Early America 🎧 Episode 396: Carpenters' Hall and the First Continental Congress 🎧 Episode 402: Clocks, Watches, and Life in Early America REQUEST A TOPIC 📨 Topic Request Form 📫 [email protected] WHEN YOU'RE READY 🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter  👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener Community LISTEN 🎧 🍎 Apple Podcasts  💚 Spotify  🎶 Amazon Music 🛜 Pandora CONNECT 🦋 Liz on Bluesky 👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn 🛜 Liz's Website SAY THANKS 💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts 💚 Leave a rating on Spotify

Transcribed - Published: 20 May 2025

Two hundred fifty years ago, in May 1775, delegates from thirteen British North American colonies gathered in Philadelphia for the Second Continental Congress.  Why was Philadelphia chosen as the seat of Congress? What made the city a critical hub for revolutionary ideas, commerce, and culture? And how has Philadelphia’s early history shaped the broader narrative of American Independence?  Paul Kahan, a historian of American political, economic, and urban history, joins us to explore Philadelphia’s early American history with details from his book. Philadelphia: A Narrative History, the first comprehensive history book about Philadelphia in over 40 years. Paul’s Website | Book  Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/411 RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES🎧 Episode 153: Committees and Congresses: Governments of the American Revolution🎧 Episode 242: A History of Early Delaware🎧 Episode 332: Experiences of Revolution, Pt 1: Occupied Philadelphia🎧 Episode 352: James Forten and the Making of the United States🎧 Episode 379: Women Healers in Early America🎧 Episode 396: Carpenters' Hall and the First Continental Congress🎧 Episode 402: Clocks, Watches, and Life in Early America REQUEST A TOPIC📨 Topic Request Form📫 [email protected] WHEN YOU'RE READY🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter 👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener Community LISTEN 🎧🍎 Apple Podcasts 💚 Spotify 🎶 Amazon Music🛜 Pandora CONNECT🦋 Liz on Bluesky👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn🛜 Liz’s Website SAY THANKS💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts💚 Leave a rating on Spotify Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcribed - Published: 20 May 2025

What did friendship between men and women look like in the decades following the American Revolution? Could emotional closeness and intellectual kinship flourish outside of marriage— and without scandal? In this episode, we revisit our earlier conversation with historian Cassandra Good, author of Founding Friendships: Friendships between Men and Women in the Early American Republic. Building on our recent exploration of love and advice in 1690s England, we take a closer look at how early Americans navigated the shifting social norms of gender, intimacy, and platonic relationships. Cassie’s Website | Book Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/094 REQUEST A TOPIC📨 Topic Request Form📫 [email protected] WHEN YOU'RE READY🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter 👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener Community LISTEN 🎧🍎 Apple Podcasts 💚 Spotify 🎶 Amazon Music🛜 Pandora CONNECT🦋 Liz on Bluesky👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn🛜 Liz’s Website SAY THANKS💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts💚 Leave a rating on Spotify Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcribed - Published: 12 May 2025

This is a 30-second trailer for Ben Franklin's World.

Published: 8 May 2025

This is a 30-second trailer for Ben Franklin's World. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcribed - Published: 8 May 2025

When did people begin seeking anonymous advice for their most profound personal dilemmas? What can the answers to their early questions tell us about the emotional lives of people in the past?  We’re traveling back in time to 1690s England to explore the world’s first personal advice column, The Athenian Mercury. This two-sided broadsheet publication invited readers to send in questions about anything–from science and religion to love and marriage– and its creators, a small group of Londoners who dubbed themselves the “Athenian Society,” answered these queries with a surprising blend of wit, morality, and insight. Joining us for this investigation is Mary Beth Norton, the Mary Donlon Alger Professor Emerita at Cornell University and award-winning historian who is a trailblazer in the field of early American women's history. Mary Beth's Bio | Book Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/410 RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES🎧 Episode 094: Founding Friendships🎧 Episode 112: The Tea Crisis of 1773🎧 Episode 155: Pauline Maier's American Revolution🎧 Episode 294: 1774, The Long Year of Revolution REQUEST A TOPIC📨 Topic Request Form📫 [email protected] WHEN YOU'RE READY🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter 👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener Community LISTEN 🎧🍎 Apple Podcasts 💚 Spotify 🎶 Amazon Music🛜 Pandora CONNECT🦋 Liz on Bluesky👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn🛜 Liz’s Website SAY THANKS💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts💚 Leave a rating on Spotify Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcribed - Published: 6 May 2025

When did people begin seeking anonymous advice for their most profound personal dilemmas? What can the answers to their early questions tell us about the emotional lives of people in the past?  We're traveling back in time to 1690s England to explore the world's first personal advice column, The Athenian Mercury. This two-sided broadsheet publication invited readers to send in questions about anything–from science and religion to love and marriage– and its creators, a small group of Londoners who dubbed themselves the "Athenian Society," answered these queries with a surprising blend of wit, morality, and insight. Joining us for this investigation is Mary Beth Norton, the Mary Donlon Alger Professor Emerita at Cornell University and award-winning historian who is a trailblazer in the field of early American women's history. Mary Beth's Bio | Book Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/410   RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES 🎧 Episode 094: Founding Friendships 🎧 Episode 112: The Tea Crisis of 1773 🎧 Episode 155: Pauline Maier's American Revolution 🎧 Episode 294: 1774, The Long Year of Revolution REQUEST A TOPIC 📨 Topic Request Form 📫 [email protected] WHEN YOU'RE READY 🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter  👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener Community LISTEN 🎧 🍎 Apple Podcasts  💚 Spotify  🎶 Amazon Music 🛜 Pandora CONNECT 🦋 Liz on Bluesky 👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn 🛜 Liz's Website SAY THANKS 💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts 💚 Leave a rating on Spotify

Published: 6 May 2025

Paul Revere’s Midnight Ride is one of the most famous events in American history. On the night of April 18, 1775, Revere set out to warn the Massachusetts countryside that British regulars were marching to seize rebel supplies in Concord. Revere’s name has become legendary, immortalized in Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s famous poem, The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere. But how much do we really know about Paul Revere beyond that single night? In this revisited episode, we’ll explore the history and memory of Paul Revere. Why has he endured as a national icon, while other revolutionary couriers and figures have faded from public consciousness? How does the story of Revere’s ride illustrate the power of historical memory? And what does Revere’s real life—beyond that one night—tell us about the American Revolution and the ways we remember it? Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/130 REQUEST A TOPIC 📨 Topic Request Form 📫 [email protected] WHEN YOU'RE READY 🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter  👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener Community LISTEN 🎧 🍎 Apple Podcasts  💚 Spotify  🎶 Amazon Music 🛜 Pandora CONNECT 🦋 Liz on Bluesky 👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn 🛜 Liz’s Website SAY THANKS 💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts 💚 Leave a rating on Spotify Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcribed - Published: 29 April 2025

Paul Revere's Midnight Ride is one of the most famous events in American history. On the night of April 18, 1775, Revere set out to warn the Massachusetts countryside that British regulars were marching to seize rebel supplies in Concord. Revere's name has become legendary, immortalized in Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's famous poem, The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere. But how much do we really know about Paul Revere beyond that single night? In this revisited episode, we'll explore the history and memory of Paul Revere. Why has he endured as a national icon, while other revolutionary couriers and figures have faded from public consciousness? How does the story of Revere's ride illustrate the power of historical memory? And what does Revere's real life—beyond that one night—tell us about the American Revolution and the ways we remember it? Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/130 REQUEST A TOPIC 📨 Topic Request Form 📫 [email protected] WHEN YOU'RE READY 🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter  👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener Community LISTEN 🎧 🍎 Apple Podcasts  💚 Spotify  🎶 Amazon Music 🛜 Pandora CONNECT 🦋 Liz on Bluesky 👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn 🛜 Liz's Website SAY THANKS 💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts 💚 Leave a rating on Spotify

Published: 29 April 2025

April 19, 2025 marked the 250th anniversary of the Battles of Lexington and Concord—the moment the American Revolution turned from protest to war. What do we really know about that fateful day? How did the people of Concord prepare for what they faced in April 1775? David Wood, the longtime curator of the Concord Museum and the author of Eyewitness to Revolution: The American Revolution in the Concord Museum, joins us to explore answers to these questions. Concord Museum Website | Book | Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/409   RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES 🎧 Episode 112: The Tea Crisis of 1773 🎧 Episode 129: The Road to Concord 🎧 Episode 130: Paul Revere's Ride Through History 🎧 Episode 158: The Revolutionaries' Army 🎧 Episode 229: The Townshend Moment 🎧 Episode 401: Tea, Boycotts, and Revolution REQUEST A TOPIC 📨 Topic Request Form 📫 [email protected] WHEN YOU'RE READY 🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter  👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener Community LISTEN 🎧 🍎 Apple Podcasts  💚 Spotify  🎶 Amazon Music 🛜 Pandora CONNECT 🦋 Liz on Bluesky 👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn 🛜 Liz's Website SAY THANKS 💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts 💚 Leave a rating on Spotify

Transcribed - Published: 22 April 2025

April 19, 2025 marked the 250th anniversary of the Battles of Lexington and Concord—the moment the American Revolution turned from protest to war. What do we really know about that fateful day? How did the people of Concord prepare for what they faced in April 1775? David Wood, the longtime curator of the Concord Museum and the author of Eyewitness to Revolution: The American Revolution in the Concord Museum, joins us to explore answers to these questions. Concord Museum Website | Book | Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/409 RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES 🎧 Episode 112: The Tea Crisis of 1773 🎧 Episode 129: The Road to Concord 🎧 Episode 130: Paul Revere's Ride Through History 🎧 Episode 158: The Revolutionaries' Army 🎧 Episode 229: The Townshend Moment 🎧 Episode 401: Tea, Boycotts, and Revolution REQUEST A TOPIC 📨 Topic Request Form 📫 [email protected] WHEN YOU'RE READY 🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter  👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener Community LISTEN 🎧 🍎 Apple Podcasts  💚 Spotify  🎶 Amazon Music 🛜 Pandora CONNECT 🦋 Liz on Bluesky 👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn 🛜 Liz’s Website SAY THANKS 💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts 💚 Leave a rating on Spotify Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcribed - Published: 22 April 2025

April 2025 marks the 250th anniversary of the Battles of Lexington and Concord. One of the lesser-known catalysts for these battles was the hunt for artillery. The British military, under General Thomas Gage, sought to seize weapons stockpiled by colonial militias, while Massachusetts Patriots scrambled to secure and hide weapons. This tug-of-war over firepower played a crucial role in pushing Massachusetts from political resistance to armed conflict. To better understand how Massachusetts got to this point, we’re revisiting Episode 129: The Road to Concord, with historian J.L. Bell. John is the author of The Road to Concord: How Four Stolen Cannon Ignited the Revolutionary War and the prolific blogger behind Boston 1775.net. John’s Website | Book  Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/129   RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES 🎧 Episode 039: The Royalist Revolution 🎧 Episode 046: The American Revolution & The War That Won It 🎧 Episode 112: The Tea Crisis of 1773 🎧 Episode 130: Paul Revere's Ride Through History 🎧 Bonus: Stamp Act of 1765 REQUEST A TOPIC 📨 Topic Request Form 📫 [email protected] WHEN YOU'RE READY 🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter  👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener Community LISTEN 🎧 🍎 Apple Podcasts  💚 Spotify  🎶 Amazon Music 🛜 Pandora CONNECT 🦋 Liz on Bluesky 👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn 🛜 Liz’s Website SAY THANKS 💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts 💚 Leave a rating on Spotify Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcribed - Published: 15 April 2025