Happy Semiquincentennial

      It would be remiss not to post for this notable 250th anniversary of our nation. I remember well the anticipation of the 1976 Bicentennial. Time has flown and picked up speed along the way!
      Now at 250 years, after the picnics and fireworks are over, there may be curiosity about the events leading up to the break with England, the politics of uniting separate colonies to defy perceived oppression, and the willingness to discard security and peace for a new beginning.

          The generation that made the impossible leap from dependent outpost to a new nation never forgot how improbable the feat truly was. I love reading early 19th Century newspaper accounts of Independence Day celebrations. The following newspaper clipping comes from the July 11, 1834 Truth Teller and District Stateman:

The Truth Teller and District Sentinel newspaper of July 11, 1834 describes Jackson's recent Independence Day celebration. 

          Two books from our collection may be of interest to provide more information on the Revolution and early days of Tennessee.

           The first featured book is The American Revolution: an Intimate History by Geoffrey C. Ward and Ken Burns. It is the companion book to the excellent 12-hour series that premiered on public television this past spring. 

            The book is full of the maps, paintings, and accounts used for the documentary. The sources delve into the grievances and ensuing events unfolding in the colonies. It is well indexed, and has an extensive bibliography.

   The second helpful book is more relevant to Tennessee. It is Patriots to Pioneers: the First Tennessee Volunteers by the Tennessee Society Daughters of the American Revolution. It was published in 2024 and is beautifully illustrated by renowned artist David Wright.

            The Patriots book has information on events involving the territory that would enter the United States in 1796 as the State of Tennessee. It has summaries, maps and paintings of the area involving the Overmountain Men and the Battle of King’s Mountain. Most of the work contains the biographies of the Revolutionary patriots who would come to settle as pioneers in the Tennessee frontier. It has a comprehensive name index of the pioneers identified within the volume.

                 Semiquincentennial anniversaries of the American Revolution’s events or battles will continue for several years. These events include the decisive Battle of Yorktown (1781), Treaty of Paris (1783), government under the U. S. Constitution (1789) and adoption of the Bill of Rights (1791). Perhaps these milestones will make you wonder what your ancestors were doing, thinking, or feeling during those times.

      Our staff will be glad to help with history or genealogy resources to give you a more personal understanding of events in history.