My love of American history began not in a classroom, but at home with a schoolteacher mother and a father who loved to read. My father passed along that love of reading to me. Those early lessons took on special meaning when I graduated from high school in 1976, surrounded by the red, white, and blue pageantry of America’s Bicentennial celebration.
That summer of tall ships and fireworks, of patriotic fervor and historical reflection, and even marching in Disney World’s “America on Parade” planted something deep within me – a conviction that understanding our past is essential to navigating our present and future.
Now 50 years later, as we approach America’s 250th anniversary in 2026, I find myself reflecting once again on the remarkable journey of this imperfect yet extraordinary experiment in self-governance.
This series is my attempt to honor both my parent’s gift and that pivotal Bicentennial year by exploring the moments, movements, and individuals that created the unique country we call the United States of America.
Listed below are links that will take you to each article in the series.
Seeds of Rebellion
What Does 1776 Mean in 2026? A Year of Revolutionary Reading
Before The First Shot There Was The First Sentence
Reimagining a Continent’s Contested Past
Three Empires, One Continent: The Race for North America
The Birth of Rebellion: North Carolina’s Revolutionary Spirit in the 1700s
The Revolutionary Ideas That Built America – And Still Haunt It
When Farmers Became Insurgents: The Forgotten Army That Made Independence Possible
When Revolution Costs Everything
The Gathering Storm
1774: The Year Nobody Wanted War – And Got It Anyway
1775: The Year That Made Independence Inevitable
1776: When The World Was On The Line
The Architects of Independence
Benjamin Franklin
John Adams
Thomas Jefferson
July 4, 2026
The Declaration of Independence and Its Meaning
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