In the face of severe economic turmoil, British tariffs, and intense regional rivalries, the United States debates its future through the Constitutional Convention of 1787.
This event is free to attend but registration is required.
Conversation
September 22, 2026
"Thomas Paine, FDR and the Power of Words in Turbulent Times" with Harvey J. Kaye
Words have played a powerful role in the creation of the US and American ideals. Author and historian Harvey Kaye examines how Thomas Paine and Franklin Roosevelt used words to call a nation to action in times of crisis, and rally Americans to build a more promising future.
This event is free to attend but registration is required.
Registered attendees can visit the Library's special exhibition, DECLARING THE REVOLUTION: AMERICA’S PRINTED PATH TO INDEPENDENCE, free of charge before the program, from 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Special Exhibition
ONGOING
Declaring the Revolution: America's Printed Path to Independence
William J. vanden Heuvel
Special Exhibits Gallery
Historical Works from the David M. Rubenstein Americana Collection
This exhibition honors the Declaration of Independence as the central printed achievement of America's revolutionary generation by assembling various political and intellectual forerunners of that momentous document, as well as printed evidence of the ways that America's founders self-organized to bring about its stated ideals.
Guest Curator: Mazy Boroujerdi, Curator, David M. Rubenstein Americana Collection
The American Revolution was both an active and an ideological war, seeing the replacement of both a national government and a national identity. Jeffrey Urbin takes you inside the exhibit for a peek at how it commemorates 1776 and the birth of democracy in the United States.
This WWII conservation poster by Earle Winslow encourages landowners to turn crooked, low value trees into essential wartime resources like railroad ties, fence posts, and firewood.
