Curator’s Picks
Fave Five
Manuscript Division historian Sherri Sheu selects favorite items from the new ‘The Declaration’s Promise’ exhibit.
Rare Book and Special Collections Division
Noah Webster’s Lesson Book
While most of us recognize Webster’s name from ubiquitous dictionaries, it might surprise visitors to find out that he saw language as a way for Americans to assert their independence. Through his books, dictionaries, spellers and other educational materials, Webster promoted American spellings, grammar and pronunciations to encourage a distinctive American language.
Walt Whitman’s Glasses
Look closely, and you’ll see that one lens of this pair of glasses used by poet Walt Whitman was intentionally blurred. Scholars believe the spectacles were made to accommodate Whitman’s disabilities following a stroke. Through works such as “I Hear America Singing” and “Leaves of Grass,” Whitman celebrated the contributions of American workers.
Cherokee Principal Chief John Ross
Cherokee Principal Chief John Ross (ᎫᏫᏍᎫᏫ) was the son of a Cherokee mother and a Scots father. As an adult, he became a skilled politician and used his language skills to negotiate treaties with the United States. Ross called on Congress to respect the rights of the Cherokee, reminding them that according to the Declaration of Independence, “all men are created equal.”
Manuscript Division
Rare Book and Special Collections Division
Manuscript Division
Walt Whitman’s Glasses
Look closely, and you’ll see that one lens of this pair of glasses used by poet Walt Whitman was intentionally blurred. Scholars believe the spectacles were made to accommodate Whitman’s disabilities following a stroke. Through works such as “I Hear America Singing” and “Leaves of Grass,” Whitman celebrated the contributions of American workers.
Rare Book and Special Collections Division
Cherokee Principal Chief John Ross
Cherokee Principal Chief John Ross (ᎫᏫᏍᎫᏫ) was the son of a Cherokee mother and a Scots father. As an adult, he became a skilled politician and used his language skills to negotiate treaties with the United States. Ross called on Congress to respect the rights of the Cherokee, reminding them that according to the Declaration of Independence, “all men are created equal.”
‘Spirit of ’76’
As the illustrator for the National Woman’s Party, Nina Allender documented the fight for women’s suffrage. Her cartoon for the Jan. 30, 1915, issue of The Suffragist shows women marching in a fife-and-drum corps with a flag labeled “Constitutional Amendment.” By titling the cartoon “The Spirit of ’76,” Allender drew parallels between the fight for women’s voting rights and the fight for independence.
Prints and Photographs Division
Prints and Photographs Division
‘Spirit of ’76’
As the illustrator for the National Woman’s Party, Nina Allender documented the fight for women’s suffrage. Her cartoon for the Jan. 30, 1915, issue of The Suffragist shows women marching in a fife-and-drum corps with a flag labeled “Constitutional Amendment.” By titling the cartoon “The Spirit of ’76,” Allender drew parallels between the fight for women’s voting rights and the fight for independence.
Prints and Photographs Division
Henry ‘Box’ Brown
Americans have gone to great lengths to secure their freedom. Henry “Box” Brown earned his nickname in 1849 when he shipped himself out of slavery in Richmond inside a wooden box. It took a treacherous 27 hours before he arrived safely in Philadelphia. Brown later traveled the country making speeches against slavery — often with his shipping box in tow.