Forgotten Founder: Thomas Paine and American Independence

Posted by on Apr 17, 2026 in | Comments Off on Forgotten Founder: Thomas Paine and American Independence Philadelphia was the largest, wealthiest and most cosmopolitan city in all the colonies on the eve of the American Revolution. As the major commercial hub for British North America, the city’s economy was based on trade and commerce and bolstered by shipbuilding, textiles and other industries. Philadelphia was also a hub for political activism, with town meetings and pamphlets disseminating...
read more

The Hanna’s Town Resolves

Posted by on Jun 11, 2025 in | Comments Off on The Hanna’s Town Resolves On May 16, 1775, the citizens of Pennsylvania’s Westmoreland County gathered at Hanna’s Town to draft a series of resolutions condemning the actions of Parliament and to organize themselves into an armed militia. The resulting 755-word document, known as the Hanna’s Town Resolves, challenged the scope of British authority and took the western backcountry one step closer to revolution. Signed 14...
read more

John Dickinson, Reluctant Revolutionist

Posted by on Nov 29, 2013 in | Comments Off on John Dickinson, Reluctant Revolutionist Students of American history will recognize John Dickinson as the Pennsylvania delegate to the Continental Congress who had the temerity to speak against separation from Great Britain and the obstinacy to refuse to sign the Declaration of Independence. Paradoxically, Dickinson had been an early leader of the patriot cause in Pennsylvania, author of the “Farmers’ Letters”...
read more