A unique traveling exhibit, the “Documents That Forged a Nation,” is coming to Denver May 28 through June 14. Celebrating America’s 250th anniversary, the National Archives and Records Administration is sharing a collection of America’s original founding-era documents. Inspired by the Bicentennial Freedom Train of 50 years ago, the exhibit travels aboard the Freedom Plane, a specially outfitted Boeing 737, which took flight in early March. The documents have never before traveled together outside of Washington, D.C.

History Colorado Center is one of only eight museums nationwide hosting this special exhibit. A signature initiative of the America 250 – Colorado 150 Commission, partnered with History Colorado, the exhibit is free and open to the public. It includes:

Original engraving of the Declaration of Independence, 1823. This is one of fewer than 50 known engraved copies of the Declaration of Independence. John Quincy Adams commissioned the engraving, which captured the size, text, lettering, and signatures of the original document.

Articles of Association, 1774. Adopted by the First Continental Congress, this is the first documented instance of the American colonies coordinating policy together. It urged all colonists to boycott British goods, and all 53 delegates signed it.

George Washington’s, Alexander Hamilton’s, and Aaron Burr’s Oaths of Allegiance, 1778. Every officer of the Continental Army signed an Oath of Allegiance during the Revolutionary War. Part of the oath was to “acknowledge the United States of America, to be Free, Independent and Sovereign States, and declare that the people thereof owe no allegiance or obedience to George the Third, King of Great-Britain.”

Treaty of Paris, 1783. This treaty with Great Britain formally recognized the United States as an independent nation. The last page of the treaty bears the signatures of the American negotiators John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, and John Jay, along with that of David Hartley, who represented Great Britain.

Secret printing of the Constitution, 1787. This is a rare copy of the U.S. Constitution in draft form. It includes handwritten annotations made by New Jersey delegate David Brearley Jr. as the delegates debated during the Constitutional Convention in 1787.

State delegation votes approving the Constitution, 1787. For four months, the Constitutional Convention delegates discussed what form the new government should take. The convention’s voting records reflect their debates, arguments and resolutions. This page documents the vote on the Constitution’s final text.

Senate markup of the Bill of Rights, 1789. After the states ratified the Constitution and it became the supreme law of the land, Representative James Madison proposed amendments. Several states also advocated for additional protections for individual liberties. This is the Senate’s markup of what became the Bill of Rights.

For more information about the Freedom Plane tour, visit historycolorado.org/freedom-plane and freedomplane.org. To learn more about the America 250 – Colorado 150 Commission and its initiatives, visit am250co150.org. For more information about the Freedom Train, visit freedomtrain.org.

 

Article and Freedom Train photos by Susan Helton; courtesy photo