439 When the Declaration of Independence Was News

About this episode

Emily Sneff discusses the challenges and circumstances surrounding the dissemination of the Declaration of Independence after its adoption.

The Second Continental Congress voted for independence on July 2, 1776, but it had absolutely no plan for telling the world about it. Congress sent just one copy of the Declaration to France. It was lost at sea. Printers ran the text however they liked. And the first formal acknowledgment of American independence came not from a European court, but from a Native American chief responding to a verbal translation of the Declaration in the middle of a treaty negotiation. Historian and Declaration expert Emily Sneff joins us to explore what the Declaration of Independence looked like when it was just news — urgent, imperfect, and far beyond anyone's control. Emily’s Website | Book |Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/439 EPISODE OUTLINE00:00:00 Introduction00:04:07 The Declaration as a Congressional Product00:06:28 Jefferson's humble signature00:11:10 Congress Has No Plans for Circulation00:16:22 News of the Declaration Breaks00:24:36 Pubilc Readings of the Declaration00:27:27 Ministers Spread News of the Declaration00:32:57 German-American Translation of the Declaration00:42:04 French Translation Failures00:46:42 Verbal Translations of the Declaration00:51:52 No Official…

People in this episode

Host: Liz Covart

Guest: Emily Sneff

Topics covered

• Declaration of Independence
• American history
• Second Continental Congress
• news dissemination
• historical translations

Keywords

• Declaration of Independence
• Emily Sneff
• Second Continental Congress
• historical news
• translations

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Second Continental Congress

Books & works: Declaration of Independence

Places: France, King George III, Native American

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