About this episode

This episode discusses the events surrounding the Declaration of Independence and how the news spread throughout the new country.

The Continental Congress voted to break from Great Britain on July 2, 1776, and approved the text of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, but it took weeks for the news to spread throughout the new country and even longer to reach the country they were breaking from and the countries with whom they hoped to find alliances. Along the way, people learned the news from printed broadsides, newspapers, public readings, and letters from friends. I’m joined in this episode by Dr. Emily Sneff , author of When the Declaration of Independence Was News . Our theme song is “ Frogs Legs Rag ,” composed by James Scott and performed by Kevin MacLeod, licensed under Creative Commons. The mid-episode music is “ Yankee Doodle ,” performed by the U.S. Army Chorus, featuring MSG Michael White and SSG Matthew Bell of The Old Guard Fife and Drum Corps; the composition and audio are in the public domain. The episode image is the Dunlap Broadside of the Declaration of Independence , printed in John Dunlap’s Philadelphia shop on the night of July 4, 1776; the image is in the public domain and is available via the Library of Congress. Additional Sources: “ Declaration of Independence (1776) ,” The…

People in this episode

Host: Kelly Therese Pollock

Guest: Dr. Emily Sneff

Topics covered

• American history
• Declaration of Independence
• Continental Congress
• news dissemination
• historical documents

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: U.S. National Archives and Records Administration, Colonial Williamsburg

Books & works: Declaration of Independence

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