The Declaration's Journey: A Convening on the International Legacy

To commemorate the 250th anniversary of the U.S. Declaration of Independence, the Museum of the American Revolution created The Declaration’s Journey, a landmark exhibition that traces the evolution and global impact of this founding document since 1776. The exhibition features artifacts, documents, and works of art related to the declarations of independence issued by France, Haiti, Mexico, Chile, Korea, and more.

As the Museum’s curators and scholarly committee worked to develop The Declaration’s Journey, it was clear that the international aspect of the story represented an exciting area of new research and presented opportunities for future study. To further explore the international impact of the Declaration, the Museum will host a two-day convening on Friday, Sept. 25, and Saturday, Sept. 26.

Join us for an exploration of how the Declaration influenced other independence movements in the 250 years since its proclamation.

Conference Schedule

Friday, Sept. 25
Sessions take place in Liberty Hall unless noted.

Welcome Remarks | 8:50-9 a.m.

Matthew Skic
Museum of the American Revolution

New Insights on the Declaration of Independence | 9-10:30 a.m.

Chair: Dr. Eliga H. Gould
University of New Hampshire

Dr. Sarah M.S. Pearsall
Johns Hopkins University
Talk: "Pursuing Happiness in the Revolutionary Atlantic"

Dr. Emily Sneff
Museum of the American Revolution
Talk: "Content and Dissemination of the Declaration of Independence"

Dr. Helena Yoo-Roth
The McNeil Center for Early American Studies, University of Pennsylvania
Talk: "Timing Revolution: Temporal Dimensions of the Declaration of Independence"

The Declaration in Europe | 10:45 a.m.-12:15 p.m.

Chair: Dr. Patrick Griffin
University of Notre Dame

Dr. Scott C. Breuninger
Virginia Commonwealth University
Talk: "The Declaration in Ireland"

Dr. Csaba Lévai
University of Debrecen
Talk: "Two Revolutions and Two Declarations: The Different Fates of the American and the Hungarian Declaration of Independence"

Dr. Jeremy D. Popkin
University of Kentucky, emeritus
Talk: "The Declaration and the French Revolution"

Lunch Lecture | 12:30 p.m.-1:30 p.m.

Lunch and lecture will be held in Founders Board Room and will be ticketed. The lecture will also be livestreamed into Liberty Hall and online.

Dr. Eliga H. Gould
University of New Hampshire
Talk: "Peace and Independence: The Forgotten History of the United States’ Founding Treaty"

The Legacy of the Declaration of Independence in West Africa | 1:45-3:15 p.m.

Chair: Dr. Nemata Blyden
University of Virginia

Alison McCann
University of Miami
Talk: "Echoes of Independence: African American Aspirations in Liberia’s Frontier"

Dr. Marie Stango
Idaho State University
Talk: "The Declaration of Independence and Slave Trade Suppression in Liberia"

Dr. Andrew Wegmann
Texas Tech University
Talk: "'We, the People of the Republic of Liberia’: The Liberian Declaration of Independence, Jeffersonian Republicanism, and the Reimagining of a Continent"

Dr. Ben Wright
The University of Texas at Dallas
Talk: "Liberty’s Long Shadow: Christianity, the Declaration of Independence, and Black Migration to West Africa"

Roundtable: Curators on Making The Declaration’s Journey | 3:30-5 p.m.

Chair: Susan R. Stein
Thomas Jefferson Foundation/Monticello

Matthew Skic
Museum of the American Revolution

Dr. Emily Sneff
Museum of the American Revolution

Dr. Philip Mead

Dr. Amy Noel Ellison
Los Altos History Museum

Reception | 5-6 p.m.

The reception will take place in the Cross Keys Cafe with access to the Patriots Gallery to view The Declaration's Journey.

Saturday, Sept. 26
Sessions take place in Liberty Hall unless noted.

The Declaration and Latin American Independence  | 9:30-11:30 a.m.

Chair: Dr. Caitlin Fitz
Northwestern University

Dr. Gabriel Di Meglio
University of Buenos Aires
Talk: "Reframing Independence: New Perspectives on a Traditional Subject in Argentine Museums"

Dr. Michelli Cristine Scapol Monteiro
Museu Paulista, University of São Paulo
Talk: “Curating Independence in Brazil: Memory and Commemoration”

Dr. Macarena Ponce de León Atria
Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile
Talk: "Hijos de las Independencias: The Impacts of Discourse and the Weight of Collections at the Chilean Museum of National History in the 21st Century"

Dr. Daniel Gutiérrez Ardilla
Externado University
Talk: “Knowledge and Emotion: Columbian Independence in the XXI Century”

Carmen Saucedo Zarco
National Autonomous University of Mexico
Talk: “The Act of Independence of the Mexican Empire: Between Veneration and Misunderstanding”

Lunch Lecture | 11:45 a.m.-12:45 p.m.

Lunch and lecture will be held in Founders Board Room and will be ticketed. The lecture will also be livestreamed into Liberty Hall and online.

Dr. Ronald Angelo Johnson
Baylor University
Talk: “Diplomacy and the Declaration: Haiti’s Contribution to the American Revolution”  

Roundtable: The Declaration and Haiti | 1-2:30 p.m.

Chair: Dr. Julia Gaffield
William & Mary

Dr. Leslie Alexander
Rutgers University

Dr. Marlene Daut
Yale University

Dr. Chelsea Stieber
Tulane University

The Declaration and Asian Independence Movements | 2:45-4:15 p.m.

Chair: Dr. Chris Suh
Emory University

Dr. Christopher Capozzola
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Talk: “Declaring Independence in the Philippines: July 4, 1946”

Dr. Juman Kim
Towson University
Talk: “The 1919 First Korean Congress in Philadelphia: Decades of Korean-American Engagement and the Contested Legacy of 1776”

Dr. Lori Watt
Washington University
Talk: “The Declaration of Independence and Japan: Anti-colonial Language and the End of Empire”