Lehrman American Studies Center

Online Libraries / Collections

• American Revolutionary War Engagements

  This website summarizes some of the most important engagements of the American Revolutionary War.

• American Revolution documents

  This site contains a variety of primary documents from the American Revolution. The documents particularly focus on military affairs.

• Liberty: The American Revolution

  Summary of PBS Series: LIBERTY! The American Revolution is a dramatic documentary about the birth of the American Republic and the struggle of a loosely connected group of states to become a nation. The George Foster Peabody award-winning series brings…

• Scholars Showcase -- American Revolution

  A collection of full-text histories about the American Revolution.

• Art of the American Revolution

  This fine website reproduces a number of famous Revolutionary War-era paintings and provides detailed summaries about these paintings

• Selected Works of Thomas Paine ( University of Virginia )

  A collection of some of Thomas Paine's works including the "American Crisis" and "The Rights of Man."

• The Papers of George Washington ( University of Virginia )

  Summary: The Papers of George Washington, a grant-funded project, was established in 1969 at the University of Virginia, under the joint auspices of the University and the Mount Vernon Ladies' Association of the Union, to publish a comprehensive edition of…

Books

• The American Crisis by Thomas Paine

  The Crisis was a series of essays written by Thomas Paine during the Revolutionary War. Paine urged Americans to remain committed to the cause of independence and freedom against Great Britain. So moved was he by the first essay that…

• Washington's Crossing (Pivotal Moments in American History) by David Hackett Fischer

  Six months after the Declaration of Independence, the American Revolution was all but lost. A powerful British force had routed the Americans at New York, occupied three colonies, and advanced within sight of Philadelphia. Yet, as David Hackett Fischer recounts…

• A Revolutionary People at War: The Continental Army and American Character, 1775-1783 by Charles Royster

  Publisher's Description: In this highly acclaimed book, Charles Royster explores the mental processes and emotional crises that Americans faced in their first national war. He ranges imaginatively outside the traditional techniques of analytical historical exposition to build his portrait of…

• The Glorious Cause: the American Revolution, 1763-1789 by Robert Middlekauff

  Middlekauff's excellent history of the American Revolution is an entry in the highly-regarded Oxford University Press's American History Series. For information concerning the following particular episodes: See Chapter 4, "The Stamp Act Crisis," pp. 70-93, for information about this crisis.…

• The American Revolution: A History by Gordon S. Wood

  Gordon S. Wood's The American Revolution, part of the Modern Library Chronicles series, is an erudite, concise summary of the events and circumstances surrounding the seminal conflict, both physical and philosophical, in American history. The Modern Library Chronicles are accessible-but-serious…

• The Way of the Fox: American Strategy in the War for America, 1775-1783 by Dave Richard Palmer

  This excellent book argues that George Washington successfully and skillfully pursued a coherent strategy to outlast and defeat the British in America.

• The War for America, 1775-1783 by Piers Mackesy

  Publisher's Book Description: The events of the American Revolution signified by Lexington, Bunker Hill, Valley Forge, Saratoga, and Yorktown are familiar to American readers. Far less familiar is the fact that, for the British, the American colonies were only one…

• Paul Revere's Ride by David Hackett Fischer

  Publisher's Description: Paul Revere's midnight ride looms as an almost mythical event in American history--yet it has been largely ignored by scholars and left to patriotic writers and debunkers. Now one of the foremost American historians offers the first serious…

• Almost a Miracle: The American Victory in the War of Independence by John Ferling

  In this gripping chronicle of America's struggle for independence, award-winning historian John Ferling transports readers to the grim realities of that war, capturing an eight-year conflict filled with heroism, suffering, cowardice, betrayal, and fierce dedication. As Ferling demonstrates, it was…

• A People Numerous and Armed: Reflections on the Military Struggle for American Independence by John Shy

  Publisher's Description: Americans like to think of themselves as a peaceful and peace-loving people, and in remembering their own revolutionary past, American historians have long tended to focus on colonial origins and Constitutional aftermath, neglecting the fact that the American…

• Washington's Partisan War, 1775-1783 by Mark V. Kwasny

  Publisher's Description: George Washington embraced a strategy that depended on the effectiveness of the militia. He also encouraged the use of the militia as partisans. This work looks at the history of regular units, state militia and politics at the…

• A Narrative of a Revolutionary Soldier: Some of the Adventures, Dangers, and Sufferings of Joseph Plumb Martin by Joseph Plumb Martin

  In this first-hand account of the Revolutionary War, Joseph Plumb Martin narrates his true adventures as an eighteen-year-old private in the Continental Army--and gives a rare glimpse of the earthy beginnings of our nation's history.

• America Goes to War: A Social History of the Continental Army (The American Social Experience Series) by Charles Patrick Neimeyer

  Publisher's Description: One of the images Americans hold most dear is that of the drum-beating, fire-eating Yankee Doodle Dandy rebel, overpowering his British adversaries through sheer grit and determination. The myth of the classless, independence-minded farmer or hard-working artisan-turned-soldier is…

• General George Washington: A Military Life by Edward Lengel

  Publisher's Description: Much has been written in the past two centuries about George Washington the statesman and "father of his country." Less often discussed is Washington's military career, including his exploits as a young officer and his performance as the…

• The Minutemen and Their World by Robert A. Gross

  Publisher's Summary: On April 19, 1775, the American Revolution began at the Old North Bridge in Concord, Massachusetts. The "shot heard round the world" catapulted this sleepy New England town into the midst of revolutionary fervor, and Concord went on…

• His Excellency: George Washington by Joseph J. Ellis

  As commander of the Continental army, George Washington united the American colonies, defeated the British army, and became the world's most famous man. But how much do Americans really know about their first president? Today, as Pulitzer Prize-winner Joseph J.…

• Light-Horse Harry Lee and the Legacy of the American Revolution by Charles Royster

  An excellent book that examines Light-Horse Harry Lee's exploits during the war as well as his political and personal difficulties in post-Revolutionary America.

• George Washington and American Independence by Curtis P. Nettels

  Curtis Nettels' volume asserts that George Washington was an early and powerful advocate of American independence long before his first public statement in favor of it in October 1775. In fact, as soon as war began, Washington had determined that…

Timelines

• Founding Time Line

  A project of The Claremont Institute, Founding.com is dedicated to making the documents and principles of the American Founding accessible to educators and students of all ages. (From the "About Us" section)

• American Revolution 1777-1783

  A time line of the events during the War for Independence from 1777-1883.

• American Revolution, Conflict and Revolution, 1775-1776

• Time Line to Founding

Websites

• Loyalist Songs of the Revolution

  Lyrics of five Loyalist songs

• Songs and Ballads of the American Revolution by Frank Moore

• Black Soldiers in the American Revolution by Paul Rastatter

  "In conclusion, there were five ways for blacks to serve during the American Revolution. 1) Free blacks could enlist for bounties. 2) Runaway slaves could lie about their status and join. 3) Slaves could serve as substitutes for white masters.…

• Slavery and Liberty in the American Revolution by Gregory D. Massey

• Common Sense by Thomas Paine

• France in the Revolution by James Breck Perkins

  This volume, originally published in 1911, examines France's important contributions to the American victory in the War for Independence.

• Life of George Washington by David Ramsey

  Ramsey's biography of George Washington was published only eight years after the General's death in 1799. Not only was Ramsey a contemporary of Washington, but he also served in the Continental Congress.

• Diary of Ebenezer Denny during Yorktown Campaign, 1781 by Ebenezer Denny

• George Washington Papers at the Library of Congress by George Washington

  The complete George Washington Papers collection from the Manuscript Division at the Library of Congress consists of approximately 65,000 documents. This is the largest collection of original Washington documents in the world. Document types in the collection as a whole…

• The Hessians by Edward J. Lowell

  This work was originally published in 1884 by Harper and Brothers Publishers.

• Military Journal, During the American Revolutionary War from 1776 to 1783 by Late Surgeon in the American Army and James Thacher

  This extensive journal provides an extensive first-hand account of life in the Continental Army throughout the Revolutionary War.

• A Naval History of the American Revolution by Gardner W. Allen

  This 1913 volume by historian Gardner Allen provides a detailed and comprehensive look at the naval aspects of the Revolutionary War.

• Century of Lawmaking for a New Nation: Congressional Documents and Debates ( Library of Congress, American Memory )

  From website introduction: Beginning with the Continental Congress in 1774, America's national legislative bodies have kept records of their proceedings. The records of the Continental Congress, the Constitutional Convention, and the United States Congress make up a rich documentary history…

• Documents from the Continental Congress and the Constitutional Convention ( Library of Congress, American Memory )

  From Library of Congress website introduction: The Continental Congress Broadside Collection (256 titles) and the Constitutional Convention Broadside Collection (21 titles) contain 277 documents relating to the work of Congress and the drafting and ratification of the Constitution. Items include…

• John Adams -- Web Biography

Images

• Alexander Hamilton

  John Trumbull painting of Hamilton as Secretary of the Treasury

• Surrender of Cornwallis ( Images of American Political History )

  Meeting between General Washington and Lord Cornwallis.

• Surrender of Cornwallis at Yorktown. ( Images of American Political History )

  Engraving of troops on horseback.

• Battle of Camden, August 1780 ( National Archives and Records Administration )

  Engraving of painting by Alonzo Chappel showing the death of Baron Johann de Kalb.

• Washington Taking Control of the American Army, at Cambridge, Mass. July 1775 ( National Archives and Records Administration )

  Lithograph of the new commander of the Continental Army appointed by the Continental Congress.

• Washington Crossing the Delaware ( Images of American Political History )

  Engraving of Leutze's famous painting of Washington crossing the Delaware River before the Battle of Trenton.

• Raising of First Flag at Independence Hall

  Black and white copy of painting by Clyde O. Deland.

• Battle of Princeton, 1777 ( Images of American Political History )

  Engraving of John Trumbull's painting

• Washington Resigning His Commission, 1783 ( Images of American Political History )

  After the Treaty of Paris, General George Washington presented his resignation to Congress, meeting in Annapolis, Maryland on December 23, 1783. This is rough engraving, not the more famous painting by John Trumbull that is displayed in the Rotunda of…

• General George Washington ( Smithsonian American Art Museum )

• Thomas Paine ( Thomas Paine National Historical Association, )

  1793 engraving made by William Sharp after the portrait by painter George Romney painted the prior year. Both artists were English and close associates of Paine. This is the portrait said to be the best likeness of Thomas Paine.

• Poet Phillis Wheatley, 1773 ( Library of Congress )

  Engraving of African-American poet Phillis Wheatley from a book of her poems. She met General Washington outside Boston in 1775.

• British Surrender at Saratoga, 1777 ( American History Alive )

  Painting by John Trumbull of British General Burgoyne surrendering on September 19, 1777 to American General Horatio Gates after the Battle of Saratoga

• Skirmish at Lexington Green, April 19, 1775 ( Digital History )

  Color sketch of Minutemen

• Letter from Lucy Knox to Henry Knox, August 23, 1777. ( Gilder Lehrman Collection )

  GLC Summary: The Revolution threw into question all forms of inequality, including inequalities of gender. In this letter, Lucy Knox, the wife of American General Henry Knox, tells her husband not to consider himself "commander in chief of your own…

• John Adams proposing George Washington for Commander-in-Chief of the American Army ( Library of Congress )

  Engraving of painting by John Ward Dunsmore showing John Adams addressing the Second Continental Congress in Independence Hall in 1775.

Maps

• Plan for Action for Battle of Bunker Hill

  A plan of the action at Bunkers-Hill, on the 17th. of June, 1775, between His Majesty's troops under the command of Major General Howe, and the rebel forces, by Lieut. Page, of the Engineers, who acted as aide de camp…

• A plan of the town of Boston and its environs, with the lines, batteries, and incampments of the British and American armies.

  A map of British and Continental armies around Boston. Printed in London in 1775.

• A Map of 100 Miles around Boston, 1775

  British map of eastern Massachusetts

• The American Revolution and Its Era: Maps and Charts of North America and the West Indies, 1750-1789

• Map of the United States, 1783

  Map of the United States published in London soon after the signing of the Treaty of Paris in 1783.

Videos

• Mary Silliman’s War ( Heritage Films )

  Film Summary: Mary Silliman's War is a unique, award-winning film on the American Revolution. Shot on location in Nova Scotia, the film relates the true story of a remarkable woman, whose husband, a patriot leader, was kidnapped from their home…

Transcripts or Manuscripts

• “Poem to General Washington” and Washington’s Reply

  Poem written by Phillis Wheatley for General Washington and his reply on February 28, 1776.

• The Farmer Refuted

  Letter by Alexander Hamilton on natural rights and political philosophy.

Legal Documents

• Treaty of Paris, 1783

  Text of treaty between Great Britain and her former colonies which concluded the American Revolution. The main American Negotiators were John Adams, Benjamin Franklin and John Jay.

Syllabi

• The American Founding by Jim Harrigan

  Course Objectives: Historians have long disagreed on the nature of the America Founding. The facts are easily accessible, but no definitive interpretation of the Founding has yet emerged. In this course we will examine a good number of the…

• American Revolution and Early Republic, 1775-1820 by Phil Hamilton

  Introduction and Course Description: Image982|thumbnail|280px|right|Signing of Declaration of Independence How do we make sense of Thomas Jefferson as an American revolutionary? As a young man in 1776, he had stirred the world with the radical words "we hold these truths…

Modules

• George Washington by Phil Hamilton

  Born into a modest Virginia gentry family, George Washington(1732-1799) emerged as the most important figure in America's revolutionary struggle. His accomplishments were twofold: 1) he bravely led the Continental Army to its military victory over the British in the War…

• Declaration of Independence by Phil Hamilton

  The Declaration of Independence, authored chiefly by Thomas Jefferson, remains the central document of the United States of America. Influenced by the ideas of the Enlightenment, Jefferson primarily drew from the natural rights principles of the English philosopher John Locke.…