France Entered the War — The Alliance After Saratoga (1778)
After the American victory at Saratoga in 1777, France joined the American side. It was the result of two years of diplomacy by Benjamin Franklin in Paris.
Apr 19, 2026Back to Blog
Benjamin Franklin
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April 14, 1775 — The Day America's First Abolition Society Was Born
Fifteen months before the Declaration of Independence, and just five days before the first shot of the Revolution, seventeen men gathered in a Philadelphia tavern to found the world's first formal anti-slavery society. Two of the names on that charter — Benjamin Franklin and Benjamin Rush — would later sign the Declaration.
Apr 14, 2026Who Were the 56 Signers? — Immigrants, Farmers, and Apprentices Who Became Founders
Not everyone in that Philadelphia room was an aristocrat or a wealthy man. An Irish indentured servant, a shoemaker's apprentice, a self-taught surveyor, and orphaned immigrants put their names on the Declaration alongside Jefferson and Franklin. Who were they, and how did they get there?
Apr 14, 2026The Price of a Signature — What Happened to the 56 Men Who Signed the Declaration of Independence
In the summer of 1776, 56 men in a Philadelphia room put their names on a piece of parchment. That signature was treason against the British Crown — and the penalty was the noose. They closed with a promise: that they pledged to each other their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor.
Apr 13, 2026