Ben Franklin's World
የቻናል ዝርዝሮች
Ben Franklin's World
This is a multiple award-winning podcast about early American history. It’s a show for people who love history and who want to know more about the historical people and events that have impacted and shaped our present-day world. Each episode features conversations with professional historians who...
የቅርብ ጊዜ ክፍሎች
469 ክፍሎች
BFW Revisited: The World of John Singleton Copley
What does it mean to be caught between two worlds? Between loyalty and liberty, artistry and commerce, and between the British North American colonies...
422: Plantation Goods: How Northern Industry Fueled Slavery
When we talk about slavery in Early America, we often focus on plantations: their large, fertile fields, their cash crops, and the people who labored...
BFW Revisited: Origins of American Manufacturing
When we picture the early United States, we often imagine a young nation fighting for political independence. But what about economic independence—and...
421 Loyalism and Revolution in Georgia
What if loyalty, not rebellion, was the default position in revolutionary British North America?
It’s easy to forget that before 1776, mo...
BFW Revisited: Loyalism in the British Atlantic World
When we think of the American Revolution, we often focus on the patriots who fought for independence. But what about the Loyalists—those who chose to...
420: Creating the U.S. Federal Government
When we think about the founding of the United States, we often focus on the Constitution, the Founding Fathers, and those first landmark elections.
BFW Revisited: Women & the Constitutional Moment of 1787
Each September, Constitution Day marks the signing of the U.S. Constitution on September 17, 1787.
But beyond celebration, this commemora...
419 The North Carolina Regulator Movement
What happens when the very people meant to uphold justice become the ones exploiting it?
In the 1760s, North Carolina farmers watched she...
BFW Revisited: The Tory's Wife
Revolutionary upheaval didn't just reshape governments—it transformed daily life for ordinary families across colonial America.
In this...
418 The Driver's Story
We often learn about slavery in early America through broad economic or political terms—cotton, sugar, markets, revolutions. But what happens when we...
BFW Revisited: The Business of Slavery
When we think about slavery in early America, we often rightfully focus on the human toll–the violence, the exploitation, the dehumanization that defi...
417 Roger Williams, Rogue Puritan
When we think of early American champions of religious liberty, one name often rises above the rest: Roger Williams.
Best known as the fo...
BFW Revisited: The History of Genealogy
Why do we trace our family histories? What drives our desire to know who our ancestors were and how we’re connected to past people and events?
<...
416: Lineage: Genealogy in Early America
Have you ever wondered why genealogy captivates so many people?
Whether it’s tracing a family tree back generations or holding on to stor...
BFW Revisited: A Declaration in Draft
The Declaration of Independence is one of the most iconic documents in United States history. But what do we really know about how it came to be?
Lineage Book Preview
Preview of Karin Wulf’s book, Lineage: Genealogy and the Power of Connection in Early America.
In eighteenth-century Ameri...
415: The Many Declarations of Independence
When you picture the Declaration of Independence, what comes to mind?
Most people envision a single, iconic document–parchment, signature...
414 Queerness and Reputation in Revolutionary America
How do we uncover queer lives from the distant past, especially in an era when language and records often erased or obscured them?
What d...
413 Dr. Joseph Warren & the Battle of Bunker Hill
June 17, 2025, marks the 250th anniversary of the Battle of Bunker Hill, the first full-scale battle of what would become the American War for Indepen...
BFW Revisited: On Juneteenth
Juneteenth, the holiday that commemorates the end of slavery in the United States, is nearly upon us, and it offers us the perfect moment for reflecti...
412 The Franklin Stove
It might surprise you, but in the 18th century, people across the globe were reckoning with colder-than-usual weather brought on by the Little Ice Age...
BFW Revisited: The Early History of the U.S. Congress
To commemorate the 250th anniversary of the Second Continental Congress, this episode revisits the origins of the United States Congress and how early...
411 Philadelphia: An Early History
Two hundred fifty years ago, in May 1775, delegates from thirteen British North American colonies gathered in Philadelphia for the Second Continental...
BFW Revisited: Founding Friendships
What did friendship between men and women look like in the decades following the American Revolution? Could emotional closeness and intellectual kinsh...
Ben Franklin's World Trailer
This is a 30-second trailer for Ben Franklin's World.
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410 The World's First Personal Advice Column
When did people begin seeking anonymous advice for their most profound personal dilemmas? What can the answers to their early questions tell us about...
BFW Revisited: Paul Revere's Ride Through History
Paul Revere’s Midnight Ride is one of the most famous events in American history. On the night of April 18, 1775, Revere set out to warn the Massachus...
409 The Battles of Lexington & Concord, 1775
April 19, 2025 marked the 250th anniversary of the Battles of Lexington and Concord—the moment the American Revolution turned from protest to war.
BFW Revisited: The Road to Concord
April 2025 marks the 250th anniversary of the Battles of Lexington and Concord.
One of the lesser-known catalysts for these battles was t...
408 The Memory of 1776
The American Revolution was more than just a series of events that unfolded between 1763 and 1783, the American Revolution is our national origin stor...
BFW Revisited: Samuel Adams
This month, we commemorate the 250th anniversary of the Battles of Lexington and Concord, the “shot heard round the world” that ignited the Revolution...
407 Patrick Henry
Patrick Henry is one of the most famous voices of the American Revolution. He was known in his own time for his powerful speeches and his unwavering c...
BFW Revisited: Motherhood in Early America
What precisely is the work that mothers do to raise children? Has the nature of mothers, motherhood, and the work mothers do changed over time?
...
406 How Haudenosaunee Women & Fashion Shaped History
Historians use a lot of different sources when they research the past. Many rely on primary source documents, documents that were written by official...
BFW Revisited: The Poison Plot: Adultery & Murder in Colonial Newport
In 1738, a cooper named Benedict Arnold petitioned the Rhode Island General Assembly for a divorce from his wife Mary Ward Arnold. Benedict claimed th...
405 African Americans in Early New York
When we think of slavery in Early America, we often think about the plantations and economies of the South. But did you know that slavery was also dee...
BFW Revisited: Free People of Color in Early America
What does freedom mean when the deck is stacked against you?
In commemoration of Black History Month, we’re revisiting a story that is to...
404 The Hidden Legacy of Early African American Cuisine
Did you know that many of the food traditions that define cuisine in the United States today have roots in African culinary traditions and history?
BFW Revisited: Running from Bondage in Revolutionary America
What would you risk for freedom?
Would you risk your safety? You family? Your life?
During the American Revolution, enslaved...
403 Re-Evaluating John Adams' Presidency
Did you know that John Adams, not George Washington, solidified the precedents of the executive branch and the presidency?
Lindsay Chervi...