Our Founders

Abigail, The First Feminist

May 8, 2026 Clay Blanche 0

Abigail Adams – First Lady and First Feminist Abigail was born Abigail Smith in Weymouth, Ma on Nov. 11, 1744 to Elizabeth Quincy Smith and William Smith. Young Abigail Smith was romantic, energetic and intelligent, at the same time shy and very determined, a mix that seemed to always lead to her being in trouble and causing mischief. Young Abigail She was educated at home, only young men were given formal training but, she overcame this minor setback by the use of her maternal grandfather’s extensive library.  Miss Smith excelled in academics with a preference for math, philosophy, and government. With no formal education, she was very self-conscious about her inability to spell and punctuate […]

Our Founders

The Mamas, The Papas and Our Founding

May 4, 2026 thefpAdmin 4

We cannot forget the mamas… The term, “Founders”, has long been in use, however the term, “Founding Fathers” wasn’t used until 1916.  Warren Harding first used the term in his RNC Convention address in 1916 and again in his inaugural speech in 1921. However, no one should let that latter term distract from the real work of freedom, which was fought for by America’s Founding FAMILIES…papas, mamas and sometimes also their children. While much focus has gone to George, Thomas, Ben, and their cohorts, it cannot be forgotten that America’s Founding Families faced incredible challenges and sacrifices in the name of freedom. A Different Life Unlike today’s politicians, the colonial era leaders all had thriving […]

History

Russel, A World War Two Story

March 20, 2026 John Barrett 0

Russel, a story from World War II… The Founding Project staff noticed a veteran’s story posted on Facebook and asked the author to please share the story with TFP’s readers.  This is just one story, but, in many ways, it is a story felt by many.  Russel is one man and, in many ways, every man who saw combat in WWII.   It is a glimpse of the heart, mind and life of one soldier from once upon a time in America…as told by his son.  Special thanks to John Barrett for sharing his father’s story with us… [Editor’s Note: Subheadings were added to comply with SEO requirements for internet publication.] Russel, One Soldier’s Story […]

History

Awuah: From Microsoft Millionaire to Educator

February 12, 2026 Peter Crowell Anderson 0

Awuah: From Microsoft to Ghana With so many Americans working from home now and especially so during the 2020 health emergency, we should thank one of the people, who was instrumental in making Internet Communications possible, Patrick Awuah, Jr. The Story of Patrick Awuah, Jr. Patrick Awuah, Jr. can be considered one of the Pioneers of Internet Communications.  He was one of the original Microsoft Team Members in 1988 who developed the first Dial Up Applications.  He left all of that and his life as an American multi-millionaire before the age of 30 and returned to his home in Ghana to found Ashesi University in Accra, Ghana.  Here are his words and here is his […]

History

Articles of Confederation, Part 2: Confederacy Lessons Learned

February 1, 2026 Shannon D. Hanson 0

The Articles of Confederation, Part 2 The Articles of Confederation formed the first government of America, but it did not last long.  The idea of a weak central government and strong state governments appealed to colonists who had come to fear any type of strong central government. Their prior experiences with England warranted this.  A confederacy appealed to the colonists, because of that fear.  In Shannon D. Hanson’s first article about the Articles of Confederation, he explained the basics about that document.  His follow-up article explains the difficulties that came with having a central government that was too weak.  Links to Hanson’s first article about the Articles of Confederation and also the full text of […]

Education

The U. S. Constitution: Simplified

January 17, 2026 thefpAdmin 5

The U. S. Constitution: Simplied…Abbreviated for beginning understanding or quick reference When you just want to get the general or simplified idea of what is covered, TFP offers an abbreviated version of the U.S. Constitution.  Think of this as your “pocket version” of the full Constitution.  It is not meant to be a version for legal purposes or study.  It is meant to give our members the general idea of each portion of the Constitution for better understanding or a beginning approach to learning about the greatest document of freedom the world had experienced.   Look for general definitions at the end of this simplified version.  The full, original transcription of the U. S. Constitution […]

The Founding Principles

Right to Property and Pursuit of Happiness: Work

January 8, 2026 Tony Wyman 0

The Happiness Factor of Work  A Civilizing Force Maybe the greatest civilizing force in society today is that most of us have to get up five days a week, take a shower, put on something presentable, if not exactly fashionable, and go to a job where, for a minimum of eight hours, we are expected to be better people than we really are in exchange for a paycheck and a dose of self-respect…or we work.    We all complain, of course, about having to go to work, about the cruelly inverse nature of the ratio of weekdays to weekends, about racing rats and climbing over bodies to get to the top of the corporate heap, […]

History

The Incomparable Josephine Baker

January 7, 2026 Peter Crowell Anderson 0

Josephine Baker: War Hero, Stage and Screen Star and Mother In honor of both Mother’s Day and the 76th Anniversary of The End of World War Two in Europe, here is the remarkable story of Josephine Baker, a war hero and mother to 12 (yes, twelve) adopted children… The Overview: American-born Josephine Baker became a famous Broadway singer and dancer in the U.S. in the 1920’s. She would eventually end up moving to France to become a movie star in 1925. In 1937, she opened her own night club the Chez Josephine, in Paris. After the fall of France to the Germans in 1940, Ms. Baker became a member of the French Resistance Movement. Her […]

The Founding Principles

The Responsibility of Freedom

December 26, 2025 Tony Wyman 0

Responsibility: Freedoms carry with them the consequences of our choices “I think of a hero as someone who understands the degree of responsibility that comes with his freedom.”  – Bob Dylan (1941 – ), American Singer-Songwriter, Musician, and Poet Every 4th of July, Americans gather together to do what we do best: drink beer, eat too much and blow stuff up.  We do this on this particular day to celebrate our nation’s birth, the day we declared our liberation from the rule of the distant King of England…and embraced responsibility.   But, even though the 4th of July is the day we became a free nation, we don’t call that holiday “Freedom Day.” We, instead, call […]

Civics

50 Ways to Leave Your Freedom

December 18, 2025 Maggie Dine 2

50 Ways to Leave Your Freedom (or How to Lose Your Freedom in 10 Days) Freedom…we talk about it often. It is also a commodity most Americans have always experienced.  Americans may even take freedom for granted.  We’ve not experienced horrific oppression or living as serfs with overlords.  It’s easy to recognize the peasant – lord or king – subject dynamic. But, could we recognize freedom being slowly whittled away from us? We saw how easy it was for movie star, Kate Hudson, to lose her boyfriend in a recent movie, “How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days”.  After luring a boyfriend, she slowly destroyed their relationship over the course of ten days. Prior […]

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