Family Archives - The Founding Project

Abigail, The First Feminist

April 14, 2024 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 […]

The Revolutionary Love Story: The Adams Family

February 14, 2024 Maggie Dine 0

Love, Freedom and a Revolution: The Story of John and Abigail Once upon a time, a boy met a girl. Their love story unfolded amidst the backdrop of a revolution and the founding of a new nation… They met when Abigail was only 15 years old and John was a young man (reports vary as to whether he was 23 or 24) and neither was at all impressed with the other. Abigail was a lithe girl, when society only found women of more weight to be attractive, and John was noted to be a bit round in the middle and already showed the promise of baldness. John noted in a diary that he didn’t particularly […]

The Edenton Tea Rebellion

August 13, 2023 Margo Louis 0

The Edenton Tea Rebellion boldly railed against the King of England and made all of the Western world gasp. But, too few know about this courageous act or its impact. The Boston Tea Party is far more reported, but it wasn’t the only act of brazen pushback against the King of England. The Edenton Tea Rebellion had significant impact in America and England. Historically, it also marked the first political activism undertaken by American women. It demonstrated the power women had, even in the 1770’s, and was a courageous act of treason against the Crown. How It Began The American Revolution came about after years of heavy-handed pressure from the King of England. America’s […]

Right to Property and Pursuit of Happiness: Work

May 22, 2023 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, […]

The Mamas, The Papas and Our Founding

May 4, 2022 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 […]

Revolutionary Woman of Mystery: Who is Molly Pitcher

March 6, 2022 Maggie Dine 0

Founding Momma: Molly Pitcher Who is Molly Pitcher? The stories of countless women, who made heroic and significant efforts to found America, do not end with their support of their husbands and hard work to maintain family farms, businesses and homes. Nor do they end with the sacrifice of loved ones, life savings and homes or their long hours of making ammo and tending to the injured. The founding mothers took their fight for freedom to every aspect needed by their families and country. Case in point: Molly Pitcher, the name that has become the face of the role of women at the battlefront of the Revolutionary War. Many believe that Molly Pitcher is actually […]

A Priest, A Rabbi and Two Ministers…

January 28, 2022 Maggie Dine 0

Remembering The Four Chaplains Remembering the Four Chaplains: The U.S. Army transfer ship, the Dorchester, was loaded with 751 new soldiers, mostly teens and young adults, heading off to serve in World War II. It was February 2, 1943 when they boarded and were joined by the crew, some civilian workers and four chaplains, the onboard count was 900 people, crammed tightly onto the ship. The ship sailed from Boston Harbor with a destination of Greenland. The seas were rough and most spent their time feeling sick as they tried to sleep below deck. On February 3rd, a German submarine targeted the heavily laden ship and three torpedoes struck it, immediately killing many and sending […]

Pearl Harbor’s Anniversary

December 7, 2021 TFP Staff 0

About Pearl Harbor The area known as Pearl Harbor is a U.S. naval base near Honolulu, Hawaii. Located near the center of the Pacific Ocean, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, is roughly 2,000 miles from the U.S. mainland and about 4,000 miles from Japan. Despite growing hostilities between America and Japan, no one thought Japan would start a war with an attack on the distant islands of Hawaii. Additionally, American intelligence officials were confident that any Japanese attack would take place in one of the nearby European colonies in the South Pacific, either the Dutch East Indies, Singapore or Indochina. With American military leaders not expecting an attack in Hawaii, the naval facilities at Pearl Harbor […]

Russel, A World War Two Story

March 2, 2021 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 […]

A Voice from World War One: A Very Dull Day

November 9, 2018 Guest Writer 6

A Very Dull Day, a Voice from World War One… One hundred years ago, George Erie Black, was one of many brave Americans involved in the war that was thought would end all wars. Black was inducted into service on February 23, 1918. He shipped off to France on June 15, 1918 on U.S.S. Susquehanna and landed in France on June 22, 1918 to become part of the AEF in World War I. American Expeditionary Forces The AEF or American Expeditionary Forces was a formation of the United States Army on the Western Front of World War I. The AEF was established on July 5, 1917, in France under the command of Gen. John J. […]