1776: Declaring Independence

Featuring manuscripts, artifacts, and rarely seen treasures, this exhibition captures a monumental moment in American history.

In 1776, people grappled with ideas of liberty, loyalty, and the role of government in society. Private letters, intimate diaries, and newspaper accounts reveal how the Declaration of Independence grew from draft to founding document. "1776: Declaring Independence" spotlights handwritten copies of the Declaration by John Adams and Thomas Jefferson as well as multiple early printings, including a rare Dunlap broadside. On and off the page, we explore how it echoed across the commonwealth and around the world, reshaping the colonists’ chances of launching a new nation. How did the Declaration change Americans’ quest for liberty, then and now? We invite visitors to trace the Declaration’s complex legacy as a national beacon for celebration and protest.