Ben Franklin's World: A Podcast About Early American History

If we want to understand everyday life in early America we need to understand the everyday life of early American farms and farmers. Roughly three-quarters of Americans in British North America and the early United States considered themselves to be farmers. So how did early Americans establish farms and what were the rhythms of their daily lives? Richard Bushman, the Gouverneur Morris Professor Emeritus of History at Columbia University, joins us to investigate farms and farm life in early America with details from his book, The American Farmer in the Eighteenth Century: A Social and Cultural History. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/234   Meet Ups & Talks   Albany, New York: April 25 at the New York State Cultural Education Center. Meet up at pre-talk reception. Milwaukee, Wisconsin: April 29, 6pm at Zaffiro’s Pizza  Milwaukee, Wisconsin: April 30, 6pm free public talk at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Golda Meir Library Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute Ben Franklin

When we think about colonial American history we think about the colonies of the English, the Dutch, the French, and the Spanish. Rarely do we think about the colonies of the Russians. And yet Russia had colonies in North America. Gwenn Miller, an Associate Professor of History at the College of the Holy Cross, joins us to investigate a history of Russia’s colonies in North America with details from her book Kodiak Kreol: Communities of Empire in Early Russian America. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/233 Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute Ben Franklin's World T-Shirts   Meet Ups & Talks Albany, New York: April 25 at the New York State Cultural Education Center. Meet up at pre-talk reception. Milwaukee, Wisconsin: April 29, 6pm at Zaffiro’s Pizza Milwaukee, Wisconsin: April 30, 6pm free public talk at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Golda Meir Library Complementary Episodes Episode 021: Eugene Tesdhal, Smuggling in Colonial America & Living History Episode 163: The Ame

Before the English settled in Jamestown, Virginia in 1607 or the Dutch settled near Albany, New York in 1615, a group of French-speaking, Catholic settlers established a settlement in Nova Scotia in 1605. By 1755, nearly 15,000 Acadians lived in Acadia. Christopher Hodson, an Associate Professor of history at Brigham Young University and the author of The Acadian Diaspora, joins us to investigate the lives of these early North American colonists and how the British government came to displace them through a forced migration in 1755.
 Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/232 Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute KiwiCo (Get your first crate FREE!)   Meet Ups & Talks Albany, New York: April 25 at the New York State Cultural Education Center. Meet up at pre-talk reception. Milwaukee, Wisconsin: April 29, 6pm at Zaffiro’s Pizza Milwaukee, Wisconsin: April 30, 6pm free public talk at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Golda Meir Library Complementary Episodes Episode 064: Brett Rushf

Historians use archives to create the histories we love to read, watch, and listen to. So we’re going into one archive to investigate how historians use them and to discover more about the religious lives of the Adams Family. Sara Georgini, Series Editor of The Papers of John Adams, invites us to join her inside the Massachusetts Historical Society so we can take a closer look at the historical details provided by the Adams Papers and the role these manuscripts played in helping her write her book, Household Gods: The Religious Lives of the Adams Family. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/231 Meet Ups Albany, New York: April 25 at the New York State Cultural Education Center. Meet up at pre-talk reception.  Milwaukee, Wisconsin: April 29, 6pm at Zaffiro’s Pizza  Milwaukee, Wisconsin: April 30, 6pm free public talk at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Golda Meir Library Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute OI Books (Use promo code 01DAH40 to save 40 percent)   Complementary Epis

Samuel Gray, James Caldwell, Samuel Maverick, Patrick Carr, and Crispus Attucks. These are the five men who died as a result of the shootings on Boston’s King Street on the night of March 5, 1770. Of these five victims, evidence points to Crispus Attucks falling first, and of all the victims, Crispus Attucks is the name we can recall. Why is that? To help us answer this question and to conclude our 3-episode series on the Boston Massacre, we’re joined by Mitch Kachun, a Professor of History at Western Michigan University and the author of First Martyr of Liberty: Crispus Attucks in American Memory. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/230   Meet Ups Albany, New York: April 25 at the New York State Cultural Education Center. Meet up at pre-talk reception.  Milwaukee, Wisconsin: April 29, 6pm at Zaffiro’s Pizza  Milwaukee, Wisconsin: April 30, 6pm free public talk at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Golda Meir Library   Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute OI Books (Use Promo Code

Within days of the Boston Massacre, Bostonians politicized the event. They circulated a pamphlet about “the Horrid Massacre” and published images portraying soldiers firing into a well-assembled and peaceful crowd. 
 But why did the Boston Massacre happen? Why did the British government feel it had little choice but to station as many 2,000 soldiers in Boston during peacetime? And what was going on within the larger British Empire that drove colonists to the point where they provoked armed soldiers to fire upon them? Patrick Griffin, the Madden-Hennebry Family Professor of History at the University of Notre Dame and author of The Townshend Moment: The Making of Empire and Revolution in the Eighteenth Century, joins us to answer these questions as we continue our 3-episode investigation of the Boston Massacre. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/229   Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute Omohundro Institute Books (Use Promo Code 01DAH40 to save 40 percent)   Complementary Episodes Bonus Ep

On the evening of March 5, 1770, a crowd gathered in Boston’s King Street and confronted a a sentry and his fellow soldiers in front of the custom house. The confrontation led the soldiers to fire their muskets into the crowd, five civilians died. What happened on the night of March 5, 1770 that led the crowd to gather and the soldiers to discharge their weapons? Eric Hinderaker, a distinguished professor of history at the University of Utah and the author of Boston’s Massacre, assists our quest to discover more about the Boston Massacre. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/228   Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute Omohundro Institute Books (Use Promo Code 01DAH40 to save 40 percent)   Complementary Episodes Bonus Episode: J.L. Bell, The Stamp Act of 1765 Episode 106: Jane Kamensky, The World of John Singleton Copley Episode 112: Mary Beth Norton, The Tea Crisis of 1773 Episode 129: J.L. Bell, The Road to Concord, 1775 Episode 130: Paul Revere’s Ride Through History Episode 161: Sm

In the 21st century, we are all creators and users of content. We take original photos with our smartphones, generate blog posts, digital videos, and podcasts. Some of us write books and articles. And nearly everyone contributes content to social media. Given all of the information and content we generate and use, it’s really important for us to understand the principles of copyright and fair use, principles that have an early American past. Kyle Courtney, a lawyer, librarian, and Copyright Advisor for Harvard University, will serve as our guide through the early American origins of copyright and fair use. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/227   Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute William and Mary Quarterly OI Reader App with bonus content from episode Nora Slonimsky, “The Public Figure Exception(s): Finding Fair Use in the Vastness of Early American IP”   Complementary Episodes Episode 062: Carol Berkin, The Bill of Rights Episode 107: Mary Sarah Bilder, Madison’s Hand Episode 143

What do we mean by “the state?” How is a “state” produced? Is “the state” something everyone can participate in producing? Ryan Quintana, an Associate Professor of History at Wellesley College and the author of Making a Slave State: Political Development in Early South Carolina, joins us to answer these questions with a look at the creation and development of the State of South Carolina. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/226   Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute William and Mary Quarterly OI Reader app   Complementary Episodes Episode 083: Jared Hardesty, Unfreedom: Slavery in Colonial Boston Episode 126: Rebecca Brannon, The Reintegration of American Loyalists Episode 157: Judith Van Buskirk, The Revolution’s African American Soldiers Episode 186: Max Edelson, The New Map of the British Empire Episode 190: Jennie Goloboy, Origins of the American Middle Class     Helpful Show Links Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Ben Franklin’s World Twitter: @BFWorldPodcast Join the B

In 1738, a cooper named Benedict Arnold petitioned the Rhode Island General Assembly for a divorce from his wife Mary Ward Arnold. Benedict claimed that Mary had taken a lover and together they had attempted to murder him with poison. How did this story of love, divorce, and attempted murder unfold? What does it reveal about the larger world of colonial America and the experiences of colonial American men and women? Elaine Forman Crane, a Distinguished Professor of History at Fordham University, takes us through the Arnolds’ story with details from her book, The Poison Plot: A Tale of Adultery and Murder in Colonial Newport. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/225   Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute William and Mary Quarterly OI Reader app   Complementary Episodes Episode 110: Joshua Taylor, How Genealogists Research Episode 114: Karin Wulf, The History of Genealogy Episode 118: Christy Clark-Pujara, The Business of Slavery in Rhode Island Episode 208: Nathaniel Philbrick, Turning

The Atlantic World has brought many disparate peoples together, which has caused a lot of ideas and cultures to mix. How did the Atlantic World bring so many different peoples and cultures together? How did this large intermixing of people and cultures impact the development of colonial America? Kevin Dawson, an Associate Professor of History at the University of California-Merced and author of Undercurrents of Power: Aquatic Culture in the African Diaspora, joins us to explore answers to these questions with an investigation of the African Diaspora and African and African American aquatic culture. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/048   Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute Institute for Thomas Paine Studies Follow the Institute for Thomas Paine Studies on Twitter (@TheITPS)   Complementary Episodes Episode 104: Andrew Lipman, The Saltwater Frontier: Europeans & Native Americans on the Northeastern Coast Bonus: Lonnie Bunch, History & Historians in the Public Episode 166: Freedom and

During the 17th and 18th centuries, the Ohio River Valley proved to be a rich agrarian region. Many different Native American peoples prospered from its land both in terms of the the land’s ability to produce a wide variety of crops and its support of a wide variety of small fur-bearing animals for the fur trade. Susan Sleeper-Smith, a Professor of History at Michigan State University and author of Indigenous Prosperity and American Conquest: Indian Women and the Ohio River Valley, 1690-1792, helps us explore this unique region and the important roles it played in the early American past. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/223   Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute Institute for Thomas Paine Studies Follow the Institute for Thomas Paine Studies on Twitter (@TheITPS)   Complementary Episodes Episode 029: Colin Calloway, The Native American Defeat of the First American Army Episode 051: Catherine Cangany, Frontier Seaport: A History of Early Detroit Episode 064: Brett Rushforth, Native A

Have you ever wondered how the capital of the United States came to be situated at Washington D.C.? The banks of the Potomac River represent an odd place to build a national city, a place that would not only serve as the seat of government for the nation, but also as an economic, cultural, and intellectual hub. Still in 1790, the United States Congress passed the Residence Act and mandated that it would establish a new, permanent capital along the banks of the Potomac River. Why? Adam Costanzo, a Professional Assistant Professor of History at Texas A&M University, Corpus Christi and author of George Washington’s Washington: Visions for the National Capital in the Early American Republic, joins us to consider questions of the national capital’s location and construction. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/222   Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute Audible 30-Day Free Trial   Complementary Episodes Episode 016: Alan Taylor, The Internal Enemy Episode 061: Edward Larson, George Washington i

Can food help us better understand the people and events of the past? Can we better understand a person like Benjamin Franklin and who he was by the foods he ate? Rae Katherine Eighmey, an award-winning food historian, author, and cook, joins us to explore the culinary tastes and habits of Benjamin Franklin and colonial British Americans with details from her book Stirring the Pot with Benjamin Franklin: A Founding Father’s Culinary Adventures. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/221   Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute OI Books (Use promo code 01DAH40 to save 40 percent) Denver Meet Up Saturday, January 19, 3:30pm at Prost Brewing    Complementary Episodes Episode 019: Kenneth Turino, The Colonial Boston Marketplace Episode 022: Vivian Bruce Conger, Deborah Read Franklin & Sally Franklin Bache Episode 044: Adam Shprintzen, The Vegetarian Crusade Episode 135: Julie Holcomb, Moral Commerce: The Tranatlantic Boycott of the Slave Labor Economy Episode 169: Thomas S. Kidd, The Religiou

Did you know that one of the earliest practices of slavery by English colonists originated in New England? In fact, Massachusetts issued the very first slave code in English America in 1641. Why did New Englanders turn to slavery and become the first in English America to codify its practice? Margaret Ellen Newell, a professor of history at The Ohio State University and the author of Brethren By Nature: New England Indians, Colonists, and the Origins of American Slavery, joins us to investigate these questions and issues. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/220   Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute OI Books (Use promo code 01DAH40 to save 40 percent) Denver Meet Up Saturday, January 19, 3:30pm at Prost Brewing    Complementary Episodes Episode 064: Brett Rushforth, Native American Slavery in New France Episode 083: Jared Hardesty, Unfreedom: Slavery in Colonial Boston Episode 139: Andrés Reséndez, The Other Slavery Episode 170: Wendy Warren, New England Bound Episode 191: Lisa Brook

Inns and taverns played prominent roles in early American life. They served the needs of travelers who needed food to eat and places to sleep.They offered local communities a form of poor relief. And they functioned as public spaces where men could gather to discuss news, organize movements, and to drink and play cards. Adrian Covert, author of Taverns of the American Revolution, helps us explore taverns and the many roles they played in early American life. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/219   Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute OI Books (Use promo code 01DAH40 to save 40 percent) Denver Meet Up Saturday, January 19, 3:30pm at Prost Brewing  Complementary Episodes Bonus: Longfellow’s Wayside Inn Episode 112: The Tea Crisis of 1773 Episode 160: The Politics of Tea Episode 161: Smuggling and the American Revolution Episode 187: Kenneth Cohen, Sport in Early America Episode 200: Everyday Life in Early America     Helpful Show Links Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Ben Fra

Have you ever wondered where the Christmas traditions of stockings, presents, and cookies come from? What about jolly, old Saint Nicholas? Who was he and why do we often call him Santa Claus? Peter G. Rose, culinary historian of Dutch foodways in North America and author of Delicious December: How the Dutch Brought Us Santa, Presents, and Treats joins us to discuss the origins of Santa Claus and edible goodies such as cookies in the United States. This episode originally posted as Episode 009.   Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/218   Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute Chicago 2019 Meetup   Complementary Episodes Episode 035: Michael Lord, Historic Hudson Valley & Washington Irving Episode 121: Wim Klooster, The Dutch Moment in the 17th-Century Atlantic World Episode 161: Smuggling and the American Revolution Episode 185: Joyce Goodfriend, Who Should Rule at Home?   Helpful Show Links Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Ben Franklin’s World Twitter: @BFWorldPodcast Join the

How do you uncover the life of an enslaved person who left no paper trail? What can the everyday life of an enslaved person tell us about slavery, how it was practiced, and how some enslaved people made the transition from slavery to freedom? We explore the life of Charity Folks, an enslaved woman from Maryland who gained her freedom in the late-18th century. Our guide through Charity’s life is Jessica Millward, an Associate Professor of History at the University of California, Irvine and author of Finding Charity’s Folk: Enslaved and Free Black Women in Maryland. This episode originally posted as Episode 089.   Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/217   Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute Chicago 2019 Meetup   Complementary Episodes Episode 070: Jennifer Morgan, How Historians Research Episode 083: Jared Hardesty, Unfreedom: Slavery in Colonial Boston Episode 084: Zara Anishanslin, How Historians Read Historical Sources Episode 176: Daina Ramey Berry, Price For Their Pound of Flesh

What do George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, and Abraham Lincoln have in common? They all grew-up in blended or stepfamilies. Lisa Wilson, the Charles J. MacCurdy Professor of American History at Connecticut College and author of A History of Stepfamilies in Early America, takes us through the creation and interactions of blended and stepfamilies in early America. This episode originally posted as Episode 027. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/216   Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute Chicago 2019 Meetup   Complementary Episodes Episode 150: Woody Holton, Abigail Adams Episode 175: Daniel Epstein, House Divided: The Revolution in Ben Franklin’s House Episode 183: Douglas Bradburn, Mount Vernon Episode 207: Nick Bunker, Young Benjamin Franklin     Helpful Show Links Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Ben Franklin’s World Twitter: @BFWorldPodcast Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin'

We tend to view gay marriage as a cultural and legal development of the 21st century. But did you know that some early Americans lived openly as same-sex married couples? Rachel Hope Cleves, a Professor of History at the University of Victoria in British Columbia and author of Charity and Sylvia: A Same-Sex Marriage in Early America, reveals the story of Charity Bryant and Sylvia Drake, women who lived as a married couple in Weybridge, Vermont between 1807 and 1851. This episode originally posted as Episode 013. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/215   Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute Chicago 2019 Meetup   Complementary Episodes Episode 004: Thomas Foster, Sex and the Founding Fathers Episode 027: Lisa Wilson, A History of Stepfamilies in Early America Episode 032: Michelle Marchetti Coughlin, One Colonial Woman’s World Episode 120: Marcia Zug, A History of Mail Order Brides in Early America Episode 175: Daniel Epstein, House Divided: The Revolution in Ben Franklin’s House