Local History Series: The Declaration of Independence at 250 Years

While the second Continental Congress boldly voted for American Independence on July 2, 1776, the approval of the Declaration of Independence two days later, on July 4th, had equally momentous consequences -- many of them unforeseen and unintended by the congressional delegates in Philadelphia. In addition to exploring the origins of the Declaration, Prof. Voelker will consider its significance for the evolution of American democracy over the past two and a half centuries, including it continuing relevance today.

Prof. David Voelker, Ph.D. Frankenthal Family Professor of Humanities & History; Chair, UWGB Sustainability Committee, and Chair, Committee of Six Full Professors. He served as the editor-in-chief of Voyageur Magazine: Northeast Wisconsin's Historical Review from 2014 - 2019 and co-edited the ten-volume Debating American History series for Oxford University Press. He is author of The Powhatans and the English in the Seventeenth-Century Chesapeake (Oxford University Press, 2019).