USC will host the National Archives “Freedom Plane National Tour: Documents That Forged a Nation” from April 17 through May 3, bringing original founding-era documents to Los Angeles for a once-in-a-generation opportunity. The exhibition is part of an eight-city national tour celebrating the 250th anniversary of the United States.
The USC Fisher Museum of Art, the oldest art museum in the city of Los Angeles, will display rare founding documents including William Stone’s 1823 engraving of the Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Association from 1774, the Treaty of Paris that recognized American independence, and a draft of the U.S. Constitution — most of which are leaving Washington, D.C., for the first time in many decades.
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“USC is honored to host this historic exhibition as part of our country’s 250th anniversary,” USC Interim President Beong-Soo Kim said. “These founding documents will offer members of our community — both at USC and throughout the region — an opportunity to reflect on the enduring principles underlying our constitutional democracy.”
“Americans across the country can bear witness to the people and principles that shaped our nation through the Freedom Plane National Tour,” said Jim Byron, senior advisor to the Archivist of the United States. “There is no more noteworthy an occasion than America’s 250th ‘birthday’ to share this history, to inspire our fellow Americans to champion our nation’s founding ideals into the future.”
“The founders lived in a world very different from ours,” said Peter Mancall, Andrew W. Mellon Professor of the Humanities and professor of history, anthropology and economics at USC. “They tolerated enslavement, denied political voice to women and excluded Native Americans. Yet the ideals they articulated in these famous documents have inspired Americans for nearly 250 years. The notion that all people are created equal and that each of us has inalienable rights that no government can violate remain core ideas in our society. USC’s location near the heart of a thriving city enables a wide public to view documents that helped establish these ideals.”
The exhibition will be free and open to the public during regular museum hours. It will include the following historical documents:
William Stone Engraving of the Declaration of Independence, 1823: One of only about 50 known original engraved copies of the Declaration of Independence, printed from a copperplate of the original, commissioned by John Quincy Adams and made by engraver William J. Stone. The engraving captured the size, text, lettering and signatures of the original document (on loan from David M. Rubenstein).
Articles of Association, 1774: The most important agreement at the time that was adopted by the First Continental Congress and signed by all 53 delegates that urged colonists to boycott British goods.
George Washington’s, Alexander Hamilton’s and Aaron Burr’s Oaths of Allegiance, 1778: Oaths of Allegiance that all officers of the Continental Army signed during the Revolutionary War.
Treaty of Paris, 1783: Signed by John Adams, Benjamin Franklin and John Jay, the treaty with Great Britain formally recognized the United States as an independent nation.
Secret Printing of the Constitution in Draft Form, 1787: A rare copy of the U.S. Constitution in draft form, with delegate handwritten notes made during the Constitutional Convention in 1787.
Tally of Votes Approving the Constitution, 1787: The voting records of the Constitutional Convention reflecting the debates, resolutions and eventual vote on the final text that would become the Constitution.
Inspired by the Bicentennial Freedom Train, the Freedom Plane National Tour brings these documents together for the first time in history. The tour will visit eight cities across the nation:
Kansas City, Mo.: National WWI Museum and Memorial, March 6-22.
Atlanta: Atlanta History Center, March 27-April 12.
Los Angeles: USC Fisher Museum of Art, April 17-May 3.
Houston: Houston Museum of Natural Science, May 8-25.
Denver: History Colorado Center, May 28-June 14.
Miami: HistoryMiami Museum, June 20-July 5.
Dearborn, Mich.: Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation, July 9-26.
Seattle: Museum of History and Industry, July 30-Aug. 16.