Frontier Rebels: The Fight for Independence in the American West, 1765-1776

In this talk based on his new book, Frontier Rebels: The Fight for Independence in the West, 1765–1776 (2018), Patrick Spero will recast the familiar narrative of the American Revolution, moving the action from the Eastern Seaboard to the treacherous western frontier and recounting the untold story of the 1765 rebellion of the “Black Boys.” In doing so, he will reveal an often-overlooked truth: the West played a crucial role in igniting the flame of American independence.

A Conversation with Jill Lepore on History and the Public

AAS Member Jill Lepore will engage Jim Moran, the Society’s vice president for programs and outreach, in a wide-ranging conversation about the role of history in our civic life, educational systems, and public discourses. This conversation will also address the canon of Lepore’s work, including her most recent book, These Truths: A History of the United States, which was a New York Times Bestseller when published last fall.

Isaiah Thomas’s Apprenticeship: The Labor and Value of Children’s Literature

When the Worcester, Massachusetts, printer Isaiah Thomas (1749–1831) donated his collection of early American imprints to found the American Antiquarian Society, he did not include in that donation many books written for children. Yet Thomas was the foremost publisher of children’s literature in his time, and books addressed to child readers at school or at home generated at least a quarter of his press profits. Isaiah Thomas’s own accounts of his career always emphasized his experience as a printer’s apprentice, beginning to set type when he was only six years old.

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow: The Bard of Brattle Street

Join us for a thoughtful conversation with Nicholas A. Basbanes about this new book, Cross of Snow: A Life of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. Led by AAS Vice President for Programs and Outreach James David Moran, the conversation will explore Longfellow the poet—the public side—and Longfellow the consummate New Englander and family man—the private, personal side. How did Longfellow interact with the print culture of his day? What influence did his family life have on his poetry? How did national politics impact his work?

Pestilence and Print in Early America

The 24-hour news cycle and the consumption of an endless variety of media seems to have reached its apex in recent months with COVID-19.The perpetual barrage of articles, memes, and debates taking place in both traditional and social media outlets—as well as consumers’ seeming inability to turn away from it—has led to the coining of a new term: “doomscrolling.” But before instant communication and digital technology made doomscrolling possible, how did people get information about epidemics and pandemics? Who was providing that information, for what purposes, and in what print mediums?

Manuscript Cultures in 17th Century New England

Join Ashley Cataldo, AAS curator of manuscripts, and Meredith Neuman, associate professor at Clark University, for a lively presentation on early New England manuscript culture. Presenters will showcase a variety of genres, including diaries, correspondence, account books, deeds, sermon notes, notebooks, annotations, and more. They will explore other intriguing features of manuscripts from the period, including shorthand and curious preservation issues.

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