The National Archives has announced a “Freedom Plane National Tour” of Founding-era documents that will extend throughout the year in celebration of America’s semiquincentennial. The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) will bring the traveling exhibition to eight cities starting in March.
The documents that will be toured throughout the country include an original engraving of the Declaration of Independence from 1823 commissioned by John Quincy Adams, the Articles of Association from 1774, the Treaty of Paris from 1783 (ending the Revolutionary War), a secret printing of the Constitution in draft form from 1787, a tally of votes approving the Constitution from 1787, and the oaths of allegiance for George Washington, Alexander Hamilton, and Aaron Burr from 1778.
The eight cities included in the tour are Kansas City, Atlanta, Los Angeles, Houston, Denver, Miami, Dearborn, and Seattle. The dates and specific locations for each city are as follows:
- Kansas City, MO.: National WWI Museum and Memorial, March 6-22.
- Atlanta, GA: Atlanta History Center, March 27-April 12.
- Los Angeles, CA: USC Fisher Museum of Art, April 17-May 3.
- Houston, TX: Houston Museum of Natural Science, May 8-25.
- Denver, CO: History Colorado Center, May 28-June 14.
- Miami, FL: HistoryMiami Museum, June 20-July 5.
- Dearborn, MI.: Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation, July 9-26.
- Seattle, WA: Museum of History and Industry, July 30-Aug. 16.
The exhibition “will be free and open to the public at all eight venues,” according to NARA. An agency representative emphasized the importance of the tour.
“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, who serves as the 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.”
NARA is carrying out the tour with support from Boeing, Comcast, Microsoft, and P&G. A Boeing representative explained why the tour is important for Americans.
“At Boeing, we’re honored to help bring these foundational documents directly to communities across the country,” said Jeff Shockey, who serves as the executive vice president of Boeing Government Operations, Global Public Policy and Corporate Strategy. “Just as flight connects people and places, this tour will connect Americans to the ideas and sacrifices that forged our nation, and make history accessible to people from coast to coast.”
This will be the first time these Founding-era documents will be traveling together. NARA explained that the documents “will journey from Washington, D.C. to all eight cities aboard The Freedom Plane.”
The Freedom Plane National Tour is inspired by the Bicentennial Freedom Train, which traveled throughout the United States in 1976 to celebrate the nation’s 200th anniversary. The train traveled to 138 cities and included artifacts such as a handwritten draft of the Constitution from Thomas Jefferson and a moon rock from the Apollo mission.
This year’s tour is a modern rendition of the Freedom Train’s journey from 50 years ago. The Freedom Plane National Tour will continue throughout the summer before making its last stop at Seattle in August.
Alan Jamison is the pen name of a political writer with extensive experience writing for several notable politicians and news outlets.
