Museum of American Exceptionalism
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Liberty

The founding, and the fight to keep it free. From the Mayflower Compact in 1620 to the fall of the Berlin Wall.

1620–1989 · 10 exhibits
  1. The Mayflower Compact, 1620, as imagined by Jean Leon Gerome Ferris: the men gather around a sea chest in the ship's cabin to sign.
    1620Open nowThe Mayflower CompactBefore they set foot ashore, the Pilgrims agreed to govern themselves by laws they would make together.41signers
  2. The Battle of Lexington, 19 April 1775: Parker’s militia return fire on the Green as the regulars advance (William Barnes Wollen, 1910).
    1775Open nowThe Shot Heard Round the WorldFarmers turned out in the night, fired back at the North Bridge, and chased the King’s regulars 18 miles back to Charlestown.~4,000militiamen
  3. Declaration of Independence (John Trumbull, 1818–19)
    1776Open nowThe DeclarationFifty-six men signed their names to treason against the Crown and pledged their lives, fortunes and sacred honor.56signers
  4. Washington Crossing the Delaware (Emanuel Leutze, 1851)
    1776Open nowCrossing the DelawareChristmas night, ice in the river. Washington crossed it in the dark and took Trenton by morning.2,400men
  5. Surrender of General Burgoyne (John Trumbull, 1821), in the Capitol Rotunda. Gates declines Burgoyne’s sword and invites him into his tent; Daniel Morgan stands in white at the head of the American officers.
    1777Open nowSaratogaThe Park Service calls it the first surrender of a British army in history. France saw it and came into the war.~6,000troops surrendered
  6. Surrender of Lord Cornwallis (John Trumbull, 1820)
    1781Open nowYorktownCornwallis’s army marched out between the allied lines and laid down its arms. A new nation had beaten the British Empire.~8,000surrendered
  7. Washington stands at the head of the Assembly Room as the delegates sign the Constitution, 17 September 1787 (Howard Chandler Christy, 1940).
    1787Open nowThe ConstitutionThirty-nine delegates signed the plan for a government of the people. It is the oldest written national constitution still in force.39signers
  8. A View of the Bombardment of Fort McHenry: British bomb ships shell the fort on the morning of 13 September 1814 (John Bower, aquatint, c. 1816).
    1814Open nowFort McHenryThe Royal Navy shelled the fort through a day and a night. At dawn the flag was still there, and Francis Scott Key wrote it down.25hours of bombardment
  9. Lincoln speaks at the dedication of the Soldiers' National Cemetery, 19 November 1863, as imagined in a Sherwood Lithograph Co. print of about 1905.
    1863Open nowA New Birth of FreedomLincoln spoke for about two minutes at Gettysburg and defined what the nation was for.272words
  10. President Reagan speaks to the crowd at the Brandenburg Gate, West Berlin, 12 June 1987. The Wall runs behind the stage
    1989Open nowTear Down This WallReagan stood at the Brandenburg Gate and dared Moscow to open it. Two and a half years later the Wall came down.28years the Wall stood