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This was the fourth week of videos from the 250 to 250 Project that we’re producing to honor the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence.
We designed the videos to emphasize the agency of Americans—mostly everyday Americans—to change the country. Each falls into a category that defines what it means to be an American, including community, democracy, innovation, mobility, civil rights, education, conservation, and creativity.
There are some surprises among this week’s videos.
I hope you enjoy them.
You can follow the project at the sites listed below, or under “videos” at my own YouTube page: Heather Cox Richardson. Or just wait until I send out the week’s roundup.
Follow Along | #WeAreAmerica250
Substack | YouTube | Facebook | Instagram | TikTok | Bluesky | Threads
Joshua Chamberlain, Narrated by Senator Angus King
Senator Angus King is an American lawyer and Independent politician. He is the former Governor of Maine and has served in the U.S. Senate since 2013. Senator King explores the legacy of Joshua Chamberlain, the Mainer who helped the United States win the Battle of Gettysburg.
Rachel Carson’s “Silent Spring,” Narrated by Katherine Richardson
Dr. Katherine Richardson is a Professor in Biological Oceanography at the University of Copenhagen and active in the development of Earth system science. She leads the Queen Margrethe and Vigdís Finnbogadóttir´s Interdisciplinary Research Centre on Ocean, Climate, and Society and is an architect of the Planetary Boundaries Framework. Richardson tells of marine biologist Rachel Carson, whose 1962 book Silent Spring exposed the dangers of pesticides and sparked the modern environmental movement.
Hoover Dam, Narrated by Michael Green
Dr. Michael Green is a Professor of History in UNLV's Department of History and teaches courses on nineteenth-century America and on Nevada and Las Vegas. Green tells the story of Hoover Dam, the colossal public works project that delivered power and reassured America during the Great Depression.
Zimmermann Telegram, Narrated by Daniel W. Drezner
Dr. Daniel W. Drezner is Distinguished Professor of International Politics at The Fletcher School, co-host of the popular Space the Nation podcast, and the author of Drezner's World on Substack. Drezner explains how a single German telegram to Mexico helped push the United States into World War I.
Eatonville, Narrated by Representative Maxwell Alejandro Frost
Representative Maxwell Frost of Florida is the first Generation Z member of the U.S. Congress. Frost served as the national organizing director for March for Our Lives, a youth-led group fighting gun violence. Here he explores the history of Eatonville, Florida, one of the first self-governing all-Black towns in America.
Establishment of Washington D.C., Narrated by Lisa Ann Walter
Lisa Ann Walter is an actress, comedian, and producer who proudly calls Washington, D.C. her hometown. Walter was born and raised in the Washington D.C. metropolitan area where she marched in protests for women’s reproductive rights and the Equal Rights Amendment, as well as against the Vietnam War. Walter went to college in the area, researching and writing her term papers at the Library of Congress. Her connection and understanding of the area are why she narrates the story of how Washington, D.C. became America’s capital.
Follow Along | #WeAreAmerica250
Substack | YouTube | Facebook | Instagram | TikTok | Bluesky | Threads
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