William Penn, Benjamin Franklin, and the American Founding: The Philadelphia Factor

| Center for the Study of America and the West

About the Event

In the latest installment of his Ginsburg-Satell Lecture series, Professor Walter McDougall will tell the fascinating story of why the representatives of the 13 American Colonies chose Philadelphia as the venue for the Continental Congress and Constitutional Convention. Along the way, Professor McDougall will also examine some surprising counter-factuals, suggesting that the birth of the United States was accidental if not providential, and that the key role played by Philadelphia, William Penn's "green country town," was not at all accidental!

This event is co-sponsored by the Museum of the American Revolution.

You can find the PowerPoint used in this presentation here.

Registration

Zoom instructions will be provided upon registration.

Registration required.

If you have any questions, please contact Eli Gilman at [email protected].

Speakers

Walter A. McDougall

Walter A. McDougall - Walter A. McDougall is the Ginsburg-Satell Chair of FPRI's Center for the Study of America and the West. He is also the Co-Chair of FPRI’s Madeleine and W.W. Keen Butcher History Institute, Chairman of FPRI Board of Advisors, and sits on the Board of Editors for FPRI’s journal, Orbis. He is the Alloy-Ansin Professor of International Relations and Professor of History at the University of Pennsylvania.