Information Tools

Resources:

Documents that Changed the U.S.A.

The United States is a nation of stories — from those shared by its first peoples to social media posts and videos and AI-generated slop. We’re also, as the first country to write itself into existence, a nation of documents and records: the big, important founding charters and also others that reflect and define the American character in all its myriad and often complicated forms. The details and stories behind all of those tell our stories too and reveal important, often hidden, forgotten, unknown — and fun! — aspects of ourselves, and our ever-evolving nation.

Information School Associate Professor Joseph Janes tells these stories in his podcast, "Documents that Changed the World." On this 250th anniversary of our nation's founding, here are some episodes about memorable documents in U.S. history. Note that these episodes reflect their context at the time they were recorded; current events sometimes change how we see the past.

Image of the top portion of the Declaration of Independence

Declaration of Independence deleted passage, 1776

One of our most cherished and fundamental documents underwent a serious of edits and revisions from the trivial to the profound, and we are largely in the dark as to how and why. Listen

1814 American flag

The Star-Spangled Banner, 1814

O say do you know... the story behind the Star-Spangled Banner? An American icon and an anthem that’s nearly impossible to sing. Listen

Image of the Fannie Farmer cookbook cover.

Fannie Farmer Cookbook, 1896

A remarkable woman from Massachusetts helped to codify much of what we take for granted in recipes and cooking. Listen

Women celebrate after winning the right to vote.

19th Amendment, 1920

Was the 19th amendment to the U.S. Constitution written by a woman? And where, exactly, is the actual Constitution? Listen

A portion of the cover of the Negro Motorist Green Book

The Negro Motorist Green Book, 1936

In dangerous times, the book listed hospitable places for Black travelers. Listen

Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt carve a Thanksgiving turkey.

FDR's Thanksgiving proclamation, 1939

Thanksgiving is, reliably, on the fourth Thursday of November. Except that it wasn’t always. Listen

An illustration of a woman, part of the 'We Can Do It' poster

'We Can Do It' poster, 1943

The famous World War II-era poster, often mistaken for Rosie the Riveter, is less a document that changed the world than the other way around. Listen

A portion of one of the 'golden records' aboard Voyager.

Voyager 'Golden Records,' 1977

The Voyager 1 and 2 probes carry long-playing discs containing recorded sounds and images to outer space. Listen

A small section of the Vietnam memorial.

Vietnam Veterans Memorial, 1982

The Vietnam Veterans Memorial memorializes the war in general, our experience of it, and our coming to terms with it. Listen

Images of portions of 3 Electoral College documents.

Electoral College documents, 2020

Hundreds speak for the tens of millions who vote in U.S. presidential elections — and in the end it’s a set of documents that speak for us all. Listen

Resources: