1770s

Though they may fall by the wayside of textbooks, without the efforts American women made toward the Revolution, the Continental Army would have been in dire straits indeed. Luckily, the women of Maryland and Virginia met the challenges of supply shortages, low morale, and lack of funds with determination and patriotism.

Charles Carroll of Carrollton, a wealthy Maryland statesman was the last surviving signer – and only Catholic signer – of the Declaration of Independence. He lived to age 95, passing away on November 14, 1832. After the deaths of John Adams and Thomas Jefferson in 1826, Carroll became the final living link to the founding generation. His death marked the end of an era when the nation's birth could still be recalled by one of its original framers. 

America might not have existed long without the heroic sacrifice of a small group of Marylanders on August 27, 1776. That late summer day men of the First Maryland Regiment found themselves surrounded and hopelessly outnumbered by British forces during the Battle of Brooklyn (also called the Battle of Long Island), the largest battle of the Revolutionary War, fought just weeks after the signing of the Declaration of Independence.

Today, the founding documents of America - the Constitution, the Declaration of Independence, and the Bill of Rights - are on display at the Charters of Freedom exhibit in the Rotunda of the National Archives. Tourists from across America and the world make pilgrimages to see the most revered documents in American history. Extensive preservation measures have been put in place. But this wasn’t always the case. For most of our nation’s history, these charters, now considered priceless, were kept with the United States’ other government documents - that is, shoved wherever officials could find space. Before the National Archives was founded in 1934, these documents were stored essentially at random, in basements, on walls, or even piled in hallways.

Apparently Hungerford’s Tavern in Rockville, Maryland was the place to be. Constructed around 1750, it was one of America’s first real taverns and hosted a number of big shots including George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, and Patrick Henry. In Rockville, it was a favorite watering hole for news, entertainment, business… and to fan the flames of Revolution.