Ben Franklin's World

Located 600 miles inland from Philadelphia and over 700 miles from Québec City, early Detroit could have been a backwater, a frontier post that Europeans established to protect colonial settlements from Native American attacks.

Yet Detroit emerged as a cosmopolitan entrepôt filled with many different peoples and all of the goods you would expect to find in early Boston, New York City, Philadelphia, or Charleston.

Today, we explore the early history of Detroit with Catherine Cangany, an associate professor of history at the University of Notre Dame and author of Frontier Seaport: Detroit’s Transformation into an Atlantic Entrepôt.

Show Notes: http://www.benfranklinsworld.com/051

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How did every day men and women experience life in colonial America?

How did the American Revolution transform their work and personal lives?

Today, we explore the answers to those questions by investigating the life of Betsy Ross with Marla Miller, professor of history at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst and author of Betsy Ross and the Making of America.

Show Notes: http://www.benfranklinsworld.com/050

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Why did England want to establish colonies in North America and how did Englishmen go about establishing them?

We explore the early days of English settlement in North America with Malcolm Gaskill, Professor of History at the University of East Anglia and author of Between Two Worlds: How the English Became American.

Show Notes: http://www.benfranklinsworld.com/049

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• Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page
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*Books purchased through this link will help support the production of Ben Franklin's World.

*Books purchased through this link will help support the production of Ben Franklin's World.

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When we think about the War for American Independence many of us conjure images of Washington crossing the Delaware, Cornwallis’ surrender at Yorktown, or perhaps the freezing winters at Valley Forge or Jockey Hollow.

What we don’t tend to think about are enemy prisoners of war, the British and German soldiers the patriot militia and Continental Army units captured during and after battles.

Today, we explore the day-to-day experiences of British and German POWs during the War for Independence with Ken Miller, Associate Professor of History at Washington College and author of Dangerous Guests: Enemy Captives and Revolutionary Communities during the War for Independence.

Show Notes: http://www.benfranklinsworld.com/048

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• Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page
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*Books purchased through this link will help support the production of Ben Franklin's World.

*Books purchased through this link will help support the production of Ben Franklin's World.

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Where did the United States fit within the world between 1810 and 1847?

After the United States secured its independence from Great Britain, many Americans looked at the world and wondered about their place within it.

What role would early Americans play in shaping the world around them?

Today, we explore early American conceptions of the world with Emily Conroy-Krutz, an Assistant Professor of History at Michigan State University and author of Christian Imperialism: Converting the World in the Early American Republic.

Show Notes: http://www.benfranklinsworld.com/047

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What caused the American Revolution?

Can we use the term “American Revolution” to describe both the revolution and the War for Independence?

What was the greatest challenge that George Washington and his Continental Army faced during the War for Independence?

In this listener-requested episode, we dive deep into the American Revolution with John Ferling, professor emeritus at the University of West Georgia and author of Whirlwind: The American Revolution and the War That Won It.

Show Notes Page: http://www.benfranklinsworld.com/046

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Many Americans associate the state of Utah with Mormons.

But did you know the Mormons almost settled in Texas?

Spencer McBride, an editor with the Joseph Smith Papers Documentary Editing Project, joins us to explore the life of Joseph Smith, founder of Mormonism and the Church of Latter Day Saints.

Show Notes: http://www.benfranklinsworld.com/045

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Do you know which early American reform movement pushed for abolition, women’s rights, pacifism, and economic growth?

Today, Adam Shprintzen, Assistant Professor of History at Marywood University and author of The Vegetarian Crusade: The Rise of an American Reform Movement, 1817-1921, takes us on a journey through the origins of vegetarianism and the Vegetarian reform movement in the United States.

Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/044

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How and when did doctors become respected professionals in American society?

The answer lies in early Americans’ fascination with delirium tremens, or alcoholic insanity, and the Temperance Movement of the early-to-mid 19th century.

Matthew Osborn, Assistant Professor of History at the University of Missouri-Kansas City and author of Rum Maniacs: Alcoholic Insanity in the Early Republic, leads us on an exploration of early American medical history and reform movements.

Show Notes: http://www.benfranklinsworld.com/043

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“No Taxation Without Representation!”

August 14, 2015 marks the 250th anniversary of the first Boston Stamp Act riot.

Today’s bonus episode commemorates the anniversary with a conversation about the Stamp Act, the Boston riots, and the American Revolution with J.L. Bell, proprietor of Boston1775.net.

Show Notes: http://www.benfranklinsworld.com/stampact

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