Historical Research Library

Discover the people, events, and key documents that shaped the Founding Era. 

Singers and dancers focused on Chris Jackson playing George Washington

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Engraving of Abigail Adams, n.d. (Gilder Lehrman Collection)

Abigail Adams

Influential First Lady, advocate for women’s rights, and prolific writer

Person
"Mrs. John Barker Church, Son Philip, and Servant," by John Trumbull, 1785 (Private Collection)

Angelica Schuyler Church

The charming, intelligent, politically active oldest daughter of Philip Schuyler and sister of Elizabeth Hamilton

Person
Nathanael Greene, based on a portrait by Alonzo Chappel (The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History)

Nathanael Greene

Trusted aide to George Washington known for strategic brilliance and Revolutionary War victories

Person
Alexander Hamilton, John Trumbull Copy after: Giuseppe Ceracchi 1806, National Portrait Gallery

Alexander Hamilton

A poor immigrant from the Caribbean who became a key figure in the Revolution and in establishing the US government

Person
Anthony Ramos as Philip Hamilton. Photograph by Josh Lehrer.

Philip Hamilton

Eldest son of Alexander Hamilton and Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton who died in a duel defending his father’s honor

Person
Portrait of King George III by Thomas Frye (The Gilder Lehrman Collection)

George III

King of Great Britain viewed as a tyrant by colonists and a symbol of imperial rule

Person
John Jay, by Gilbert Stuart and John Trumbull, ca. 1818 (National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution)

John Jay

Co-author of the Federalist Papers, American diplomat, abolitionist, and first Chief Justice of the United States

Person
Thomas Jefferson, engraved by C. Tidout, based on a painting by Rembrandt Peale, 1801. (The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History)

Thomas Jefferson

Principal author of the Declaration of Independence who became the third President of the United States after a controversial election

Person
Henry Knox, engraved by H. W. Smith, based on a painting by Edward Savage, ca. 1860 (The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History)

Henry Knox

A poor bookseller in Boston who became a close confidant of George Washington, a general, and first Secretary of War

Person
Silhouette of Mrs. Henry Knox, ca. 1790 (Massachusetts Historical Society)

Lucy Knox

A daughter of eminent loyalists and wife of the Revolutionary War general Henry Knox

Person