This week the annual Thomas Jefferson Hour Independence Day show with Clay Jenkinson and Joseph Ellis. Ellis makes the case that John Adams was right in his belief that Independence Day should be celebrated on July 2nd, the day congress voted on the matter, but both agree that due to the simultaneous deaths of Adams and Jefferson on July 4th, that date will forever stand. They also discuss parts of the Declaration of Independence which were removed and the great dangers accepted by the signers of the document.
#1397 4th of July
Our annual Independence Day show, one of only two holidays that Jefferson celebrated. We are joined by Joseph Ellis who shares some perspective on the day, and shares his insights including John Adam’s belief that Independence Day would always be celebrated on July 2nd, and a discussion of a very significant paragraph Jefferson wrote for the Declaration of Independence that congress edited out.
Jefferson's Last Letter
#1345 Independence Day
#1293 4th of July
The Declaration of Independence
Thomas Paine
#1244 A Free Nation
"The Founding Fathers intended a free nation in which you could choose your religion."
— Thomas Jefferson, as portrayed by Clay S. Jenkinson
After a short discussion about weather, President Jefferson addresses a question about his ownership of a copy of the Quran. Jefferson goes on to explain his views on the importance of religious freedom. In the out-of-character portion of the show, Clay and David are joined by Brad Crisler.
Independence
#1241 4th of July
We speak with President Jefferson this week in our annual 4th of July Show. Jefferson shares his thoughts on why the holiday is so important to Americans and recalls how it was celebrated during his time. We also speak to Gaye Wilson, the Shannon Senior Historian at the Robert H. Smith International Center for Jefferson Studies and Pat Brodowski, specialty gardener at Monticello who tell us about the celebrations being held at Monticello.
Beer, Bratwurst, and Bombast
People are always surprised that I’m lukewarm about the Fourth of July. For the first twenty years of my life in tights, I usually wound up somewhere reciting the Declaration of Independence on the Fourth of July, but in more recent years I have ignored the big day the way Jefferson tended to ignore Christmas.