The 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence brings popular attention to one of the foundational documents in American History. However, with that attention comes the danger of taking the document out of its historical context. Join the Tremont Historical Society and the MDI Historical Society’s Dr. Patrick Callaway at the Bass Harbor Memorial Library as we explore the declaration’s dual role as a conclusion to British rule and the beginning of the new United States.

As we will see, there are important goals the declaration did not and could not accomplish. Examining the 11 years between 1776 and the Constitution in 1787 brings to light the opportunity created by independence as well as the significant challenges facing Americans because of independence.