What ultimately convinced Americans that they must revolt in 1776 was not that they were naturally and inevitably republican, for if that were truly the case evolution, not revolution, would have been the eventual solution. Rather it was the pervasive fear that they were not predestined to be a virtuous and egalitarian people that in the last analysis drove them into revolution in 1776. It was this fear and not their confidence in the peculiarity of their character that made them so readily and so remarkably responsive to Thomas Paine’s warning that the time for independence was at hand and that delay would be disastrous. By 1776 it had become increasingly evident that if they were to remain the kind of people they wanted to be they must become free of Britain.
Howe, William
Charlestown, MA — With groundbreaking fifty years after the event of 17 June 1775, an obelisk commemorates the Battle of Bunker Hill and the fallen militia General Dr. Joseph Warren. A statue of Colonel William Prescott, one of the battle leaders, stands in front.
Philadelphia (Germantown), PA — Completed in 1772, British General Sir William Howe occupied the house after the Battle of Germantown in 1777; President Washington resided there in 1793 and 1794; includes period pieces and interactive exhibits.
Fort Washington, PA — Site of the temporary fort and encampment for the Continental Army in late 1777; offers picnicking, fishing, biking, and 3.5 miles of trails.
The Creation of the American Republic, 1776—1787 (1969)