“As the United States celebrates its 250th birthday, When the Declaration of Independence Was News offers the perfect opportunity to reconsider our origins. Emily Sneff reminds us that the nation’s beginning was contested, debated, and squabbled over from the start. Thoughtfully written, full of colorful personalities, and teeming with ground-breaking scholarly research, Sneff achieves something rare—she brings new life to an old story. A must-read for anyone interested in the Founding Era”

“How did it feel to experience the Declaration’s epic rollout in real time? Moving through diverse audiences and navigating dense archives, Emily Sneff reimagines the pivotal moment in a clear and compelling narrative. She shows how early Americans encountered and interacted with new ideas of liberty, identity, and rights. Declaring independence, as Sneff illustrates, was a complex cultural process that defined the emerging nation’s realm of political participation.”

“In Emily Sneff’s fascinating history, readers will find themselves transported back in time to 1776, when Congress voting on the Declaration of Independence was a current event and the future of the new United States of America was both unknown and unsure. Sneff’s timely, lively book will change the way you think about the history of the American Revolution and its most famous founding document.”