2015 Washington Birthday Exhibit

Webb County Heritage Foundation Announces an 
Unprecedented Exhibition:


“America’s Four Republics: The More or Less United States ©”


First United American Republic: United Colonies of North America: 13 British Colonies United in Congress was founded by 12 colonies on September 5th, 1774 (Georgia joined in 1775) and governed through a British Colonial Continental Congress. Peyton Randolph and George Washington served, respectively, as the Republic's first President and Commander-in-Chief
The Webb County Heritage Foundation and Ms. Toni L. Ruiz will present an exhibit of rare historic documents to be displayed at the Villa Antigua® Border Heritage Museum, 810 Zaragoza Street, from January 21 – February 24, 2015. “America’s Four Republics: The More or Less United States,” depicts America’s political evolution from 1774 to 1791 and reveals four distinctly different United American Republics. To commemorate the exhibit opening, the public is invited to a Gallery Talk and Reception at the Villa Antigua® Border Heritage Museum at 6:00 pm on Wednesday, January 21st   followed by a book signing.    Other Speaking engagements:


      Monday, February 23, 2015 

  • 12:30 am – 2:30 pm  In-Service with UISD middle school history teachers at La Posada.  Topic:  America’s Four United Republics Middle and High School Curriculum Supplement.



Middle and High School Curriculum Supplement

For More Information  Click Here



U.S. Dollar Presidential Coin Mr. Klos vs Secretary Paulson - Click Here
  • 3:30 – 4:45 pm  Student talk at Texas A&M International University with Dr. James Norris and Dr. Mark Menaldo.  Topic:  “America’s Four United Republics” and “The Forgotten Presidents”


Tuesday, February 24, 2015   
  • 9:30 am Laredo Community College debate with students about Who were the First President and First Lady of the United States?
  • 6:30 pm Laredo Community College evening public lecture at the Kazen Center  Topic:  “The Forgotten Presidents”


The key storytellers of the exhibit will be more than one hundred rare and original 18th-, 19th-, and 20th-century documents, manuscripts, and letters from the United Colonies of America (1774-1776), the Thirteen Independent States United in Congress (1776-1781), the United States of America under the Articles of Confederation (1781 -1787), and We the People of the United States (1789-Present) under the 1787 U.S. Constitution and its 1789 Bill of Rights.


Second United American Republic: The United States of America: 13 Independent States United in Congress was founded by 12 states on July 2nd, 1776 (New York abstained until July 9th), and governed through the United States Continental Congress. John Hancock and George Washington served, respectively, as the Republic's first President and Commander-in-Chief;
The priceless documents are on loan to the museum from the collection of nationally renowned author and historian, Stanley Klos who, along with Dr. Naomi Yavneh Klos of Loyola University New Orleans, led the team that assembled the exhibit. “There was no precedent when the representatives of the American colonies first convened at Carpenters Hall in Philadelphia in 1774,” said Klos. “Despite their distrust of centralized authority, these revolutionaries created three distinct republics that each had significant weaknesses, but were the best that could be achieved in their moment. It took a fourth attempt, with the U.S. Constitution of 1787 supplemented by the 1789 Bill of Rights, to finally create a workable system. Our goal is to create an exhibit that familiarizes our visitors with the 15-year nation building process that ultimately created the United States of America and its evolution via the U.S. Constitution amendment process,” he said.


Third United American Republic: The United States of America: A Perpetual Union was founded by 13 States on March 1st, 1781, with the enactment of the first U.S. Constitution, the Articles of Confederationand governed through the United States in Congress Assembled.  Samuel Huntington and George Washington served, respectively, as the Republic's first President and Commander-in-Chief; 
Among the most notable exhibition highlights are: the first magazine printing of the US Constitution of 1787; an 18th Century printing of the 12 Amendments proposed by the 1789 Congress, of which ten were passed as the Bill of Rights; unique Revolutionary War and U.S. Founding letters, documents, and broadsides by George Washington, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, Elias Boudinot, John Jay and other leaders;  19th- and 20th-Century printings, letters and documents related to U.S. Constitutional Amendments 11-27;  and many other original documents from the Continental Congress, United States in Congress Assembled, U.S. Presidents, signers of the Declaration of Independence, signers of the Articles of Confederation and current  U.S. Constitution.


Fourth United American Republic: The United States of America: We the People  was formed by 11 states on March 4th, 1789 (North Carolina and Rhode Island joined in November 1789 and May 1790, respectively), with the enactment of the U.S. Constitution of 1787. The fourth and current United States Republic governs through  the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate in Congress Assembled, the U.S. President and Commander-in-Chief, and the U.S. Supreme Court.  George Washington served as the Republic's first President and Commander-in-Chief.
In 1983, upon the discovery of 18th Century Philadelphia shipping records in his attic, Klos began to research and exhibit historic documents.  Since then, he has amassed an impressive collection of rare documents which have headlined special exhibits at numerous universities, national historic sites, libraries, and museums.  His work has also appeared in hundreds of print and digital publications including History Channel's Brad Meltzer's Decoded, The Declaration of Independence, U.S. News & World Report 2006 cover story, “Washington? Get In Line," and the Discovery Channel s Unsolved History: Plots To Kill Lincoln.  Klos has authored five books:  President Who? Forgotten Founders, The Rise of the U.S. Presidency and the Forgotten Capitols, Happy Birthdays USA, Economic Home Runs, and America’s Four Republics: The More or Less United States.  




During the month of February, Klos will also present talks and student debates at Laredo Community College, Texas A & M International University, United Independent School District, and United Day School.   At the conclusion of the exhibit, Laredo Community College will host a free public lecture by Klos on Tuesday, February 24th at 6:30 pm at the Martinez Fine Arts Center on the subject of “America’s Forgotten Presidents.”  This lecture will be a fascinating examination of the 14 men who were elected and served as our nation’s Heads of State prior to the 1789 inauguration of George Washington.  The talk will trace the evolution of the U.S. Presidency from the Colonial Continental Congress’ unicameral government to the current Chief Executive whose role is quite distinct from the legislative and judicial branches of government. All those who attend the presentations will leave with a new appreciation for the contributions of the Presidential luminaries who preceded George Washington, the first President under the current constitution of the United States. A book signing will follow the lecture.




“People have to travel to Washington D.C. and visit the National Archives and Library of Congress to view a collection of U.S. founding documents of this caliber,” explains Toni L. Ruiz, sponsor of the America’s Four Republics Exhibit.  “This is truly a big deal for Laredo and an incredible opportunity that I encourage everyone to take advantage of.  The exhibit is important not only because the documents are national treasures, but because these primary sources tell the full story of the complex founding and continued political evolution of our great country.” 

Visitors can enjoy a range of new media and interactive experiences in conjunction with the “America’s Four Republics” exhibit on display at the Villa Antigua® Border Heritage Museum at 810 Zaragoza St. in Laredo through February 24.  Museum hours are Tuesday through Saturday from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm.  Admission is $2.00. There is no admission charge on Tuesdays.  For further information, contact the museum at 956-718-2727.

Contact: Margarita Araiza, Executive Director
               maraiza@webbheritage.org



Capitals of the United Colonies and States of America

Philadelphia
Sept. 5, 1774 to Oct. 24, 1774
Philadelphia
May 10, 1775 to Dec. 12, 1776
Baltimore
Dec. 20, 1776 to Feb. 27, 1777
Philadelphia
March 4, 1777 to Sept. 18, 1777
Lancaster
September 27, 1777
York
Sept. 30, 1777 to June 27, 1778
Philadelphia
July 2, 1778 to June 21, 1783
Princeton
June 30, 1783 to Nov. 4, 1783
Annapolis
Nov. 26, 1783 to Aug. 19, 1784
Trenton
Nov. 1, 1784 to Dec. 24, 1784
New York City
Jan. 11, 1785 to Nov. 13, 1788
New York City
October 6, 1788 to March 3,1789
New York City
March 3,1789 to August 12, 1790
Philadelphia
December 6,1790 to May 14, 1800       
Washington DC
November 17,1800 to Present




Chart Comparing Presidential Powers 
of  America's Four United Republics - Click Here


United Colonies and States First Ladies


1774-1788


United Colonies Continental Congress
President
18th Century Term
Age
09/05/74 – 10/22/74
29
Mary Williams Middleton (1741- 1761) Deceased
Henry Middleton
10/22–26/74
n/a
05/20/ 75 - 05/24/75
30
05/25/75 – 07/01/76
28
United States Continental Congress
President
Term
Age
07/02/76 – 10/29/77
29
Eleanor Ball Laurens (1731- 1770) Deceased
Henry Laurens
11/01/77 – 12/09/78
n/a
Sarah Livingston Jay (1756-1802)
12/ 10/78 – 09/28/78
21
Martha Huntington (1738/39–1794)
09/29/79 – 02/28/81
41
United States in Congress Assembled
President
Term
Age
Martha Huntington (1738/39–1794)
03/01/81 – 07/06/81
42
07/10/81 – 11/04/81
25
Jane Contee Hanson (1726-1812)
11/05/81 - 11/03/82
55
11/03/82 - 11/02/83
46
Sarah Morris Mifflin (1747-1790)
11/03/83 - 11/02/84
36
11/20/84 - 11/19/85
46
11/23/85 – 06/06/86
38
Rebecca Call Gorham (1744-1812)
06/06/86 - 02/01/87
42
02/02/87 - 01/21/88
43
01/22/88 - 01/29/89
36



Constitution of 1787
First Ladies
President
Term
Age
April 30, 1789 – March 4, 1797
57
March 4, 1797 – March 4, 1801
52
Martha Wayles Jefferson Deceased
September 6, 1782  (Aged 33)
n/a
March 4, 1809 – March 4, 1817
40
March 4, 1817 – March 4, 1825
48
March 4, 1825 – March 4, 1829
50
December 22, 1828 (aged 61)
n/a
February 5, 1819 (aged 35)
n/a
March 4, 1841 – April 4, 1841
65
April 4, 1841 – September 10, 1842
50
June 26, 1844 – March 4, 1845
23
March 4, 1845 – March 4, 1849
41
March 4, 1849 – July 9, 1850
60
July 9, 1850 – March 4, 1853
52
March 4, 1853 – March 4, 1857
46
n/a
n/a
March 4, 1861 – April 15, 1865
42
February 22, 1862 – May 10, 1865
April 15, 1865 – March 4, 1869
54
March 4, 1869 – March 4, 1877
43
March 4, 1877 – March 4, 1881
45
March 4, 1881 – September 19, 1881
48
January 12, 1880 (Aged 43)
n/a
June 2, 1886 – March 4, 1889
21
March 4, 1889 – October 25, 1892
56
June 2, 1886 – March 4, 1889
28
March 4, 1897 – September 14, 1901
49
September 14, 1901 – March 4, 1909
40
March 4, 1909 – March 4, 1913
47
March 4, 1913 – August 6, 1914
52
December 18, 1915 – March 4, 1921
43
March 4, 1921 – August 2, 1923
60
August 2, 1923 – March 4, 1929
44
March 4, 1929 – March 4, 1933
54
March 4, 1933 – April 12, 1945
48
April 12, 1945 – January 20, 1953
60
January 20, 1953 – January 20, 1961
56
January 20, 1961 – November 22, 1963
31
November 22, 1963 – January 20, 1969
50
January 20, 1969 – August 9, 1974
56
August 9, 1974 – January 20, 1977
56
January 20, 1977 – January 20, 1981
49
January 20, 1981 – January 20, 1989
59
January 20, 1989 – January 20, 1993
63
January 20, 1993 – January 20, 2001
45
January 20, 2001 – January 20, 2009
54
January 20, 2009 to date
45


America’s Four Republics

The More or Less United States

Autographed Second Editions


America's Four Republics

Stan Klos
PO Box 15696
New Orleans, LA 70115
(202) 239-1774



America’s Four United Republics
Curriculum Supplement

The transformation of the United States of America from thirteen British colonies into the current republic was a complex political process that spanned nearly 15-years.  To describe this development, most governmental institutions -- the United States Department of State, for example, and the Smithsonian Institute -- divide the U.S. Republic into two distinct founding stages: the Continental Congress, first, and then the current U.S. Constitution of 1787 governmental system.[i]  Historians, educators, and secondary school textbooks have been more thorough and have expanded this dichotomy by dividing the Continental Congress Era into the First Continental Congress, The Second Continental Congress, and the Congress of the Confederation.[ii]  The nomenclature used to describe the different “stages” of the rapidly evolving United States, however, has resulted in confusion regarding even the most basic founding facts: for example, the USA birthdate of July 4th, 1776, conflicts with Delaware’s designation as the “first US State,” (based on that state’s status as first to ratify the current US Constitution – on December 7th, 1787).  A short list of just a few important national election and event dates demonstrates the challenges:    


v  What is the Birthdate of the USA? Resolution for Independency – July 2, 1776; Declaration of Independence  - July 4th, 1776; Articles of Confederation enactment – March 1, 1781; Constitution of 1787 enactment – March 4, 1789.
v  Who was the 1st United States Head of State? U.S. Continental Congress President John Hancock – July 4th, 1776; United States in Congress Assembled President Samuel Huntington – March 1, 1781; United States Constitution of 1787 President  George Washington -  April 23rd, 1789
v  What is the birthdate of the U.S. Constitution? Articles of Confederation framed November 15th, 1777 and enacted March 1st, 1781Constitution of 1787 framed September 17, 1787 and enacted March 4, 1789.
v  Which State was the First U.S. State? New Hampshire first to vote for Independence from Great Britain – July 2nd, 1776; Virginia first to ratify the Articles of Confederation – December 16th, 1777; Delaware first to ratify theConstitution of 1787 on  December 7th, 1787
v  Who was the First Postmaster General?  Continental Congress elected Postmaster General Franklin on July 26th, 1775; United States in Congress Assembled elected Ebenezer Hazard - January 28th, 1782; Presidential  appointment Samuel Osgood - September 26th, 1789
v  Who Was the First Treasurer? Continental Congress elected Treasurer Michael Hillegas; July 29th, 1775,Constitution of 1787’s Presidential  appointment Samuel Meredith - September 11th, 1789
v  When was the first Dollar issued? The Continental Congress first enacted the United Colonies Dollar on June 23rd, 1775, United States Dollar on July 22nd, 1776 and the Constitution of 1787’s  An act establishing a mint, and regulating the Coins of the United States on April 2, 1792
v  Who was the first Commander-in-Chief? Continental Congress elected George Washington on June 15th, 1775;Constitution of 1787,  George Washington -  April 23rd, 1789
v  Name of the first bank chartered by the U.S. Congress? Bank of North America -  May 26th, 1781; First Bank of the United States - February 25th, 1791
v  Who was the First U.S. Secretary of War? U.S. Continental Congress elected Benjamin Lincoln - October 30th, 1781; United States in Congress Assembled elected Henry Knox  - March 8th, 1785
v  When was the first non-appealable U.S. Federal Court Decision issued? “Decree of Trenton” - December 30th, 1782; Supreme Court “West v. Barnes” - August 3rd, 1791



Consequently, the convolution of these U.S. Founding events and dates are ubiquitously apparent in everything from school textbooks to Library of Congress exhibits under the current pedagogy.[iii] Even the U.S. Supreme Court, in its opinions, confuses the lawful difference between the United States “Continental Congress” and the Articles of Confederation’s “United States in Congress Assembled.”[iv]

Utilizing Primary Sources and Dispositio, a system used for the organization of facts in Western classical rhetoric, Stanley Yavneh Klos’ America’s Four Republics: The More or Less United States reorganized the First, Second, and Confederation “Continental Congress" pedagogy into four distinct United American Republics:


·        First United American Republic: United Colonies of North America: Thirteen British Colonies United in Congress was founded by 12 colonies on September 5th, 1774, and expired on July 2nd, 1776, with the enactment of theResolution for Independency. The republic was governed by a British Colonial Continental Congress which, by 1775, provided for the security of its members with the formation of a Continental Army headed by a Commander-in-Chief, establishing military hospitals, the appointment of a Postmaster General, and even the issuing of its own currency. Peyton Randolph and George Washington served, respectively, as the republic's first United Colonies Continental Congress President and Commander-in-Chief;
·  Second United American Republic: The United States of America: Thirteen Independent States United in Congresswas founded by 12 colonies with the passage of the Resolution for Independency on July 2nd, 1776 and expired on March 1st, 1781, with the enactment of the Articles of Confederation. The republic was governed by the United States Continental Congress, which conducted the war for independence and elected foreign ministers to negotiate treaties and alliances. John Hancock and George Washington served, respectively, as the republic's first United States Continental Congress President and Commander-in-Chief;  
·  Third United American Republic: The United States of America: A Perpetual Union  was founded by 13 States with the Articles of Confederation’s enactment on March 1st, 1781, and expired on March 3rd, 1789.  The republic was governed through the United States in Congress Assembled, which concluded the Revolutionary War, ratified the Treaty of Paris, and primarily governed through Congressional Committees and Executive Department Heads.  Samuel Huntington and George Washington served, respectively, as the republic's first United States in Congress Assembled President and Commander-in-Chief;
·   Fourth United American Republic: The United States of America: We the People was formed by 11 states with theUnited States Constitution of 1787’s enactment on March 4th, 1789.   This, the current republic of the United States, governs through The United States House of Representatives and Senate in Congress Assembled (Bicameral Congress), The President of the United States of America (U.S. President), United States Supreme Court (U.S. Supreme Court).   George Washington served as both the Republic's first President and its Commander-in-Chief.

In 2015, America’s Four United Republics: Curriculum Supplement (AFUR), was developed for middle, high school and college students to analyze America’s Four Republics: The More or Less United States reorganization of the United States founding by employing rhetorical strategies to scrutinize primary source evidence.  Instead of memorizing the convolution of notable founding facts and events during the Continental Congress period, students are challenged to evaluate AFUR’s reorganization of the 1774-1790 United States founding period based on the credibility and timeline of the historic record.  This curriculum supplement is specifically designed for students to deduce historical conclusions backed by inductive documentary evidence that supports, challenges, and/or refutes AFUR’s Dispositio.  Most importantly, the AFUR curriculum ensures that participating students will have a renewed sense of the fundamental experiences and influences that birthed the United States of America.


INDEX


Definition Challenge: What is a Republic?                                                                           Page 5
Challenge: When Did the First United American Republic Begin?                                        Page 6
Debate: When Was Independence Day?                                                                               Pages 7 - 8
Setting the Scene: The Articles of Confederation                                                                  Pages 9 - 10
You be the Judge: The Forming of the Fourth United American Republic                            Pages 11 – 12
Challenge: Did the United States gain its independence and
sovereignty as a result of the Definitive Treaty of Peace signed
in Paris on September 3rd, 1783?                                                                                          Pages 13 – 14
Debate: Who were the first United States’ Head of State and First Lady?                            Pages 14 - 18
Debate: Which Colony was the first U.S. State?                                                                   Pages 19 – 21
Challenge: Which city was the first U.S. “Capital”?  What building was the
first U.S. Capitol?                                                                                                                    Pages 22 – 23
You be the Judge: Was the 1782 Decree of Trenton the first Federal
Court Decision?                                                                                                                      Pages 24 – 25
Why did the 1789 Congress approve a dysfunctional first amendment,
Article the First, to the Constitution of 1787?                                                                         Pages 26 – 29
The Historian: Unit Assessment                                                                                             Page 30
End Notes                                                                                                                               Page 31 - 32
UCCC, USCC, USCA, & US Presidential Duties & Powers Chart                                       Insert



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