July 1776: The Contentious Vote for Independence

In 1776, the Pennsylvania Assembly had long been resolute in its resistance to the idea of independence. It had not been supportive of Boston in the wake of the famed Tea Party, and in the months following that momentous event, had gone so far as to instruct its delegates to the Continental Congress that “you are strictly charged to avoid every thing indecent or disrespectful to the Mother state.” In other words, they were prohibited in advance from voting for independence. Then on July 1, in the preliminary vote on that question, with Thomas Willing, Robert Morris, and John Dickinson in the lead, the Pennsylvania delegation voted against independence. As the keystone state located in the very heart of the thirteen colonies, it was unthinkable to move forward on independence without Pennsylvania. It took an extraordinary series of events to enable the vote on independence to succeed, and this talk will tell that dramatic story.

• This event is being offered in a hybrid format. Both onsite and virtual tickets are available. All ticket reservations will include a Zoom link.
• Onsite tickets include admission to the talk and the exhibit Changing Faces of Independence on view through April 24.
• Richard Vague’s recent publication The Banker Who Made America, Thomas Willing and the Rise of the American Financial Aristocracy will be available for purchase onsite through Head House Books.
• We wish to provide complimentary tickets to current secondary, undergraduate, and graduate students. Please email us at programs@hsp.org and tell us where you are enrolled as a student and in what program.

Historical Society of Pennsylvania Members

Please register here.

About the Speaker:

Richard Vague is an American businessperson, author, and researcher with a broad background in banking, finance, and economic history. He previously served as Pennsylvania’s Secretary of Banking and Securities from 2020–2023 and has authored several books on economics and financial crises. His newly published work, The Banker Who Made America, Thomas Willing and the Rise of the American Financial Aristocracy, explores the influence of Philadelphia merchant and financier Thomas Willing on the course of the Revolution and early Republic.

The Historical Society of Pennsylvania, founded in 1824, is one of the nation’s largest archives of historical documents. We are proud to serve as Philadelphia’s Library of American History, with over 21 million manuscripts, books, and graphic images encompassing centuries of US history. Through educator workshops, research opportunities, public programs, and lectures throughout the year, we strive to make history relevant and exhilarating to all. For more information, visit hsp.org.