Uncovering Unsung Heroes: Americans Who Shaped History

In honor of the United States 250th Independence Day celebration and as a self-identified history enthusiast, I thought I would make an effort to check out some historical offerings this year.

Interesting reading

Recently, I picked up a copy of We the Women, an eye-opening book by Norah O’Donnell celebrating the stories of 35 women, including the printer Mary Katherine Goddard, who made significant and not very well-known contributions to American history.

Upon opening the book, I perused the Table of Contents. Of the 35 women listed, I recognized only eight. Wow – that was a little embarrassing! I dived in to start reading!

Did you know that the first U.S. postmaster and the printer of the first authentic Declaration of Independence was a woman? 

I didn’t, but indeed it was – Mary Katherine Goddard, the owner of a printing shop in Baltimore, who had been selected to print the first authentic Declaration of Independence.  She inherited the printing shop from her family. It was a few blocks from Congress, and she had been printing other documents for them.

Here is another sampling:

What American woman ran for president twice (1884, 1888), earned a law degree and successfully argued before the Supreme Court even though she herself was unable to vote? 

Her name is Belva Lockwood. And again, I never heard of this impressive woman. How could this be that she was never covered in my high school or college history courses?

I highly recommend reading this amazing book. It filled many gaps in my historical knowledge.

Bringing history to life

Along this historical journey, I went to see the Broadway Series musical, “Suffs” at the beautiful Connor Palace at Playhouse Square in Cleveland, Ohio. It definitely did not disappoint in bringing history to life. Suffs was not only a history lesson in the women’s struggle to gain the right to vote, but also a reflection of the past.

Though it happened more than 100 years ago, the story embraces the power of ordinary citizens to take a stand for rights and representation. Decades of divide and division, even amongst supporters and various factions, which finally culminated in a common goal: Securing the Nineteenth Amendment. The factions supporting the amendment included well-connected women in the “establishment” who believed that working within the system was the sensible route to passing the amendment, more activist factions that thought bold disruption would help reach the goal sooner and even abolitionist groups who saw the value in aligning the causes. It is interesting to see how political alliances like these still spearhead causes (e.g., Civil Rights) today.

Next up … where to spend the holiday?

Our son convinced us that spending the 4th of July in Boston with him this year would make sense because of the city’s storied history steeped in rich tradition.

For the semiquincentennial, we spent the holiday in Back Bay watching a mix of the more contemporary drone show, cannons (a unique tradition), and the customary fireworks. 

In Boston, there are endless commemorations to the following:

• Paul Revere
• Battle of Lexington
• Battle of  Bunker Hill
• Battle of Concord
• An annual reenactment of the reading of the Declaration of Independence in front of the Old Statehouse of Massachusetts in Downtown Boston
• Boston Tea Party
• Boston Massacre
• Faneuil Hall

And also some regularly scheduled local events:

• Boston Pops
• Speeches by state and local officials

As it turned out, the Soccer World Cup, despite competing with the superfandom of the Boston Red Sox and Wimbledon, was also underway during the holiday. Visitors from Europe sporting American flag shirts and watching the tournament were everywhere. They really thought it was convenient to walk to see the matches at air-conditioned pubs like Bell in Hand Tavern whose motto is: “We are proud to be America’s oldest, continuously operating, tavern since 1795.”  Bell in Hand was a site for intellectuals to gather like Paul Revere. The diversity in the crowd along with the unity of the celebration were definitely a moment of pride for me and my family.  

Other historical sites to visit in Boston include sight seeing in neighborhoods steeped in history like Beacon Hill, Charlestown, Harvard Square (Cambridge), Downtown Boston. Historical communities of note in Massachusetts (Metro Boston) include Plymouth, Salem, Marblehead.

Well, I have shared a lot of my experiences for 2026. What historical nuggets have you uncovered during this celebratory year that you would like to share?