Resources

Writing, Speeches and Official Documents from the Founding

This section contains a bibliography of important documents from the founding period. Prominent and little known founders left behind a huge body of work that can help increase knowledge about the founding. Along with first hand accounts of the period, this section also includes official documents from the period. For more information about specific founders visit the Founders' Library. Many government documents are also available in the Founders' Library.

Philosophic Sources of the American Founding

When the founders were creating the American regime they looked to philosophy, ancient and modern. Find out more about the influential texts. Some of the works are also available in the Founders' Library.

Commentaries on the Founding

Many scholars have looked back to the founding period in an effort to better understand the birth of the nation. Discover the work of historians and political scientists.

Abraham Lincoln and the Civil War

Abraham Lincoln is one of the best interpreters of America's founding principles. He believed that free government is only possible when it protects the equal natural rights of all. It was through the Civil War and subsequent constitutional amendments that the Constitution was brought into conformity with those principles. More information about Abraham Lincoln is available in the Founders' Library.

Click here to download Thomas G. West and Douglas A. Jeffrey's indispensable guide to understanding the principles of the American Founding: The Rise and Fall of Constitutional Government in America (pdf).