How has our understanding of equality expanded over time? Visit the National Constitution Center and examine how the battles for freedom and equality have strengthened the nation. Follow along the Road to Freedom to see whether a house divided against itself can stand, tour the Civil War and Reconstruction exhibit, and decode a copy of the Emancipation Proclamation signed by President Lincoln.
Daily Programs at the Museum
Check program sheet upon arrival for show times.
The Road to Freedom Show
This interactive program explores the story of slavery in the United States through a constitutional lens, taking visitors on a journey from the time of the Constitutional Convention to the start of the Civil War. It will spotlight historic figures—like George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Ona Judge, Angelina Grimke, Harriet Tubman, William Still, and Abraham Lincoln—and key events—such as the Missouri Compromise, the Compromise of 1850, the Kansas-Nebraska Act, the Dred Scott case, and the secession of the South.
Decoding the Document: Emancipation Proclamation
Visit the National Constitution Center's feature exhibit on Civil War and Reconstruction: The Battle for Freedom and Equality, to examine a copy of the Emancipation Proclamation signed by President Abraham Lincoln. Join us as we take a closer look at this famous document. Together we’ll explore why the President issued this Proclamation, what it meant for over four million Americans then held in bondage, and why the nation still required a constitutional amendment to permanently abolish slavery.
Live Online Events
- Virtual Civil War and Reconstruction Exhibit Tour
Monday, July 25 at 12 p.m. ET
REGISTER HERE
Explore the Center’s compelling exhibit, Civil War and Reconstruction: The Battle for Freedom and Equality, as one of our museum educators leads viewers through the exhibit. Learn how constitutional clashes over slavery set the stage for the Civil War, and how the nation transformed the Constitution after the war during the Reconstruction period, taking a particularly close look at the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments. - Virtual Four Harriets Show
Tuesday, July 26 at 12 p.m. ET
REGISTER HERE
Participants can explore the lives of four American women—Harriet Robinson Scott, Harriet Tubman, Harriet Jacobs, and Harriet Beecher Stowe—who confronted slavery through literature, lawsuits, and direct action in their efforts to free themselves and others from bondage.
