JCB 2026 and Beyond: An Illustrated Lecture and Conversation

February 7, 2025
Collage of images from the evening, including photos of Slauter, Amore and Slauter, Amore and JCB Director Karin Wulf, and the audience.

On Friday, January 24, 2025, the John Carter Brown Library hosted an illustrated lecture by Professor Eric Slauter (University of Chicago) followed by a conversation with Rhode Island Secretary of State Gregg Amore. We introduced 2026 and Beyond at the JCB, a multi-year initiative marking the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States, last year with a lecture by Maggie Blackhawk (New York University). This year brought the launch of public programming. The January 24 event was also part of the launch of Brown 2026: Marking 250 Years of American Democracy. 

Gregg Amore and Eric Slauter are pictured on a stage. The image also shows some of the audience and banners for Brown and Brown 2026.

Above: Professor Eric Slauter discusses pocket Constitutions and more with Rhode Island Secretary of State Gregg Amore at the JCB. Photo credits Rythum Vinoben.

 

2026 and Beyond will focus on three major themes that reflect the deep strength of the Library’s collections/research and reveal the fullest and most consequential histories of the early Americas:

 

 

  •  Foundations of Revolution: The Democratic Revolutions of the Early Americas

  • Foundations of Democracy: Freedom of Religion and Conscience
  • Foundations of Historical Knowledge: How Libraries Make History

In the coming weeks and months, the JCB will host a wide array of events on these themes. Our next JCB 2026 and Beyond event will be Creation of the American Republic: A Conversation with Gordon S. Wood on Tuesday, March 11. This hybrid event is open to the public and may be accessed both in person and online. 

 

For more information on 2026 and Beyond at the JCB, visit https://jcblibrary.org/2026-and-beyond.