Liberty's Kids
Encyclopedia
Liberty's Kids is an animated television series produced by DIC Entertainment
, originally broadcast on PBS Kids
from Septemer 2, 2002 to April 4, 2003, although PBS continued to air reruns until August
2004. The show has since been syndicated
by DiC to affiliate
s of smaller television networks such as The CW and MyNetworkTV
and some independent station
s so that those stations can fulfill FCC educational and informational
requirements. Since September 16, 2006, the series aired on CBS
's new block called KOL Secret Slumber Party on CBS
, then it was aired on KEWLopolis, which taking September 12, 2009. In 2008 it ran on The History Channel. The series currently on the Cookie Jar Toons
block on This TV
. The series was based on an idea by Kevin O'Donnell, developed for TV by Kevin O'Donnell, Robby London, Mike Maliani and Andy Heyward.
Its premise is to teach its audience of seven to fourteen year olds about the origins of the United States
of America. Much like the CBS
cartoon mini-series based on Peanuts
; This is America, Charlie Brown
years before, Liberty's Kids tells of young people in dramas surrounding the major events in the Revolutionary War days. Celebrity voices such as Walter Cronkite
(as Benjamin Franklin
), Sylvester Stallone
(as Paul Revere
), Ben Stiller
(as Thomas Jefferson
), Billy Crystal
(as John Adams
), Dustin Hoffman
(as Benedict Arnold
), and Arnold Schwarzenegger
(as Baron von Steuben) lend credence to characters critical to the forming of a free country, from the Boston Tea Party
to the Constitutional Convention.
The shows run a half-hour, including commercials. On public television, these are replaced by segments that include "The Liberty News Network" (a newcast delivered by Cronkite summarizing the events of the episode), "Mystery Guest" (a guessing game where the kids guess a historical figure, who often is a character in the episode), "Now and Then" (a segment comparing life in the Revolutionary Era and today), and "Continental Cartoons" (a rebus word guessing game)
and by the viewers/stations of PBS
This was the only PBS Kids show to have the regular 2002 CPB and Viewers Like You tag.
, who also voices Joseph Plumb Martin
, appearing in episode 24, and Kayla Hinkle, a country singer who also voices Sybil Ludington
, appearing in episode 21.
released Liberty's Kids- The Complete Series on DVD in Region 1. The 6-disc box set contains all 40 episodes of the series as well as several bonus features.
DiC Entertainment
DIC Entertainment was an international film and television production company. In addition to animated television shows such as Ulysses 31 , Inspector Gadget , The Littles , The Real Ghostbusters , Captain Planet and the Planeteers , and the first two seasons of the English adaptation of...
, originally broadcast on PBS Kids
PBS Kids
PBS Kids is the brand for children's programming aired by the Public Broadcasting Service in the United States founded in 1993. As with all PBS programming, PBS Kids programming is non-commercial. It is aimed at children ages 2 to 10...
from Septemer 2, 2002 to April 4, 2003, although PBS continued to air reruns until August
August
August is the eighth month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian Calendars and one of seven months with a length of 31 days.This month was originally named Sextilis in Latin, because it was the sixth month in the original ten-month Roman calendar under Romulus in 753 BC, when March was the first...
2004. The show has since been syndicated
Television syndication
In broadcasting, syndication is the sale of the right to broadcast radio shows and television shows by multiple radio stations and television stations, without going through a broadcast network, though the process of syndication may conjure up structures like those of a network itself, by its very...
by DiC to affiliate
Affiliate
An affiliate is a commercial entity with a relationship with a peer or a larger entity.- Corporate structure :A corporation may be referred to as an affiliate of another when it is related to it but not strictly controlled by it, as with a subsidiary relationship, or when it is desired to avoid...
s of smaller television networks such as The CW and MyNetworkTV
MyNetworkTV
MyNetworkTV is a television broadcast syndication service in the United States, owned by the Fox Entertainment Group, a division of News Corporation...
and some independent station
Independent station
An independent station is in the category of television terminology used to describe a television station broadcasting in the United States or Canada that is not affiliated with any television network....
s so that those stations can fulfill FCC educational and informational
E/I
E/I, which stands for "educational and informative," refers to a type of children's television programming shown in the United States. The Federal Communications Commission requires that every full-service Terrestrial television station in the U.S. show at least three hours of these television...
requirements. Since September 16, 2006, the series aired on CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
's new block called KOL Secret Slumber Party on CBS
KOL Secret Slumber Party on CBS
Cookie Jar TV is a three-hour children's programming block on CBS. It launched on September 16, 2006 as KOL Secret Slumber Party, re-branded as KEWLopolis on September 15, 2007 and again as Cookie Jar TV on September 19, 2009. The block replaced Nick Jr...
, then it was aired on KEWLopolis, which taking September 12, 2009. In 2008 it ran on The History Channel. The series currently on the Cookie Jar Toons
Cookie Jar Toons
Cookie Jar Toons is a daily children's programming block on the This TV digital broadcast network. The block is programmed by Toronto based Cookie Jar Entertainment...
block on This TV
This TV
This TV is a United States general entertainment television network, with a large emphasis in its programming on movies....
. The series was based on an idea by Kevin O'Donnell, developed for TV by Kevin O'Donnell, Robby London, Mike Maliani and Andy Heyward.
Its premise is to teach its audience of seven to fourteen year olds about the origins of the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
of America. Much like the CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
cartoon mini-series based on Peanuts
Peanuts
Peanuts is a syndicated daily and Sunday American comic strip written and illustrated by Charles M. Schulz, which ran from October 2, 1950, to February 13, 2000, continuing in reruns afterward...
; This is America, Charlie Brown
This Is America, Charlie Brown
This is America, Charlie Brown was an eight-part animated TV mini-series, depicting events in American history with characters from the Charles M. Schulz comic strip Peanuts. It aired from 1988 to 1989 on CBS. These eight episodes, originally released singly on videocassette, were released in a...
years before, Liberty's Kids tells of young people in dramas surrounding the major events in the Revolutionary War days. Celebrity voices such as Walter Cronkite
Walter Cronkite
Walter Leland Cronkite, Jr. was an American broadcast journalist, best known as anchorman for the CBS Evening News for 19 years . During the heyday of CBS News in the 1960s and 1970s, he was often cited as "the most trusted man in America" after being so named in an opinion poll...
(as Benjamin Franklin
Benjamin Franklin
Dr. Benjamin Franklin was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. A noted polymath, Franklin was a leading author, printer, political theorist, politician, postmaster, scientist, musician, inventor, satirist, civic activist, statesman, and diplomat...
), Sylvester Stallone
Sylvester Stallone
Michael Sylvester Gardenzio Stallone , commonly known as Sylvester Stallone, and nicknamed Sly Stallone, is an American actor, filmmaker, screenwriter, film director and occasional painter. Stallone is known for his machismo and Hollywood action roles. Two of the notable characters he has portrayed...
(as Paul Revere
Paul Revere
Paul Revere was an American silversmith and a patriot in the American Revolution. He is most famous for alerting Colonial militia of approaching British forces before the battles of Lexington and Concord, as dramatized in Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's poem, Paul Revere's Ride...
), Ben Stiller
Ben Stiller
Benjamin Edward "Ben" Stiller is an American comedian, actor, writer, film director, and producer. He is the son of veteran comedians and actors Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara....
(as Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson was the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence and the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom , the third President of the United States and founder of the University of Virginia...
), Billy Crystal
Billy Crystal
William Edward "Billy" Crystal is an American actor, writer, producer, comedian and film director. He gained prominence in the 1970s for playing Jodie Dallas on the ABC sitcom Soap and became a Hollywood film star during the late 1980s and 1990s, appearing in the critical and box office successes...
(as John Adams
John Adams
John Adams was an American lawyer, statesman, diplomat and political theorist. A leading champion of independence in 1776, he was the second President of the United States...
), Dustin Hoffman
Dustin Hoffman
Dustin Lee Hoffman is an American actor with a career in film, television, and theatre since 1960. He has been known for his versatile portrayals of antiheroes and vulnerable characters....
(as Benedict Arnold
Benedict Arnold
Benedict Arnold V was a general during the American Revolutionary War. He began the war in the Continental Army but later defected to the British Army. While a general on the American side, he obtained command of the fort at West Point, New York, and plotted to surrender it to the British forces...
), and Arnold Schwarzenegger
Arnold Schwarzenegger
Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger is an Austrian-American former professional bodybuilder, actor, businessman, investor, and politician. Schwarzenegger served as the 38th Governor of California from 2003 until 2011....
(as Baron von Steuben) lend credence to characters critical to the forming of a free country, from the Boston Tea Party
Boston Tea Party
The Boston Tea Party was a direct action by colonists in Boston, a town in the British colony of Massachusetts, against the British government and the monopolistic East India Company that controlled all the tea imported into the colonies...
to the Constitutional Convention.
The shows run a half-hour, including commercials. On public television, these are replaced by segments that include "The Liberty News Network" (a newcast delivered by Cronkite summarizing the events of the episode), "Mystery Guest" (a guessing game where the kids guess a historical figure, who often is a character in the episode), "Now and Then" (a segment comparing life in the Revolutionary Era and today), and "Continental Cartoons" (a rebus word guessing game)
Fictional Characters
Liberty's Kids features Benjamin Franklin and four fictional associates of his in their experiences during the American Revolution. Although the series spans 16 years from the Boston Tea Party in 1773 to the ratification of the U.S. Constitution in 1789, none of the main characters appear to age, except for Dr. Franklin.- Sarah Phillips (Reo JonesReo JonesReo Jane Francesca Jones is an American voice actress. She was discovered at a Duchesne Academy of the Sacred Heart in Omaha, Nebraska, an anglophile whose non-native British accent won her the role of Sarah Phillips on Liberty's Kids....
)
- A bright-eyed 15-year-old young girl from England, Sarah comes to the Thirteen Colonies in 1773 at age fifteen in search of her father, Major Phillips, who was last heard exploring the region of Ohio; upon her arrival, she is warmly welcomed by and lives as a guest of Benjamin Franklin. Her mother, Lady Phillips, remains in England and is a good friend to Dr. Franklin. However, with the possibility of a war between the American colonists and the English mother country, she decides that she will become a reporter for Franklin's newspaper in order to offer a more balanced perspective to the press. Sarah believes firmly in the power of words and equal rights for all, and is never afraid to speak her mind. At the start of the series, she is a firm loyalist, which sparks many arguments between her and James. Later in the series, Sarah has a change of heart and realizes how much she has come to understand the people of the colonies and ends up supporting the Revolution. Some men know the way to her heart... and that is by having good manners (Nathan HaleNathan HaleNathan Hale was a soldier for the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. He volunteered for an intelligence-gathering mission in New York City but was captured by the British...
and John Paul JonesJohn Paul JonesJohn Paul Jones was a Scottish sailor and the United States' first well-known naval fighter in the American Revolutionary War. Although he made enemies among America's political elites, his actions in British waters during the Revolution earned him an international reputation which persists to...
are good examples); when this happens, James can seem almost jealous, although near the end of the series she appears to feel "more than friendship" for James. Throughout the series, Sarah and James grow closer. At the end of the series, her mother, Lady Phillips, joins Sarah and her father in the United States and Sarah hopes to explore more of her adopted country.
- James Hiller (Chris Lundquist)
- A young boy orphaned in childhood because of a lightning storm, 17-year-old (not 14) James greatly admires Benjamin Franklin, whose invention of the lightning rod saved many from the same tragedy. Zealous, street-smart and impulsive, James pursues the revolution from a slightly one-sided perspective - something that prompts Sarah to counter his views. An apprentice in Franklin's Print Shop, James believes firmly in the American cause and will do almost anything to ensure that the people receive an honest view of what is happening. In the process, he also faces the less positive aspects of the political conflict that eventually forces his patriotic fervor into a new maturity. He highly values his friends, Sarah and Henri. He can be a little protective of Sarah while he attempts to keep Henri out of trouble, acting somewhat like an older brother figure to Henri. He is very laid back and is constantly reminded of his bad etiquette and poor table manners by Sarah, toward whom he shows feelings of what might be "more than friendship" and Sarah often returns. At the end of the series, James intends to start his own newspaper, following in the steps of his mentor.
- Henri Richard Maurice Dutoit LeFevbre (Kathleen BarrKathleen BarrKathleen Barr is a Canadian voice actress. She is also the sister of Professor Mark Lyle Barr at Saint Mary's University in Halifax, Nova Scotia.-Filmography:...
)
- A small, but comedic and energetic 8-year-old boy from FranceFranceThe French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Henri's parents died on the voyage to America and the ship's captain exploited Henri afterwards. James and Moses smuggled Henri off the ship and the boy found a home in Benjamin Franklin's workshop. While he speaks French fluently, Dr. Franklin has insisted that Henri learn to speak, read, and write in both English and French. Henri's small size has proved more than useful to Sarah and James, though he has a tendency to land himself in all sorts of trouble while not fully understanding the dangers of the war. His lookout on life is that of a "huge party for his benefit" and has been labeled a "magnet for trouble." In later episodes, he serves on the drum and bugle corps of the Continental Army. Curious and fearless, the only thing Henri values more than his freedom is finding a family of his own. Near the end of the series Henri returns to his native France as the adopted son/ward of the Marquis de Lafayette, with whom he has developed a strong bond.
- Moses (D. Kevin Williams)
- Born in AfricaAfricaAfrica is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
, Moses was brought in chains to America as a slave and sold on the block in Charleston, South CarolinaCharleston, South CarolinaCharleston is the second largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It was made the county seat of Charleston County in 1901 when Charleston County was founded. The city's original name was Charles Towne in 1670, and it moved to its present location from a location on the west bank of the...
. Because of his ingenuity, Moses learned to read, forge metal, and buy his freedomFreedom (political)Political freedom is a central philosophy in Western history and political thought, and one of the most important features of democratic societies...
from his master, thus freeing himself from the slavery of the American south. He eventually moved to Philadelphia and found work at Dr. Franklin's Print Shop. His brother, Cato, had not been so fortunate and escaped, later joining the British troops as a soldier. He looks out for Dr. Franklin's young wards, especially Henri. Like Henri, he values his freedom more than anything. Iron-willed Moses will never allow anyone to strip him of his dignity, despite his or her feelings on race. By working at the Print Shop, Moses hopes to educate children of all colors in the ideals of America so that everyone may one day be free. At the end of the series, Moses reveals a plan to set up a school for children of all races, but only to Dr. Franklin.
PBS Funding
Liberty's Kids was funded by the Corporation for Public BroadcastingCorporation for Public Broadcasting
The Corporation for Public Broadcasting is a non-profit corporation created by an act of the United States Congress, funded by the United States’ federal government to promote public broadcasting...
and by the viewers/stations of PBS
This was the only PBS Kids show to have the regular 2002 CPB and Viewers Like You tag.
Continental Army, Navy, and American militia
- Ethan AllenEthan AllenEthan Allen was a farmer, businessman, land speculator, philosopher, writer, and American Revolutionary War patriot, hero, and politician. He is best known as one of the founders of the U.S...
- George Rogers ClarkGeorge Rogers ClarkGeorge Rogers Clark was a soldier from Virginia and the highest ranking American military officer on the northwestern frontier during the American Revolutionary War. He served as leader of the Kentucky militia throughout much of the war...
(Norman Schwarzkopf) - Margaret “Molly” CorbinMargaret CorbinMargaret Corbin was a woman who fought in the American Revolutionary War On November 16, 1776, she and her husband, John Corbin, both from Philadelphia, along with some 600 American soldiers, were defending Fort Washington in northern Manhattan from 4,000 attacking Hessian troops under British...
- Horatio GatesHoratio GatesHoratio Lloyd Gates was a retired British soldier who served as an American general during the Revolutionary War. He took credit for the American victory at the Battle of Saratoga – Benedict Arnold, who led the attack, was finally forced from the field when he was shot in the leg – and...
- Nathanael GreeneNathanael GreeneNathanael Greene was a major general of the Continental Army in the American Revolutionary War. When the war began, Greene was a militia private, the lowest rank possible; he emerged from the war with a reputation as George Washington's most gifted and dependable officer. Many places in the United...
(John Michael Lee) - Nathan HaleNathan HaleNathan Hale was a soldier for the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. He volunteered for an intelligence-gathering mission in New York City but was captured by the British...
- Alexander HamiltonAlexander HamiltonAlexander Hamilton was a Founding Father, soldier, economist, political philosopher, one of America's first constitutional lawyers and the first United States Secretary of the Treasury...
- Charles LeeCharles Lee (general)Charles Lee was a British soldier who later served as a General of the Continental Army during the American War of Independence. Lee served in the British army during the Seven Years War. After the war he sold his commission and served for a time in the Polish army of King Stanislaus II...
- John Paul JonesJohn Paul JonesJohn Paul Jones was a Scottish sailor and the United States' first well-known naval fighter in the American Revolutionary War. Although he made enemies among America's political elites, his actions in British waters during the Revolution earned him an international reputation which persists to...
(Liam NeesonLiam NeesonLiam John Neeson, OBE is an Irish actor who has been nominated for an Oscar, a BAFTA and three Golden Globe Awards.He has starred in a number of notable roles including Oskar Schindler in Schindler's List, Michael Collins in Michael Collins, Peyton Westlake in Darkman, Jean Valjean in Les...
) - Tadeusz KościuszkoTadeusz KosciuszkoAndrzej Tadeusz Bonawentura Kościuszko was a Polish–Lithuanian and American general and military leader during the Kościuszko Uprising. He is a national hero of Poland, Lithuania, the United States and Belarus...
(Pole in Continental Army) - Joseph Plumb MartinJoseph Plumb MartinJoseph Plumb Martin was an American Revolutionary War soldier who published an account of his experiences as a soldier in the 8th Connecticut Regiment of the Continental Army in 1830.-Life:...
(Aaron CarterAaron CarterAaron Charles Carter is an American singer. He came to fame as a pop and hip hop singer in the late 1990s, establishing himself as a star among pre-teen and teenage audiences during the early-first decade of the 21st century....
) - Deborah SampsonDeborah SampsonDeborah Samson Gannett , better known as Deborah Sampson, was an American woman who impersonated a man in order to serve in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. She is one of a small number of women with a documented record of military combat experience in that war...
aka Robert Shurtleff (Whoopi GoldbergWhoopi GoldbergWhoopi Goldberg is an American comedian, actress, singer-songwriter, political activist, author and talk show host.Goldberg made her film debut in The Color Purple playing Celie, a mistreated black woman in the Deep South. She received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actress and won...
) - John SullivanJohn SullivanJohn Sullivan was the third son of Irish immigrants, a United States general in the Revolutionary War, a delegate in the Continental Congress and a United States federal judge....
- Friedrich Wilhelm von SteubenFriedrich Wilhelm von SteubenFriedrich Wilhelm August Heinrich Ferdinand von Steuben , also referred to as the Baron von Steuben, was a Prussian-born military officer who served as inspector general and Major General of the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War...
(Prussian in Continental Army) (Arnold SchwarzeneggerArnold SchwarzeneggerArnold Alois Schwarzenegger is an Austrian-American former professional bodybuilder, actor, businessman, investor, and politician. Schwarzenegger served as the 38th Governor of California from 2003 until 2011....
) - George WashingtonGeorge WashingtonGeorge Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...
- Anthony WayneAnthony WayneAnthony Wayne was a United States Army general and statesman. Wayne adopted a military career at the outset of the American Revolutionary War, where his military exploits and fiery personality quickly earned him a promotion to the rank of brigadier general and the sobriquet of Mad Anthony.-Early...
- Udeny Wolf-Hutchinson (Carl BeckCarl BeckCarl Linnwood Beck was a professional football player from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. After attending high school, Beck attended the West Virginia University, Bucknell University and Lafayette College. He made his professional debut in the National Football League in 1921 with the Buffalo...
)
British Army & Navy
- John AndréJohn AndréJohn André was a British army officer hanged as a spy during the American War of Independence. This was due to an incident in which he attempted to assist Benedict Arnold's attempted surrender of the fort at West Point, New York to the British.-Early life:André was born on May 2, 1750 in London to...
- John BurgoyneJohn BurgoyneGeneral John Burgoyne was a British army officer, politician and dramatist. He first saw action during the Seven Years' War when he participated in several battles, mostly notably during the Portugal Campaign of 1762....
- Henry ClintonHenry Clinton (American War of Independence)General Sir Henry Clinton KB was a British army officer and politician, best known for his service as a general during the American War of Independence. First arriving in Boston in May 1775, from 1778 to 1782 he was the British Commander-in-Chief in North America...
- Charles Cornwallis
- Admiral Lord Richard Howe (Michael YorkMichael York (actor)Michael York, OBE is an English actor.-Early life:York was born in Fulmer, Gerrards Cross, Buckinghamshire, the son of Florence Edith May , a musician; and Joseph Gwynne Johnson, a Llandovery born Welsh ex-Royal Artillery British Army officer and executive with Marks and Spencer department stores...
) - General William HoweWilliam Howe, 5th Viscount HoweWilliam Howe, 5th Viscount Howe, KB, PC was a British army officer who rose to become Commander-in-Chief of British forces during the American War of Independence...
- Johann Rall (Hessian Officer in British service)
French officers
- Marquis de Lafayette (Ben Beck)
- Comte de Rochambeau
- Johann De KalbJohann de KalbJohann von Robais, Baron de Kalb , born Johann Kalb, was a German soldier who served as a major general in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War.-Early life:...
American family members
- Abigail AdamsAbigail AdamsAbigail Adams was the wife of John Adams, who was the second President of the United States, and the mother of John Quincy Adams, the sixth...
(Annette BeningAnnette BeningAnnette Carol Bening is an American actress. Bening is a four-time Oscar nominee for her roles in The Grifters, American Beauty, Being Julia and The Kids Are All Right, winning Golden Globe Awards for the latter two films...
) - John Quincy AdamsJohn Quincy AdamsJohn Quincy Adams was the sixth President of the United States . He served as an American diplomat, Senator, and Congressional representative. He was a member of the Federalist, Democratic-Republican, National Republican, and later Anti-Masonic and Whig parties. Adams was the son of former...
- Peggy ShippenPeggy ShippenPeggy Shippen, or Margaret Shippen , was the second wife of General Benedict Arnold...
(Maria ShriverMaria ShriverMaria Owings Shriver is an American journalist and author of six best-selling books. She has received a Peabody Award, and was co-anchor for NBC's Emmy-winning coverage of the 1988 Summer Olympics. As executive producer of The Alzheimer's Project, Shriver earned two Emmy Awards and an Academy of...
) British Loyalist before married to Benedict ArnoldBenedict ArnoldBenedict Arnold V was a general during the American Revolutionary War. He began the war in the Continental Army but later defected to the British Army. While a general on the American side, he obtained command of the fort at West Point, New York, and plotted to surrender it to the British forces...
American politicians
- John AdamsJohn AdamsJohn Adams was an American lawyer, statesman, diplomat and political theorist. A leading champion of independence in 1776, he was the second President of the United States...
(Billy CrystalBilly CrystalWilliam Edward "Billy" Crystal is an American actor, writer, producer, comedian and film director. He gained prominence in the 1970s for playing Jodie Dallas on the ABC sitcom Soap and became a Hollywood film star during the late 1980s and 1990s, appearing in the critical and box office successes...
) - Samuel AdamsSamuel AdamsSamuel Adams was an American statesman, political philosopher, and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. As a politician in colonial Massachusetts, Adams was a leader of the movement that became the American Revolution, and was one of the architects of the principles of American...
- Samuel ChaseSamuel ChaseSamuel Chase was an Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court and earlier was a signatory to the United States Declaration of Independence as a representative of Maryland. Early in life, Chase was a "firebrand" states-righter and revolutionary...
- Silas DeaneSilas DeaneSilas Deane was an American merchant, politician and diplomat. Originally a supporter of American independence Deane served as a delegate to the Continental Congress and then as the United States' first foreign diplomat when he travelled to France to lobby the French government for aid...
- Benjamin FranklinBenjamin FranklinDr. Benjamin Franklin was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. A noted polymath, Franklin was a leading author, printer, political theorist, politician, postmaster, scientist, musician, inventor, satirist, civic activist, statesman, and diplomat...
(Walter CronkiteWalter CronkiteWalter Leland Cronkite, Jr. was an American broadcast journalist, best known as anchorman for the CBS Evening News for 19 years . During the heyday of CBS News in the 1960s and 1970s, he was often cited as "the most trusted man in America" after being so named in an opinion poll...
) - John HancockJohn HancockJohn Hancock was a merchant, statesman, and prominent Patriot of the American Revolution. He served as president of the Second Continental Congress and was the first and third Governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts...
- Patrick HenryPatrick HenryPatrick Henry was an orator and politician who led the movement for independence in Virginia in the 1770s. A Founding Father, he served as the first and sixth post-colonial Governor of Virginia from 1776 to 1779 and subsequently, from 1784 to 1786...
(Michael DouglasMichael DouglasMichael Kirk Douglas is an American actor and producer, primarily in movies and television. He has won three Golden Globes and two Academy Awards; first as producer of 1975's Best Picture, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, and as Best Actor in 1987 for his role in Wall Street. Douglas received the...
) - John JayJohn JayJohn Jay was an American politician, statesman, revolutionary, diplomat, a Founding Father of the United States, and the first Chief Justice of the United States ....
- Thomas JeffersonThomas JeffersonThomas Jefferson was the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence and the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom , the third President of the United States and founder of the University of Virginia...
(Ben StillerBen StillerBenjamin Edward "Ben" Stiller is an American comedian, actor, writer, film director, and producer. He is the son of veteran comedians and actors Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara....
) - Henry LaurensHenry LaurensHenry Laurens was an American merchant and rice planter from South Carolina who became a political leader during the Revolutionary War. A delegate to the Second Continental Congress, Laurens succeeded John Hancock as President of the Congress...
- Richard Henry LeeRichard Henry LeeRichard Henry Lee was an American statesman from Virginia best known for the motion in the Second Continental Congress calling for the colonies' independence from Great Britain. He was a signatory to the Articles of Confederation and his famous resolution of June 1776 led to the United States...
- James MadisonJames MadisonJames Madison, Jr. was an American statesman and political theorist. He was the fourth President of the United States and is hailed as the “Father of the Constitution” for being the primary author of the United States Constitution and at first an opponent of, and then a key author of the United...
(Warren BuffettWarren BuffettWarren Edward Buffett is an American business magnate, investor, and philanthropist. He is widely regarded as one of the most successful investors in the world. Often introduced as "legendary investor, Warren Buffett", he is the primary shareholder, chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway. He is...
) - Caesar RodneyCaesar RodneyCaesar Rodney was an American lawyer and politician from St. Jones Neck in Dover Hundred, Kent County, Delaware, east of Dover...
- Edward RutledgeEdward RutledgeEdward Rutledge was an American politician and youngest signer of the United States Declaration of Independence. He later served as the 39th Governor of South Carolina.-Early years and career:...
- Dr Joseph WarrenJoseph WarrenDr. Joseph Warren was an American doctor who played a leading role in American Patriot organizations in Boston in early days of the American Revolution, eventually serving as president of the revolutionary Massachusetts Provincial Congress...
Other historical figures
- James ArmisteadJames ArmisteadJames Armistead Lafayette was the first African American double spy. An African American slave, Armistead was owned by William Armistead in Virginia during the American Revolution....
- David BushnellDavid BushnellDavid Bushnell , of Westbrook, Connecticut, was an American inventor during the Revolutionary War. He is credited with creating the first submarine ever used in combat, while studying at Yale University in 1775. He called it the Turtle because of its look in the water...
- Elizabeth FreemanMum BettBett sought the counsel of Theodore Sedgwick, an abolition-minded lawyer, to help her sue for freedom in court. She told him, "I heard that paper read yesterday, that says, all men are created equal, and that every man has a right to freedom...
aka Mum Bett (Yolanda KingYolanda KingYolanda Denise King was the first-born child of Coretta Scott King and civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr...
) - William DawesWilliam DawesWilliam Dawes, Jr. was one of several men and a woman who alerted colonial minutemen of the approach of British army troops prior to the Battle of Lexington and Concord at the outset of the American Revolution....
- King George IIIGeorge III of the United KingdomGeorge III was King of Great Britain and King of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of these two countries on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland until his death...
(Charles ShaughnessyCharles ShaughnessyCharles George Patrick Shaughnessy, 5th Baron Shaughnessy , simply known as Charles Shaughnessy, is a British peer, and television, theatre and film actor. He is known for his roles on American television, as Shane Donovan on the soap opera Days of our Lives and as Maxwell Sheffield on the sitcom...
) - Charles Gravier, comte de VergennesCharles Gravier, comte de VergennesCharles Gravier, comte de Vergennes was a French statesman and diplomat. He served as Foreign Minister from 1774 during the reign of Louis XVI, notably during the American War of Independence....
- Edward JennerEdward JennerEdward Anthony Jenner was an English scientist who studied his natural surroundings in Berkeley, Gloucestershire...
- Sybil LudingtonSybil LudingtonSybil Ludington , daughter of Col. Henry Ludington, was a heroine of the American Revolutionary War who became famous for her night ride on April 26, 1777 to alert American colonial forces to the approach of enemy troops...
(Kayla Hinkle) - Lord North
- Thomas PaineThomas PaineThomas "Tom" Paine was an English author, pamphleteer, radical, inventor, intellectual, revolutionary, and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States...
- Paul ReverePaul ReverePaul Revere was an American silversmith and a patriot in the American Revolution. He is most famous for alerting Colonial militia of approaching British forces before the battles of Lexington and Concord, as dramatized in Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's poem, Paul Revere's Ride...
(Sylvester StalloneSylvester StalloneMichael Sylvester Gardenzio Stallone , commonly known as Sylvester Stallone, and nicknamed Sly Stallone, is an American actor, filmmaker, screenwriter, film director and occasional painter. Stallone is known for his machismo and Hollywood action roles. Two of the notable characters he has portrayed...
) - Paul Wentworth
- Benjamin WestBenjamin WestBenjamin West, RA was an Anglo-American painter of historical scenes around and after the time of the American War of Independence...
- Phillis WheatleyPhillis WheatleyPhillis Wheatley was the first African American poet and first African-American woman whose writings were published. Born in Gambia, Senegal, she was sold into slavery at age seven...
Theme
The opening theme to Liberty's Kids, "Through My Own Eyes," is performed by Aaron CarterAaron Carter
Aaron Charles Carter is an American singer. He came to fame as a pop and hip hop singer in the late 1990s, establishing himself as a star among pre-teen and teenage audiences during the early-first decade of the 21st century....
, who also voices Joseph Plumb Martin
Joseph Plumb Martin
Joseph Plumb Martin was an American Revolutionary War soldier who published an account of his experiences as a soldier in the 8th Connecticut Regiment of the Continental Army in 1830.-Life:...
, appearing in episode 24, and Kayla Hinkle, a country singer who also voices Sybil Ludington
Sybil Ludington
Sybil Ludington , daughter of Col. Henry Ludington, was a heroine of the American Revolutionary War who became famous for her night ride on April 26, 1777 to alert American colonial forces to the approach of enemy troops...
, appearing in episode 21.
Episodes
The following are the Liberty's Kids episodes, with links to relevant historical articles.| # | Title | Subjects covered | Plot | Mystery guest |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Boston Tea Party | Boston Tea Party Boston Tea Party The Boston Tea Party was a direct action by colonists in Boston, a town in the British colony of Massachusetts, against the British government and the monopolistic East India Company that controlled all the tea imported into the colonies... September 2,2002 |
Sarah arrives in America aboard the H.M.S. Dartmouth HMS Dartmouth HMS Dartmouth was a small frigate or fifth-rate ship, one of six ordered by the Council of State on 28 December 1654 and built in 1655. After a lengthy career in the Royal Navy, she was wrecked in the Sound of Mull on 9 October 1690, while on a mission to persuade the MacLeans of Duart to sign... , but Moses, James and Henri aren't the only ones there to meet the ship. Sam Adams leads a gang of patriots aboard to destroy the tea cargo in protest, and the kids are caught in the middle. (Note: Due to the episode title with the inspired subject, Henri throws the parsley Parsley Parsley is a species of Petroselinum in the family Apiaceae, native to the central Mediterranean region , naturalized elsewhere in Europe, and widely cultivated as an herb, a spice and a vegetable.- Description :Garden parsley is a bright green hairless biennial herbaceous plant in temperate... in the water and loudly yells, "No taxation without representation No taxation without representation "No taxation without representation" is a slogan originating during the 1750s and 1760s that summarized a primary grievance of the British colonists in the Thirteen Colonies, which was one of the major causes of the American Revolution... !" at the British Redcoats.) |
Samuel Adams Samuel Adams Samuel Adams was an American statesman, political philosopher, and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. As a politician in colonial Massachusetts, Adams was a leader of the movement that became the American Revolution, and was one of the architects of the principles of American... |
| 2 | Intolerable Acts | Intolerable Acts Intolerable Acts The Intolerable Acts or the Coercive Acts are names used to describe a series of laws passed by the British Parliament in 1774 relating to Britain's colonies in North America... September 3, 2002 |
James, Sarah, Henri and Moses are stuck in Boston at the home of Phillis Wheatley when Boston is under curfew due to the Acts | Phillis Wheatley Phillis Wheatley Phillis Wheatley was the first African American poet and first African-American woman whose writings were published. Born in Gambia, Senegal, she was sold into slavery at age seven... |
| 3 | United We Stand | First Continental Congress First Continental Congress The First Continental Congress was a convention of delegates from twelve of the thirteen North American colonies that met on September 5, 1774, at Carpenters' Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, early in the American Revolution. It was called in response to the passage of the Coercive Acts by the... September 4, 2002 |
James covers the First Continental Congress, while Sarah travels to Boston to supply the resistance movement | Abigail Adams Abigail Adams Abigail Adams was the wife of John Adams, who was the second President of the United States, and the mother of John Quincy Adams, the sixth... |
| 4 | Liberty or Death | Give me Liberty, or give me Death! Give me Liberty, or give me Death! "Give me Liberty, or Give me Death!" is a quotation attributed to Patrick Henry from a speech he made to the Virginia Convention. It was given on March 23, 1775, at St. John's Church in Richmond, Virginia, and is credited with having swung the balance in convincing the Virginia House of Burgesses... September 6, 2002 |
Having travelled to Virginia to buy a new press, Moses sees his brother Cato about to be sold into slavery, and attempts to stop it, while the kids hear that Patrick Henry is about to rally the southern patriots. | Patrick Henry Patrick Henry Patrick Henry was an orator and politician who led the movement for independence in Virginia in the 1770s. A Founding Father, he served as the first and sixth post-colonial Governor of Virginia from 1776 to 1779 and subsequently, from 1784 to 1786... |
| 5 | Midnight Ride | Midnight Ride of Paul Revere September 13, 2002 | James and Sarah travel to Boston with a message from the Mechanics, reconnoitre with Dr. Warren, and join Paul Revere Paul Revere Paul Revere was an American silversmith and a patriot in the American Revolution. He is most famous for alerting Colonial militia of approaching British forces before the battles of Lexington and Concord, as dramatized in Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's poem, Paul Revere's Ride... and William Dawes William Dawes William Dawes, Jr. was one of several men and a woman who alerted colonial minutemen of the approach of British army troops prior to the Battle of Lexington and Concord at the outset of the American Revolution.... on their midnight ride |
Paul Revere Paul Revere Paul Revere was an American silversmith and a patriot in the American Revolution. He is most famous for alerting Colonial militia of approaching British forces before the battles of Lexington and Concord, as dramatized in Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's poem, Paul Revere's Ride... |
| 6 | The Shot Heard Round the World | September 29, 2002 Battles of Lexington and Concord Battles of Lexington and Concord The Battles of Lexington and Concord were the first military engagements of the American Revolutionary War. They were fought on April 19, 1775, in Middlesex County, Province of Massachusetts Bay, within the towns of Lexington, Concord, Lincoln, Menotomy , and Cambridge, near Boston... |
James and Sarah witness the Battles of Lexington and Concord, where Sarah's cousin Tom is killed | John Parker John Parker (Captain) John Parker was an American farmer, mechanic, and soldier, who commanded the Lexington militia at the Battle of Lexington on April 19, 1775. Parker was born in Lexington to Josiah Parker and Anne Stone... |
| 7 | Green Mountain Boys | Capture of Fort Ticonderoga Capture of Fort Ticonderoga The Capture of Fort Ticonderoga occurred during the American Revolutionary War on May 10, 1775, when a small force of Green Mountain Boys led by Ethan Allen and Colonel Benedict Arnold overcame a small British garrison at the fort and looted the personal belongings of the garrison... October 3, 2002 |
James and Sarah meet up with Ethan Allen and the Green Mountain Boys Green Mountain Boys The Green Mountain Boys were a militia organization first established in the 1760s in the territory between the British provinces of New York and New Hampshire, known as the New Hampshire Grants... in Vermont, watch them drive away a portly landowner, then stow away with Allen and Benedict Arnold Benedict Arnold Benedict Arnold V was a general during the American Revolutionary War. He began the war in the Continental Army but later defected to the British Army. While a general on the American side, he obtained command of the fort at West Point, New York, and plotted to surrender it to the British forces... when they capture Fort Ticonderoga Fort Ticonderoga Fort Ticonderoga, formerly Fort Carillon, is a large 18th-century fort built by the Canadians and the French at a narrows near the south end of Lake Champlain in upstate New York in the United States... |
Ethan Allen Ethan Allen Ethan Allen was a farmer, businessman, land speculator, philosopher, writer, and American Revolutionary War patriot, hero, and politician. He is best known as one of the founders of the U.S... |
| 8 | Second Continental Congress | The Second Continental Congress Second Continental Congress The Second Continental Congress was a convention of delegates from the Thirteen Colonies that started meeting on May 10, 1775, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, soon after warfare in the American Revolutionary War had begun. It succeeded the First Continental Congress, which met briefly during 1774,... October 4, 2002 |
A British spy urges James and Henri to find out what's going on in the closed sessions of the Second Continental Congress. Meanwhile, Sarah and Moses schmooze George Washington, a delegate to the Congress and the newly-chosen general of the Continental Army | John Hancock John Hancock John Hancock was a merchant, statesman, and prominent Patriot of the American Revolution. He served as president of the Second Continental Congress and was the first and third Governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts... |
| 9 | Bunker Hill | Battle of Bunker Hill Battle of Bunker Hill The Battle of Bunker Hill took place on June 17, 1775, mostly on and around Breed's Hill, during the Siege of Boston early in the American Revolutionary War... October 5, 2002 |
James witnesses the Battle of Bunker Hill from the American camp, while Sarah is in the British camp looking for a British soldier who is killed in action | Joseph Warren Joseph Warren Dr. Joseph Warren was an American doctor who played a leading role in American Patriot organizations in Boston in early days of the American Revolution, eventually serving as president of the revolutionary Massachusetts Provincial Congress... |
| 10 | Postmaster General Franklin | Benjamin Franklin Benjamin Franklin Dr. Benjamin Franklin was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. A noted polymath, Franklin was a leading author, printer, political theorist, politician, postmaster, scientist, musician, inventor, satirist, civic activist, statesman, and diplomat... October 10, 2002 |
James and Sarah attempt to deliver mail between Philadelphia and New York, meeting with a committee of correspondence Committee of correspondence The Committees of Correspondence were shadow governments organized by the Patriot leaders of the Thirteen Colonies on the eve of American Revolution. They coordinated responses to Britain and shared their plans; by 1773 they had emerged as shadow governments, superseding the colonial legislature... on the way. Meanwhile, Franklin is appointed Postmaster General by the Second Continental Congress |
John Adams John Adams John Adams was an American lawyer, statesman, diplomat and political theorist. A leading champion of independence in 1776, he was the second President of the United States... |
| 11 | Washington Takes Command | Siege of Boston Siege of Boston The Siege of Boston was the opening phase of the American Revolutionary War, in which New England militiamen—who later became part of the Continental Army—surrounded the town of Boston, Massachusetts, to prevent movement by the British Army garrisoned within... George Washington George Washington in the American Revolution George Washington commanded the Continental Army in American Revolutionary War , and was the first President of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1797. Because of his central role in the founding of the United States, Washington is often called the "Father of his Country"... October 13, 2002 |
The gang winters in Boston, where General Washington takes command and lifts the British occupation of Boston. James joins Henry Knox Henry Knox Henry Knox was a military officer of the Continental Army and later the United States Army, and also served as the first United States Secretary of War.... on his sojourn to Fort Ticonderoga |
George Washington George Washington George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of... |
| 12 | Common Sense | Common Sense Common Sense (pamphlet) Common Sense is a pamphlet written by Thomas Paine. It was first published anonymously on January 10, 1776, during the American Revolution. Common Sense, signed "Written by an Englishman", became an immediate success. In relation to the population of the Colonies at that time, it had the largest... October 20, 2002 |
Ben's old friend Thomas Paine comes by to ask them to print his book Common Sense, which makes the case for breaking away from Britain. James and Henri are inspired, but Sarah is repulsed by the notion of rebellion and won't even read it. | Thomas Paine Thomas Paine Thomas "Tom" Paine was an English author, pamphleteer, radical, inventor, intellectual, revolutionary, and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States... |
| 13 | The First Fourth of July | Declaration of Independence United States Declaration of Independence The Declaration of Independence was a statement adopted by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, which announced that the thirteen American colonies then at war with Great Britain regarded themselves as independent states, and no longer a part of the British Empire. John Adams put forth a... October 27, 2002 |
James attempts to find out more about the debate over the Declaration; he rounds up delegates from New Jersey and Delaware Caesar Rodney Caesar Rodney was an American lawyer and politician from St. Jones Neck in Dover Hundred, Kent County, Delaware, east of Dover... . Meanwhile, Sarah goes through Thomas Jefferson's trash |
Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson was the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence and the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom , the third President of the United States and founder of the University of Virginia... |
| 14 | New York, New York | New York and New Jersey campaign New York and New Jersey campaign The New York and New Jersey campaign was a series of battles for control of New York City and the state of New Jersey in the American Revolutionary War between British forces under General Sir William Howe and the Continental Army under General George Washington in 1776 and the winter months of 1777... November 1, 2002 |
Sarah visits Mrs. Radcliffe, a New York Loyalist. Meanwhile, James witness the loss of New York City to the British, and Henri pretends to be an American spy | Betsy Ross Betsy Ross Betsy Ross is widely credited with making the first American flag. There is, however, no credible historical evidence that the story is true.-Early life:... |
| 15 | The Turtle | The Turtle Turtle (submarine) The Turtle was the world's first submersible with a documented record of use in combat. It was built in Old Saybrook, Connecticut in 1775 by American Patriot David Bushnell as a means of attaching explosive charges to ships in a harbor... November 2, 2002 |
Hearing rumors of a sea monster in New York Harbor, the kids investigate and stumble across David Bushnell and his prototype submarine. They also run into Admiral Richard Howe, the commander of the British fleet in New York | David Bushnell David Bushnell David Bushnell , of Westbrook, Connecticut, was an American inventor during the Revolutionary War. He is credited with creating the first submarine ever used in combat, while studying at Yale University in 1775. He called it the Turtle because of its look in the water... |
| 16 | One Life to Lose | Nathan Hale Nathan Hale Nathan Hale was a soldier for the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. He volunteered for an intelligence-gathering mission in New York City but was captured by the British... November 3, 2002 |
The kids discover that Nathan Hale is a spy, and witness his execution. Meanwhile, James is almost impressed into the British Navy Impressment Impressment, colloquially, "the Press", was the act of taking men into a navy by force and without notice. It was used by the Royal Navy, beginning in 1664 and during the 18th and early 19th centuries, in wartime, as a means of crewing warships, although legal sanction for the practice goes back to... and Franklin attends the Staten Island Peace Conference Staten Island Peace Conference The Staten Island Peace Conference was a brief meeting held in the hope of bringing an end to the American Revolution. The conference took place on September 11, 1776, at Billop Manor, the residence of Colonel Christopher Billop, on Staten Island, New York... |
Nathan Hale Nathan Hale Nathan Hale was a soldier for the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. He volunteered for an intelligence-gathering mission in New York City but was captured by the British... |
| 17 | Captain Molly | Battle of Fort Washington Battle of Fort Washington The Battle of Fort Washington was fought in the American Revolutionary War between the United States and Great Britain on November 16, 1776. It was a decisive British victory, forcing the entire garrison of Fort Washington to surrender.... Margaret Corbin Margaret Corbin Margaret Corbin was a woman who fought in the American Revolutionary War On November 16, 1776, she and her husband, John Corbin, both from Philadelphia, along with some 600 American soldiers, were defending Fort Washington in northern Manhattan from 4,000 attacking Hessian troops under British... |
Sarah encamps with Margaret Corbin Margaret Corbin Margaret Corbin was a woman who fought in the American Revolutionary War On November 16, 1776, she and her husband, John Corbin, both from Philadelphia, along with some 600 American soldiers, were defending Fort Washington in northern Manhattan from 4,000 attacking Hessian troops under British... at Fort Tryon, while James witnesses the loss of Forts Tryon and Washington Fort Washington Fort Washington may refer to:In the United States:* In California:** Fort Washington, California, census-designated place* In Maryland:** Fort Washington, Maryland, census-designated place... to the British |
Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson was the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence and the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom , the third President of the United States and founder of the University of Virginia... |
| 18 | American Crisis | The American Crisis The American Crisis The American Crisis was a series of pamphlets published from 1776 to 1783 during the American Revolution by 18th century Enlightenment philosopher and author Thomas Paine. The first volume begins with the famous words "These are the times that try men's souls". There were sixteen pamphlets in total... , New York and New Jersey campaign New York and New Jersey campaign The New York and New Jersey campaign was a series of battles for control of New York City and the state of New Jersey in the American Revolutionary War between British forces under General Sir William Howe and the Continental Army under General George Washington in 1776 and the winter months of 1777... November 4, 2002 |
James and Sarah witness the terrible conditions of the Continental Army after defeats in New York and New Jersey, and return to Philadelphia to help Thomas Paine publish The American Crisis | Robert Bell |
| 19 | Across the Delaware | Washington's crossing of the Delaware Washington's crossing of the Delaware Washington's crossing of the Delaware River, which occurred on December 25, 1776, during the American Revolutionary War, was the first move in a surprise attack organized by George Washington against the Hessian forces in Trenton, New Jersey... Battle of Trenton Battle of Trenton The Battle of Trenton took place on December 26, 1776, during the American Revolutionary War, after General George Washington's crossing of the Delaware River north of Trenton, New Jersey. The hazardous crossing in adverse weather made it possible for Washington to lead the main body of the... November 5, 2002 |
James learns of a plan to attack the British before enlistments run out, then crosses the Delaware with Washington before the Battle of Trenton | John Honeyman John Honeyman John Honeyman was an American spy for George Washington, primarily responsible for gathering the intelligence crucial to Washington's victory in the Battle of Trenton.- Early life and career :... |
| 20 | American in Paris | Franklin in France, Forage War Forage War The Forage War was a partisan campaign consisting of numerous small skirmishes that took place in New Jersey during the American Revolutionary War between January and March 1777, following the battles of Trenton and Princeton... November 30, 2002 |
Franklin, now ambassador to France, works tirelessly to get military aid from the French foreign minister Vergennes Charles Gravier, comte de Vergennes Charles Gravier, comte de Vergennes was a French statesman and diplomat. He served as Foreign Minister from 1774 during the reign of Louis XVI, notably during the American War of Independence.... . Meanwhile, James meets up with Capt. Alexander Hamilton on the way to Washington's winter encampment at Morristown, New Jersey Morristown, New Jersey Morristown is a town in Morris County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the town population was 18,411. It is the county seat of Morris County. Morristown became characterized as "the military capital of the American Revolution" because of its strategic role in the... , and Sarah contracts smallpox in Boston. |
Alexander Hamilton Alexander Hamilton Alexander Hamilton was a Founding Father, soldier, economist, political philosopher, one of America's first constitutional lawyers and the first United States Secretary of the Treasury... |
| 21 | Sybil Lundington | Sybil Ludington Sybil Ludington Sybil Ludington , daughter of Col. Henry Ludington, was a heroine of the American Revolutionary War who became famous for her night ride on April 26, 1777 to alert American colonial forces to the approach of enemy troops... Battle of Ridgefield Battle of Ridgefield The Battle of Ridgefield was a battle and a series of skirmishes between American and British forces during the American Revolutionary War. The main battle was fought in the village of Ridgefield, Connecticut on April 27, 1777 and more skirmishing occurred the next day between Ridgefield and the... December 1, 2002 |
James goes to Connecticut to learn of Colonel Henry Ludington Henry Ludington Colonel Henry Ludington was the commander of the 7th Regiment of the Dutchess County Militia, a volunteer regiment of local men who fought in the Battle of Ridgefield in April, 1777, during the American Revolutionary War. His daughter, Sybil Ludington, is known as the female Paul Revere for her... , and instead learns of the exploits of the "female Paul Revere". Meanwhile, Sarah is again with Benedict Arnold, and both witness the destruction of Danbury Danbury, Connecticut Danbury is a city in northern Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. It had population at the 2010 census of 80,893. Danbury is the fourth largest city in Fairfield County and is the seventh largest city in Connecticut.... by the British. |
Sybil Ludington Sybil Ludington Sybil Ludington , daughter of Col. Henry Ludington, was a heroine of the American Revolutionary War who became famous for her night ride on April 26, 1777 to alert American colonial forces to the approach of enemy troops... |
| 22 | Lafayette Arrives | Marquis de Lafayette Battle of Brandywine Battle of Brandywine The Battle of Brandywine, also known as the Battle of the Brandywine or the Battle of Brandywine Creek, was fought between the American army of Major General George Washington and the British-Hessian army of General Sir William Howe on September 11, 1777. The British defeated the Americans and... December 2, 2002 |
Lafayette arrives in Philadelphia and meets the kids before offering his services to the Continental Congress. He is later wounded at the Battle of Brandywine | Sarah Fulton |
| 23 | The Hessians are Coming | Saratoga Campaign Saratoga campaign The Saratoga Campaign was an attempt by Great Britain to gain military control of the strategically important Hudson River valley in 1777 during the American Revolutionary War... December 3, 2002 |
Both James and Sarah witness the Battle of Saratoga, Sarah from her coverage of Benedict Arnold, and James from the vantage point of being tied to a Hessian deserter | Sarah Fulton |
| 24 | Valley Forge | Valley Forge Valley Forge Valley Forge in Pennsylvania was the site of the military camp of the American Continental Army over the winter of 1777–1778 in the American Revolutionary War.-History:... December 20, 2002 |
James and Sarah see the hardship that Joseph Plumb Martin Joseph Plumb Martin Joseph Plumb Martin was an American Revolutionary War soldier who published an account of his experiences as a soldier in the 8th Connecticut Regiment of the Continental Army in 1830.-Life:... and other foot soldiers endure during the war; Washington faces a possible mutiny; von Steuben drills Washington's troops |
Baron von Steuben |
| 25 | Allies at Last | Franco-American Alliance Treaty of Alliance (1778) The Treaty of Alliance, also called The Treaty of Alliance with France, was a defensive alliance between France and the United States of America, formed in the midst of the American Revolutionary War, which promised military support in case of attack by British forces indefinitely into the future... Rhode Island Loyalty Oath December 21, 2002 |
Franklin is able to negotiate a treaty of alliance and an audience with King Louis XVI. Meanwhile, James and Moses travel to Newport, Rhode Island Newport, Rhode Island Newport is a city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island, United States, about south of Providence. Known as a New England summer resort and for the famous Newport Mansions, it is the home of Salve Regina University and Naval Station Newport which houses the United States Naval War... and meet with Jewish merchant Moses Michael Hayes, and Sarah and Henri remain in occupied Philadelphia. |
Moses Michael Hayes |
| 26 | Honor and Compromise | Articles of Confederation Articles of Confederation The Articles of Confederation, formally the Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union, was an agreement among the 13 founding states that legally established the United States of America as a confederation of sovereign states and served as its first constitution... Battle of Monmouth Battle of Monmouth The Battle of Monmouth was an American Revolutionary War battle fought on June 28, 1778 in Monmouth County, New Jersey. The Continental Army under General George Washington attacked the rear of the British Army column commanded by Lieutenant General Sir Henry Clinton as they left Monmouth Court... December 27, 2002 |
The Continental Congress in York is divided among factions led by Richard Henry Lee Richard Henry Lee Richard Henry Lee was an American statesman from Virginia best known for the motion in the Second Continental Congress calling for the colonies' independence from Great Britain. He was a signatory to the Articles of Confederation and his famous resolution of June 1776 led to the United States... and Samuel Chase Samuel Chase Samuel Chase was an Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court and earlier was a signatory to the United States Declaration of Independence as a representative of Maryland. Early in life, Chase was a "firebrand" states-righter and revolutionary... . Meanwhile, Washington has to deal with opposition from General Charles Lee Charles Lee (general) Charles Lee was a British soldier who later served as a General of the Continental Army during the American War of Independence. Lee served in the British army during the Seven Years War. After the war he sold his commission and served for a time in the Polish army of King Stanislaus II... with regard to his battle strategy. |
Abraham Nenhem |
| 27 | The New Frontier | Cornstalk Cornstalk Cornstalk was a prominent leader of the Shawnee nation just prior to the American Revolution. His name, Hokoleskwa, translates loosely into "stalk of corn" in English, and is spelled Colesqua in some accounts... Fort Wilson riot December 28, 2002 |
In Philadelphia, James encounters mob violence against James Wilson James Wilson James Wilson was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States and a signer of the United States Declaration of Independence. Wilson was elected twice to the Continental Congress, and was a major force in drafting the United States Constitution... . Meanwhile, Sarah is on the Ohio frontier, where she encounters her father and Shawnee chief Cornstalk. |
Cornstalk Cornstalk Cornstalk was a prominent leader of the Shawnee nation just prior to the American Revolution. His name, Hokoleskwa, translates loosely into "stalk of corn" in English, and is spelled Colesqua in some accounts... |
| 28 | Not Yet Begun to Fight | Battle of Flamborough Head Battle of Flamborough Head The Battle of Flamborough Head was a naval battle that took place on 23 September 1779, in the North Sea off the coast of Yorkshire between an American Continental Navy squadron led by John Paul Jones and the two British escort vessels protecting a large merchant convoy... December 28, 2002 |
Shipwrecked on her way back to England, Sarah is rescued by the Bonhomme Richard, and in the midst of battle, John Paul Jones helps her see that her true loyalty lies with America | John Paul Jones John Paul Jones John Paul Jones was a Scottish sailor and the United States' first well-known naval fighter in the American Revolutionary War. Although he made enemies among America's political elites, his actions in British waters during the Revolution earned him an international reputation which persists to... |
| 29 | The Great Galvez | Bernardo de Galvez Bernardo de Gálvez y Madrid, Count of Gálvez Bernardo de Gálvez y Madrid, Viscount of Galveston and Count of Gálvez was a Spanish military leader and the general of Spanish forces in New Spain who served as governor of Louisiana and Cuba and as viceroy of New Spain.Gálvez aided the Thirteen Colonies in their quest for independence and led... December 29, 2002 |
James is on the frontier, where he meets George Rodgers Clark and Bernando de Galvez, the latter at the Battle of Fort Charlotte Battle of Fort Charlotte The Battle of Fort Charlotte or the Siege of Fort Charlotte was a two-week siege conducted by Spanish General Bernardo de Gálvez against the British fortifications guarding the port of Mobile during the American Revolutionary War... . Meanwhile, Sarah is in England. |
Bernardo de Galvez Bernardo de Gálvez y Madrid, Count of Gálvez Bernardo de Gálvez y Madrid, Viscount of Galveston and Count of Gálvez was a Spanish military leader and the general of Spanish forces in New Spain who served as governor of Louisiana and Cuba and as viceroy of New Spain.Gálvez aided the Thirteen Colonies in their quest for independence and led... |
| 30 | In Praise of Ben | Benjamin Franklin Benjamin Franklin Dr. Benjamin Franklin was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. A noted polymath, Franklin was a leading author, printer, political theorist, politician, postmaster, scientist, musician, inventor, satirist, civic activist, statesman, and diplomat... December 30, 2002 |
When Sarah arrives back from England, she finds Henri fighting with a young boy. Henri explains that he has done this because the boy was saying bad things about Ben Franklin. The boy says he only said this because that is what his father said. So, Sarah, Moses, and James explain to the boy about Ben Franklin's life and inventions. | Benjamin Franklin |
| 31 | Bostonians | Cherry Valley massacre Cherry Valley massacre The Cherry Valley Massacre was an attack by British and Seneca forces on a fort and the village of Cherry Valley in eastern New York on the cold, snowy and rainy morning of November 11, 1778, during the American Revolutionary War. It has been described as one of the most horrific frontier... Adams Family December 31, 2002 |
Sarah again visits the Adams family, when John is drafting the Massachusetts Constitution Massachusetts Constitution The Constitution of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts is the fundamental governing document of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, one of the 50 individual state governments that make up the United States of America. It was drafted by John Adams, Samuel Adams, and James Bowdoin during the... and preparing for a diplomatic mission to Europe. Meanwhile, James learns the horrors of the war for native Americans from Iroquois chief Joseph Brant Joseph Brant Thayendanegea or Joseph Brant was a Mohawk military and political leader, based in present-day New York, who was closely associated with Great Britain during and after the American Revolution. He was perhaps the most well-known American Indian of his generation... |
Joseph Brant Joseph Brant Thayendanegea or Joseph Brant was a Mohawk military and political leader, based in present-day New York, who was closely associated with Great Britain during and after the American Revolution. He was perhaps the most well-known American Indian of his generation... |
| 32 | Benedict Arnold | Benedict Arnold Benedict Arnold Benedict Arnold V was a general during the American Revolutionary War. He began the war in the Continental Army but later defected to the British Army. While a general on the American side, he obtained command of the fort at West Point, New York, and plotted to surrender it to the British forces... January 20, 2003 |
James is interviewing skinners when they capture British spy Andre John André John André was a British army officer hanged as a spy during the American War of Independence. This was due to an incident in which he attempted to assist Benedict Arnold's attempted surrender of the fort at West Point, New York to the British.-Early life:André was born on May 2, 1750 in London to... , who's carrying blueprints of West Point. Finding out where he got them, James must later comfort Sarah when her friend, General Arnold, is unmasked as a traitor. |
Benedict Arnold Benedict Arnold Benedict Arnold V was a general during the American Revolutionary War. He began the war in the Continental Army but later defected to the British Army. While a general on the American side, he obtained command of the fort at West Point, New York, and plotted to surrender it to the British forces... |
| 33 | Conflict in the South | Southern theater of the American Revolutionary War Southern theater of the American Revolutionary War The Southern theater of the American Revolutionary War was the central area of operations in North America in the second half of the American Revolutionary War. During the first three years of the conflict, the primary military encounters had been in the north, focused on campaigns around the... January 31, 2003 |
James tags along with General Nathanael Greene Nathanael Greene Nathanael Greene was a major general of the Continental Army in the American Revolutionary War. When the war began, Greene was a militia private, the lowest rank possible; he emerged from the war with a reputation as George Washington's most gifted and dependable officer. Many places in the United... on his campaign in the South. Meanwhile, Sarah is horrified that Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson was the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence and the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom , the third President of the United States and founder of the University of Virginia... owns slaves |
Nathanael Greene Nathanael Greene Nathanael Greene was a major general of the Continental Army in the American Revolutionary War. When the war began, Greene was a militia private, the lowest rank possible; he emerged from the war with a reputation as George Washington's most gifted and dependable officer. Many places in the United... |
| 34 | Deborah Samson: Soldier of the Revolution | Deborah Sampson Deborah Sampson Deborah Samson Gannett , better known as Deborah Sampson, was an American woman who impersonated a man in order to serve in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. She is one of a small number of women with a documented record of military combat experience in that war... Battle of Rhode Island Battle of Rhode Island The Battle of Rhode Island, also known as the Battle of Quaker Hill and the Siege of Newport, took place on August 29, 1778. Continental Army and militia forces under the command of General John Sullivan were withdrawing to the northern part of Aquidneck Island after abandoning their siege of... February 10, 2003 |
Sarah meets Deborah Samson, a female soldier who enlisted under the identity Robert Shurtleff. Meanwhile, General Washington attempts to organize an offensive with General Rochambeau from their base in Rhode Island, and Vergennes attempts to organize a peace conference with the British | Deborah Sampson Deborah Sampson Deborah Samson Gannett , better known as Deborah Sampson, was an American woman who impersonated a man in order to serve in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. She is one of a small number of women with a documented record of military combat experience in that war... |
| 35 | James Armistead | James Armistead James Armistead James Armistead Lafayette was the first African American double spy. An African American slave, Armistead was owned by William Armistead in Virginia during the American Revolution.... February 20, 2003 |
Encamped with Lafayette's army in Virginia, Henri enlists as a drummer boy and Sarah meets slave and double agent James Armistead James Armistead James Armistead Lafayette was the first African American double spy. An African American slave, Armistead was owned by William Armistead in Virginia during the American Revolution.... . Meanwhile, General Washington prepares for a major offensive against the British |
James Armistead James Armistead James Armistead Lafayette was the first African American double spy. An African American slave, Armistead was owned by William Armistead in Virginia during the American Revolution.... |
| 36 | Yorktown | Siege of Yorktown Siege of Yorktown The Siege of Yorktown, Battle of Yorktown, or Surrender of Yorktown in 1781 was a decisive victory by a combined assault of American forces led by General George Washington and French forces led by the Comte de Rochambeau over a British Army commanded by Lieutenant General Lord Cornwallis... February 20, 2003 |
James and Sarah witness the epic battle of Yorktown. Meanwhile, Moses' brother may not get the freedom he was promised, since the British lost. | Charles Cornwallis Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis KG , styled Viscount Brome between 1753 and 1762 and known as The Earl Cornwallis between 1762 and 1792, was a British Army officer and colonial administrator... |
| 37 | Born Free and Equal | Mum Bett Mum Bett Bett sought the counsel of Theodore Sedgwick, an abolition-minded lawyer, to help her sue for freedom in court. She told him, "I heard that paper read yesterday, that says, all men are created equal, and that every man has a right to freedom... March 3, 2003 |
Sarah travels to the Berkshires and learns of Mum Bett Mum Bett Bett sought the counsel of Theodore Sedgwick, an abolition-minded lawyer, to help her sue for freedom in court. She told him, "I heard that paper read yesterday, that says, all men are created equal, and that every man has a right to freedom... , a slave who sued for her freedom and won. Meanwhile, King George III is unwilling to admit that England has lost the war. |
Mum Bett Mum Bett Bett sought the counsel of Theodore Sedgwick, an abolition-minded lawyer, to help her sue for freedom in court. She told him, "I heard that paper read yesterday, that says, all men are created equal, and that every man has a right to freedom... |
| 38 | The Man Who Wouldn't Be King | Newburgh Conspiracy Newburgh conspiracy The Newburgh Conspiracy was unrest in 1783 among officers of the American Continental Army due to many officers and men of the Army not receiving pay for many years. Commander-in-Chief George Washington stopped any serious talk by appealing successfully to his officers to support the supremacy of... March 24, 2003 |
When interviewing Washington, James learns that officers in the Continental Army want to overthrow the government and install Washington as dictator, something Washington finds abhorrent. The episode ends with Washington going to Annapolis and resigning his commission. | Benjamin West Benjamin West Benjamin West, RA was an Anglo-American painter of historical scenes around and after the time of the American War of Independence... |
| 39 | Going Home | Shays' Rebellion Shays' Rebellion Shays' Rebellion was an armed uprising in central and western Massachusetts from 1786 to 1787. The rebellion is named after Daniel Shays, a veteran of the American Revolutionary War.... April 2, 2003 |
James visits Daniel Shays, who is upset about the conditions Revolutionary War veterans are facing and leads a rebellion to shut the government down. In New York, Sarah again visits her Loyalist friend Mrs. Radcliffe, who ends up moving to Canada with Moses' brother Cato. Meanwhile, James considers buying a newspaper, Henri decides to go to France with Lafayette, and Franklin returns to America with Lady Phillips. | Daniel Shays Daniel Shays Daniel Shays was an American soldier, revolutionary, and farmer famous for leading the Shays' Rebellion.-Early life:... |
| 40 | We the People | Philadelphia Convention Philadelphia Convention The Constitutional Convention took place from May 14 to September 17, 1787, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to address problems in governing the United States of America, which had been operating under the Articles of Confederation following independence from... April 3, 2003 |
James and Sarah attempt to find out what is going on at the Constitutional Convention, and Moses is upset that the constitution does not abolish slavery. | James Madison James Madison James Madison, Jr. was an American statesman and political theorist. He was the fourth President of the United States and is hailed as the “Father of the Constitution” for being the primary author of the United States Constitution and at first an opponent of, and then a key author of the United... |
DVD release
On October 14, 2008, Shout! FactoryShout! Factory
Shout! Factory is an entertainment company founded in 2003 that was started by Richard Foos , Bob Emmer and Garson Foos initially as a specialty music label...
released Liberty's Kids- The Complete Series on DVD in Region 1. The 6-disc box set contains all 40 episodes of the series as well as several bonus features.