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| Revolutionary War Round Table | |
|---|---|
| Name | Revolutionary War Round Table |
| Formation | 20th century |
| Type | Historical society |
| Headquarters | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| Region served | United States |
| Fields | Revolutionary War studies |
| Leader title | President |
Revolutionary War Round Table
The Revolutionary War Round Table is an American historical society and lecture forum devoted to the study of the American Revolutionary era. It conducts monthly lectures, publishes research, and fosters public engagement with figures, battles, and documents from the Revolutionary period. The organization connects collectors, scholars, and enthusiasts interested in subjects ranging from the Boston Tea Party and Lexington and Concord to the diplomacy of the Treaty of Paris (1783) and the writings of Thomas Paine.
Founded in the 20th century amid a resurgence of interest in George Washington and the American Bicentennial, the group traces roots to veterans of historical societies associated with the Saratoga National Historical Park, Valley Forge National Historical Park, and the Mount Vernon Ladies' Association. Early organizers included members with ties to the American Antiquarian Society, the Massachusetts Historical Society, and the New-York Historical Society. The Round Table drew inspiration from the lecture circuits of the Society of Cincinnati, the archival efforts of the Library of Congress, and the collecting traditions of the New-York Historical Society and the Winterthur Museum. Over decades the organization collaborated with curators from Colonial Williamsburg, archivists at the National Archives and Records Administration, and educators affiliated with Harvard University and Yale University. It expanded programming in partnership with institutions such as the American Philosophical Society, the New Jersey Historical Society, the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission, and museums like the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Smithsonian Institution.
The Round Table promotes scholarship on Revolutionary-era personalities including John Adams, Samuel Adams, Patrick Henry, Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, John Hancock, and Benjamin Franklin. It encourages research on military episodes like the Battle of Bunker Hill, the Siege of Yorktown, the New York and New Jersey campaign, and the Southern theater of the American Revolutionary War. Activities emphasize material culture connected to families such as the Washington family, the Lee family (Virginia), and the Franklin family, and legal documents including the United States Constitution and the Articles of Confederation. The group supports study of foreign actors like Marquis de Lafayette, Baron von Steuben, Charles Cornwallis, and King George III, and of diplomatic events such as the Treaty of Amity and Commerce (1778).
Membership has included independent scholars, curators, antiquarians, and public historians affiliated with institutions like Princeton University, Rutgers University, Columbia University, University of Virginia, and Boston College. Organizational officers have sometimes held fellowships at the Institute of Early American History and Culture and positions within the American Historical Association and the Organization of American Historians. Committees coordinate outreach with state historical societies including the Massachusetts Historical Society, the Maryland Historical Society, and the Virginia Historical Society, and collaborate with battlefield preservation groups such as the American Battlefield Trust and the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
Regular meetings occur in venues tied to Independence Hall, Carpenters' Hall, and university auditoriums on campuses like Georgetown University and Boston University. Programs include panel discussions on topics from the Boston Massacre to the Whiskey Rebellion, seminars on primary sources like the Journals of the Continental Congress, and workshops in archival skills using collections from the Massachusetts Historical Society and the Library Company of Philadelphia. The Round Table has organized joint symposia with the Adams National Historical Park, the Hessian Museum, and the Museum of the American Revolution, and has sponsored field trips to sites such as the Monmouth Battlefield State Park, Kings Mountain National Military Park, and Princeton Battlefield State Park.
The group's publications include lecture pamphlets, bibliography compilations, and occasional monographs distributed to members and libraries including the New-York Historical Society Library, the Library of Congress, and university presses at Rutgers University Press and University of Virginia Press. Research topics have ranged from the correspondence of John Dickinson and Horatio Gates to studies of logistics during the Philadelphia campaign and analyses of naval actions involving figures like John Paul Jones and Paul Jones. The Round Table has collaborated with editors of the Papers of Benjamin Franklin, the Papers of George Washington, the Founders Online project, and documentary projects tied to the Adams Papers Editorial Project.
Speakers have included curators and historians associated with the American Philosophical Society, the New-York Historical Society, and university programs at Yale University and Harvard University, as well as authors of works on Alexander Hamilton, George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, James Madison, James Monroe, and Aaron Burr. Guest lecturers have represented museums and archives such as the Smithsonian Institution, the National Archives, Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, the Museum of the American Revolution, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Special events have marked anniversaries of the Battle of Saratoga, the Siege of Yorktown, and the Declaration of Independence, with participation by preservationists from the American Battlefield Trust and scholars connected to the Institute for Advanced Study and the John Carter Brown Library.
Over time the Round Table influenced public history initiatives at sites including Mount Vernon, Monticello, Valley Forge, and Independence National Historical Park, and aided educational efforts at institutions like the National Museum of American History and the American Antiquarian Society. Its members have contributed to scholarship published by presses such as Oxford University Press, Cambridge University Press, Princeton University Press, and Yale University Press, and to documentary editions that inform curricula in departments at Harvard University, Princeton University, and Columbia University. The Round Table's archival donations and collaborative projects continue to support research into the Revolutionary era across libraries, museums, and battlefield parks nationwide.