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Professor Greg Jackson
Foreign hello my friends, this is Professor Greg Jackson and welcome to a special mini episode. An HTDS audio newsletter if you will. Here's our headline. I'm going back on tour with my live show, the Unlikely Union. Last time around we visited 20 states and the District of Columbia. 37 performances in all. And now we're doing it again because I intend to eventually get to all 50. And we're planning a Caribbean cruise event. You heard that right. A cruise that doesn't suck. The next Tour kicks off September 19th in Iowa City, Iowa and September 20th in Chicago. Additional dates and cities are continually being posted on our website, htdspodcast.com just click the tour dates on the website or follow the link in the episode notes to see the cities currently scheduled. All that said, I'm not just dropping this audio in the feed to tell you that I also want to share why I do this tour and why I think it's important and connected to the work that we do. At the time of this recording, we've just celebrated our nation's 249th birthday. Remarkable, particularly since we nearly didn't make it through the first 100 years. As I mentioned, I titled the live show the Unlikely Union because it is truly remarkable that 13 distinct, disparate, unattached to each other British colonies ever pulled together in the first place. All of them were so jealous of their sovereignty, so different in population, geographical size, climate, economy and and views. No one, not even Ben Joyner DI Franklin, could have imagined the political flame that would blaze to where we are today, now approaching 250 years, or the semiquincentennial as it's also known. The Union story, its high minded origin, its endurance, its distressing second baptism in the blood of as many as 750,000 dead Americans and as many more wounded or missing in the Civil War is absolutely remarkable. And it's a story I have been telling decade by decade on the podcast. In the live show we go back to the Origin through the first centennial because that's the story we have to revisit again and again to understand just how far we've come. Simply put, our imperfect founders worked through their shortcomings and political fissures to create this nation. A Union that aspired to a greatness exceeding their own. Their successors pushed through their own challenges and managed to move us to a better place. That history of struggle of two steps forward and one step back, yet of perseverance. While that's what makes me believe that even in our present, our own flawed and imperfect generation of Americans, you and me, we can see ourselves through our own. No worse than so many past turbulent times that as Ben Franklin once said of his fellow Constitutional Convention delegates, we too can assemble our joint wisdom. And yet, despite our prejudices, passions, errors of opinion and local interests, leave the next generation a better union. Still imperfect, without a doubt, but just a tad more perfect. That's the theme of the live show as we experience 100 years of of inspiration together in a theater with live music and video. And it's not recorded for the podcast because it's meant to be experienced in person, in real life, together. And that's important why? Well, even though I spend my days delving into the past, I do live in our present. I am aware, and yes, it's true that we live in a time of great political division. Yet history shows that our time isn't so unique in that regard. We gotten through worse, more divided and difficult times. History teaches us that we can set aside our differences and focus on the greater quantity of shared goals. In short, now is the time to come together and meet your neighbors. I guarantee you we have more in common than we give each other credit for. And I'm not just saying that. I've experienced it during my travels. Being on the road during the last year took us, as I said, to 20 different states, so called red and blue states. But you know what I see at every tour stop, whether big cities or small towns, are Americans sitting next to each other, sharing this remarkable story of the unlikely and yet still enduring union. And on a personal level, I love connecting with you, the listeners, in person. I had a blast at St. John's Church in Richmond, Virginia, where I got to meet Patrick Henry. Okay, well, a really great reenactor portraying him, but it was a fun conversation. I love doing the Q and A's after the show. Now we can't do this at every theater stop. It depends on the venue. But I love it when we have these opportunities. I love your smart and thoughtful questions. I love talking to current history majors, I love talking to history teachers. And frankly, it's been humbling and an honor to hear what this podcast has meant to some of you, even in your personal lives. The way you've listened with friends and family, the way it's even brought some relationships together to meet young listeners, some as young as eight, who've dragged their parents to the live show. I'm grateful for the personalized HTDS cookies we received at one stop. I'm grateful for the Lego set that depicts the history that doesn't suck. Live stage setup. I loved playing Carnegie Hall. Okay, so it was Carnegie Hall Library theater in Pittsburgh. But it was a very cool venue, and it was fun to think through that episode on Carnegie and all the connections that are happening there. When we were in dc, one of you came up to me after the show and asked if I'd like a tour of Arlington National Cemetery the next day. That was one of the absolute highlights of my year. And Milwaukee was freezing. But it was the best German food I've ever had in my life. And of course, I now know that if you're in Western Pennsylvania, passing through New Wilmington, you have to stop by Matt and Maggie Noble's restaurant, the Tavern on the Square. They're listeners, fans of the show, and wow, do they make a steak to die for. Then, of course, there are the historical sites. My own personal little pilgrimage of sorts to these locations that I've. That I've read about, that I've dreamt about, heading out to Redoubt Number 10 in Yorktown all by my lonesome. There was no one else around, and just standing there thinking about Alexander Hamilton during the battle. Yeah, it was kind of spiritual for me and Kathryn Kelchner, I want to say thank you to you and the Jamestown Yorktown foundation and Museum for making that happen. And for the first time in my life, I made it to Independence hall, the temple of the great republic. And finally, let me say thank you to Wingers Restaurants and the Sunderland Family foundation, which bought a slew of tickets for veterans to be able to come to the show. When we were in Utah, we were able to do a little meet and greet focused on those veterans before the show, being able to talk to these men and women who'd served in uniform some overseas decades ago. It was a night I won't forget. All that to say, come see me on the road. I hope I make it to a place near you. It is a blast getting to meet you, and I simply love doing this. So thank you for listening, thank you for your support. And once again, the upcoming live shows are listed on our website, htdspodcast. Com. And if I don't see you on the road, then come back to the podcast next week because, as always, I'd like to tell you a story.