04/27/2026
2026 marks the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. The Library of Michigan will host a guest speaker for a virtual talk about during the American Revolution on May 7 from 6:30-7:30 p.m. Registration is required for this free program: https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/2mLjkxdqQE6iSm5jw1j9zw . Full summary is as follows:
Viper’s Nest: Michigan in the American Revolution, 1775-1783
Thursday, May 7, 2026 - 6:30PM-7:30PM, Zoom
Though several hundred miles removed from Lexington, Concord, Yorktown, and other major flashpoints of the Revolutionary War, settlers from Detroit and Mackinac, along with Indigenous peoples from Michigan’s Anishinaabeg and Wyandotte nations, were intimately involved in the conflict that birthed the United States. Detroit and Mackinac served as staging grounds for British and Indigenous raids against American settlers in Kentucky, Virginia, and Pennsylvania, while Anishinaabe warriors from northern Michigan defended Quebec during Benedict Arnold’s 1775 invasion of Canada. In response, the Continental Army planned several military campaigns to capture Detroit, none of which came to fruition. Rumors swirled of American troops on Lake Michigan and of French settlers’ sympathy for the Revolution, alarming the British and Indigenous nations. Famed frontiersman Daniel Boone and other Patriots first saw Detroit through the barred windows of “Yankee Hall,” a British prison for American soldiers and captives. This presentation will bring these and other Revolutionary War stories to light, showing how Michigan and its people both influenced and were transformed by the conflict.
Guest Speaker: Jonathan Quint
Registration is required for all Zoom sessions. Find the full schedule of 2026 Virtual Programs with registration information at Michigan.gov/LMPublicPrograms.
Though several hundred miles removed from Lexington, Concord, Yorktown, and other major flashpoints of the Revolutionary War, settlers from Detroit and Mackinac, along with Indigenous peoples from Michigan’s Anishinaabeg and Wyandotte nations, were intimately involved in the conflict that birthed ...