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'We are participants in an ongoing experiment': Historian roundtable discusses America at its semiquincentennial

WVIK, Quad Cities NPR | By Brady Johnson
Published July 3, 2026 at 10:32 AM CDT
"Won't be long now! Washington, D.C., Sept. 22. Although Congress will not convene until next January, workmen are already putting the Capitol in tip-top shape. Workmen are pictured repairing the steps on the Senate side of the building, 9/22/38"
Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division, photograph by Harris & Ewing, [reproduction number, e.g., LC-USZ62-12345]
"Won't be long now! Washington, D.C., Sept. 22. Although Congress will not convene until next January, workmen are already putting the Capitol in tip-top shape. Workmen are pictured repairing the steps on the Senate side of the building, 9/22/38"

WVIK asked history professors and historians to join a roundtable to discuss America’s history as we commemorate 250 years since the Declaration of Independence. Topics include the founding, Reconstruction, the Gilded Age, and the importance of understanding our shared history.

Participants

Augustana College
Professor of History Lendol Calder
Professor of History Brian Leech

Western Illinois University
Professor of History Richard Filipink
Professor of History Timothy Roberts

Saint Ambrose University
Professor of History Larry Skillin
Professor of History Keri Manning

Colonel Davenport House
Vice President of the Colonel Davenport Historical Foundation Jessica Waytenick
News
Brady Johnson
Brady is a 2021 Augustana College graduate majoring in Multimedia Journalism-Mass Communication and Political Science. Over the last eight years, he has reported in central Illinois at various media outlets, including The Peoria Journal Star, WCBU Peoria Public Radio, Advanced Media Partners, and WGLT Bloomington-Normal's Public Media.
See stories by Brady Johnson