Ephemera 46 Recap
On July 4, 2026, our nation will commemorate the 250th anniversary of the adoption of the Declaration of Independence by the Second Continental Congress in Philadelphia. John Dunlap, a twenty-nine-year-old Irish immigrant, spent much of the night of July 4, 1776, hastily setting type and printing final copies of the single-sheet broadside of the Declaration. One was attached with a seal and folded into the Continental Congress manuscript journal after the words: “The Declaration being again read was agreed to as follows.” The others were distributed throughout the new United States to be read aloud in each of the 13 colonies and to the continental troops. Newspapers quickly published the contents. It is self-evident that ephemera played a pivotal role in the founding of our country. This broadside not only described the reasons for the country’s founding, it was also the means by which the public learned of our separation from Britain. Finding an original “Dunlap Broadside” continues to be the holy grail for collectors of American historical documents.
This historic anniversary was an apt moment for examining how ephemera played a key role not only in our founding, but also during the significant political events and social movements that make up our nation’s history.
Ephemera 46, the annual conference of the Ephemera Society of America (ESA), was held at the Hyatt Regency in Greenwich, Connecticut, on March 19–20, 2026. Centered on the theme Two Hundred and Fifty Years: Ephemera Shapes America, the program featured speakers who explored this topic in relation to the nation’s historic anniversary.
Below are the eight presentations that took place on Friday:
Conference Presentations:
Stars, Stripes, and Sales: Shaping American Identity Through Advertising
Allie Alvis
Making Natives Ephemeral: Ephemera and the Roots of the United States
Matthew Sparacio
“Evacuation Day to Y2K”: Researching Cultural Origins in New York City
Andy McCarthy
Murder & Memory: the Assassination of Abraham Lincoln
Thomas Horrocks
“Cupid Under Fire: Valentines of the Civil War”
Michael Russo
Death By Lightning: Memorializing James A. Garfield
Anne Peale
“A Stupendous Folly:” Philadelphia’s Sesquicentennial Exposition
Sarah Weatherwax
Gugler Lithographic Company World War II Mobilization
Sarah Finn
Ephemera 46 Conference Brochure
Ephemera 46 Preview Videos
On Wednesday, February 4, 2026 in anticipation of our March 2026 Annual Conference, “250 Years: Ephemera Shapes America” the following talks were presented:
Before 250: The Colonial Post and the Making of America
Daniel Piazza
Posters for the People: How WPA Graphics Tell the Story of the New Deal
Ennis Carter