American Treasures, Stephen Puleo
American Treasures, Stephen Puleo
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American Treasures
The Secret Efforts to Save the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution and the Gettysburg Address

Author: Stephen Puleo

Narrator: Eric Michael Summerer

Unabridged: 11 hr 32 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Tantor Media

Published: 08/30/2016

Synopsis

On December 26, 1941, Secret Service Agent Harry E. Neal stood on a platform at Washington's Union Station, watching a train chug off into the dark and feeling at once relieved and inexorably anxious. These were dire times: As Hitler's armies plowed across Europe, seizing or destroying the Continent's historic artifacts at will, Japan bristled to the East. The Axis was rapidly closing in.

So FDR set about hiding the country's valuables. On the train speeding away from Neal sat four plain-wrapped cases containing the documentary history of American democracy: the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, the Gettysburg Address, and more, guarded by a battery of agents and bound for safekeeping in the nation's most impenetrable hiding place.

American Treasures charts the little-known journeys of these American crown jewels. From the risky and audacious adoption of the Declaration of Independence in 1776 to our modern Fourth of July celebrations, American Treasures shows how the ideas captured in these documents underscore the nation's strengths and hopes, and embody its fundamental values of liberty and equality.

About Stephen Puleo

Stephen Puleo is the author of several books, including Dark Tide, Due to Enemy Action, and The Caning. Formerly an award-winning newspaper reporter, he is a contributor to American History magazine, among other publications. He holds a master's degree in history and has taught history at Suffolk University in Boston. He resides in Massachusetts with his wife, Kate.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Yibbie on January 30, 2019

I learned a lot from this book and it was interesting, but it wasn’t quite what I was expecting. The protection of the Documents during WW2 is covered very clearly and thoroughly. Thankfully, those were very uneventful days for our founding documents, but that was a very small part of this book. Ins......more

Goodreads review by Eileen on March 31, 2018

It's hard for me to review this book because on the one hand, it's a well-written history of the birth, debate, and execution of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution (and subsequent Bill of Rights) that I enjoyed revisiting, but on the other hand, I expected something completely diff......more

Goodreads review by Vincent on March 22, 2017

This book took me a while because I only read it when I went somewhere and was waiting but I must say it was quite enjoyable. The reason it gets 4 and not 5 is because I think I am giving out too many 5's for just liking the book. It wasn't a page turner where I was up all night but when I did read......more

Goodreads review by Dale on September 04, 2017

Given to me by a good friend, I didn't know if I wanted to read an entire book on preserving the founding documents. However, the book is about so much more than the protection of the documents. Mr. Puleo does a great job flashing back and telling a fresh narrative surrounding the creation of the do......more

Goodreads review by Stephanie on December 30, 2024

This is an incredibly frustrating book to rate and I found the blurb (and subtitle) pretty misleading. Only a few interspersed chapters were actually about the the efforts to save these documents, while the rest was dedicated to the history of the documents. If the reader is anything like me, then t......more

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