by Chap Petersen
In a few days, our country will enter its 250th year. Some of us are old enough to remember the “Bicentennial” of 1976, which was the celebration of a younger, less introspective, nation.
But America is no less greater. Indeed, the achievements of our Founding Fathers grow more noteworthy with time as our nation becomes less Euro-centric and more global in its constituency and its outlook.
With that in mind, here are my list of Great Americans from colonial times to 1876 —
- George Washington. The indispensable man. The general who held a ragtag army together for 8 years to eventually defeat the British (yes, with French help). To this day, America is the only English colony to win its freedom by force of arms and not by royal consent. The first President who established that the USA would be a democracy without a hereditary chief executive. Indeed, he willingly gave up his power — a truly novel idea at the time. And unlike others, he did not feel the need to imprison or execute his opponents.
- Abraham Lincoln. The founder of modern America. First, in reaction to secession, he decided that the Union was actually worth fighting for. Second, his decision to issue the Emancipation Proclamation spelled the end of slavery. Third, he had a vision to reunite the nation, which (eventually) succeeded. In addition to the obvious, his administration also initiated the transcontinental railroad and the land grant university system. If Washington created the USA, then Lincoln put it on the road to become a superpower.
