Curated by Rachel A. Ernst & Amanda Hurtado

America in the Archive: The Many Voices of Democracy celebrates the 250^th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. The birth of the nation is rooted in a long history of place, people and beliefs that extends beyond the continental United States and continues to expand into our present. These many histories, often streamlined into linear narratives, find their source in the myriad material artifacts contained in an archive. Far from a straightforward history, archives describe weblike, simultaneous and intertwined stories while at the same time, pointing to gaps in the record.

One of the unique challenges we encountered with curating America in the Archive was how to create an exhibition using archival materials that are geographically specific to the American West and temporally distant from the historical event in question. Consider the fact that the University of Utah was founded in 1850, but Utah Territory did not become a state until 1896—both well after the 1776 signing and the revolution. This historical distance required us to think more broadly about the American Revolution and how its repercussions rippled across the continent.

The exhibition begins with a facsimile of the Declaration of Independence from Peter Force’s multi-volume American Archives and moves viewers through time, beginning with the indigenous people and histories that long predate the European colonization of this continent. Viewers then examine the philosophers and thinkers who laid the groundwork for American democracy, and the historical events that brought colonists and settlers ever westward as cartographic boundaries shifted and changed. Viewers will discover a layered history of democracy in America through the individual stories and voices of the people who were instrumental in helping to create democracy and essential to preserving it in our present and future. The exhibition concludes with an empty mirrored case where viewers can reflect on their own story and take the opportunity to add their unique voice for preservation here in the archive in the Marriott Library’s Special Collections.

Visitors can view the exhibition in the fourth-floor gallery space of the J. Willard Marriott Library during library hours. The exhibition will be on display until September 9, 2026. Check library hours before visiting. Exhibition tours with a curator are available upon request; please email rachel.ernst@utah.edu to request a tour.

Photo credit: Special Collections, J. Willard Marriott Library

Learn about the Declaration of Independence facsimile in Special Collections.