Describes a typical day in the life of James Forten, a man born in Philadelphia to free African-American parents, who learned to be a sailmaker, and later became a wealthy, respected businessman with his own shop.
Follows a day in the life of Benjamin Tuthill, a shipwright's apprentice in colonial New Hampshire, discussing what he learned in the course of building the "Ranger" in 1775, an eighteen-gun warship to be captained by John Paul Jones.
Examines a day in the life of a colonial dressmaker through the story of Bess O'Donnell, a young woman who is working for a Philadelphia milliner at the time the Liberty Bell is hung.
Tells the life story of William Penn, the seventeenth-century Quaker who founded Pennsylvania, discussing the religious persecution he faced and the influence of his government on the other colonies.
Examines the creation of the original thirteen colonies in the United States, from the failed colony of Roanoke in 1587 to the formation of the Georgia colony in 1733.
In Massachusetts in 1771, seven-year-old Olivia learns about freedom from her father's slave, Mingo, who was promised that he'd be freed when the tide was low enough that he could walk to a certain spot offshore.
