Wallbuilders Teachers’ Conference
Photos & videos from my visit to the American Journey Experience for the Wallbuilders Teachers’ Conference.
What an amazing experience!
This conference, provided by Wallbuilders, is designed to equip teachers from both public and private schools with principles and techniques that were used in early American education and thereafter for decades. Teachers will also have the unique opportunity each day to handle original documents from their library of 100,000 items related to early education and American history. This unique conference is designed to be informative and encouraging to teachers to help them make a greater impact on their students and ultimately the nation at large. For more information, or to sign up for the next one yourself, visit their website for the event.
Day One
1941 Lincoln Continental that carried Orson Wells and Rita Hayworth
Suit from James Bond movie Skyfall, worn by Daniel Craig.
Lucille Ball's Dress and Vanity
Original 1917 Model T
Memorabilia from War of the Worlds and Citizen Kane
Replica Dorothy dress and shoes and Replica Flying Monkey Costume.
Zachary Taylor's Glasses
Civil War era Battle Axe
Another Civil War Era Battle Axe, this one with a spike on the back end for maximum damage.
Caltrop! (I was one of only two or three people in the group who knew what it was.)
A Brown Bess taken from Muslim Pirates during the Barbary Powers war, adorned with real silver fittings.
Various pieces of Civil War era life: a toaster, a chocolate melter; cannonballs, axes, and more.
A sword taken from the Muslim Barbary Pirates. Lightweight and deadly. The two spikes on the pommel could be used to prop up the muzzle of a gun or to poke enemies in the eyes.
The very first United States budget. It took less than one page to detail all government spending. Gone are the days....
A military commission signed by John Adams. Printed on vellum. We got to actually hold this one without it being in a page protector.
Original Superman costume
Batman mask model
Screen props from the Captain America movie
A portable guillotine from France.
A replica holy grail from the Indiana Jones movie. The notebook on top is the one Sean Connery actually used in the film.
The notebook Sean Connery actually used in the Indiana Jones film.
Props from the Ten Commandments and Ben Hur
Actual chariot ridden by Charlton Heston in Ben Hur
A model built for the making of C-3PO
Head from the Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man in Ghostbusters and Darth Vader mask
Some of the stickers available at the conference.
Merch
Merch
1610 Order authorizing the slave trade in Florida
Shipping order signed by King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella in 1493
Geneva Bible printed in 1599
Pamphlet printed in 1620 to get people to attempt the move to the Americas
Cup used by settlers in Plymouth
Makers mark on the cup used by settlers in Plymouth
Assembly airing grievances printed in 1619
Original 2nd printing of the King James Bible, printed in 1612
King James Bible, 1612
Book about abortion, printed in 1808.
Day Two
These weapons were taken from Barbary slave traders. The one with two prongs in the middle was used for castration.
Farmer's Almanack, printed and sold in 173 by Benjamin Franklin.
Back of 1753 Farmer's Almanack with one of the diagrams of sun/moon placement.
A woodcut of one of the sun/moon movement diagrams from Ben Franklin's printing press.
Tax receipt from city of Ipswich, commonly seen as the foundation for the phrase "No taxation without representation."
Military commission signed by King George III
Close-up of King George's seal and signature
Slave lock. Very, very simply made. Most of these could be unlocked by simply inserting a stick, but most slaves had no knowledge of worked metal and had no idea.
Key for a different slave lock
Carved ivory handle from Barbary pirate/slave trader
Full knife
Slave collar. VERY heavy.
Lemuel Haynes signature in his Bible.
Lemuel Haynes Bible
Cannon from Plymouth
Detail of cannon from Plymouth
Webster's first dictionary from 1888
Card sent to students from President Grant
Fourth grade geography quiz from 1862
Stereograph, let you see images in 3D
A pressing of leaves Thomas Jefferson took at Monticello. Includes a lock of his hair, as well.
Annie Oakley's .22 rifle
Detail of Annie Oakley's gun
Woodrow Wilson penned a 5-volume history of the United States. He did not mention any of the thousands of known black heroes from the founding of our nation onward, and in fact, let this and one other image (pictured next) as his only mention of black people at all.
Wilson's other image of a black person.
The inside cover page of this volume of Wilson's history.
Hover Board from Back to the Future, signed by Christopher Lloyd (Doc Brown), Michael J. Fox (Marty McFly), Leah Thompson (Lorraine), and Tom Wilson (Biff).
Wax Seal stamps from WWII
Political Party Platforms, side-by-side, from 1864
This is one of the first projectors ever made, used in early school houses.
Why I won't be voting Democrat
100 Bibles were sent to the moon (on microfilm). 1 remains there, and the others returned to Earth. This is one of them.
Republican Party Platform, 1860
FDR's wheelchair
Day Three
Commonly called the "Jefferson Bible," this is the book of Bible stories that Thomas Jefferson compiled. It was never meant to be a Bible of itself.
Memorial or Mourning ring. Worn by Thomas Jefferson's daughter. Contains George Washington's hair.
One of only 8 or 9 copies of the Aitken Bible still in existence. First priting of an English Bible in the Americas. The most recent one to sell at auction was sold in 2018 for over $118,000!
We were not allowed to open this one, so as to save the spine as much as possible.
People try to say that the founders were not overtly Christian God-fearing men; however, they issued multiple days of Prayer & Fasting or Thanksgiving.
The pages containing the notes from Washington's doctors describing his death. See video above for more information.
Bloodletting tools.
WWII artifacts (I don't think I posted these in prior galleries).
Neat display at the Buc-ee's in Ennis, TX on the way home from Dallas.
Very ominous cloud formation from the way home.