Date: Jun 11
A MUSEUM+ Program
Thursday, June 11, 2026 | 7 p.m. - 8:30 p.m.
Celebrate the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence at the Peoria Riverfront Museum! The Peoria Pops take the stage on the Sun Plaza for an evening of patriotic tunes celebrating America 250 in conjunction with standout exhibition The Promise of Liberty.
This 30-person brass band will be playing true-blue American music against the beautiful riverfront setting, accompanied by special guest Benjamin Franklin, as embodied by premier American political reenactor Mitchell Kramer. Franklin was part of the 'Committee of Five,' a special group appointed to draft the Declaration of Independence.
See a 1776 broadside of the Declaration of Independence, the same that our ancestors would have seen in the earliest days of our nation on exhibition in The Promise of Liberty.
America 250The Peoria Riverfront Museum is celebrating the 250th anniversary of our nation in 2026. Join us all year long for exhibitions on American art, science, history and achievement, including The Promise of Liberty, an exhibition guest curated by documentarian Ken Burns. Featuring a 1776 copy of the Declaration of Independence, a copy of the Emancipation Proclamation signed by Abraham Lincoln, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s ‘I Have a Dream’ speech and more, this exhibition will be the largest collection of some of the most important documents in American history on display during America 250.
Sponsored by Linda Beth and Ed Sutkowski, America 250 donors, Visionary Society, Friends of Performance
