Free exhibition at the Science Museum marking the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence with more than a hundred objects, including a rare 1776 print.
Becoming America: How Science Shaped a Nation opens at the Science Museum on 23 October, a free exhibition marking 250 years since the signing of the Declaration of Independence and the founding of the United States. It's a long run, too, staying open until 25 April 2027, so there's plenty of time to fit it in.
The exhibition traces how science and technology shaped the country's development across four decisive decades of North American history. It starts in the 1760s, when Britain took over territorial control from France, and follows through the founding of the United States and up to the first US presidency in the 1790s. Maps, paintings, scientific instruments and artefacts carry the story, with more than a hundred objects on display.
Among them is a rare surviving 1776 print of the Declaration of Independence — one of only twenty-six known to survive — alongside items used by King George III and George Washington, and a pioneering map made by Benjamin Franklin. The exhibition was created with the support of the Library of Congress.
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It's free to enter, and you'll find it at the Science Museum, Exhibition Rd, South Kensington, London SW7 2DD, from 23 October 2026 through to 25 April 2027.
