Dr. Parkinson is a professor of history at Binghamton University and the author of the new book, Tyrants and Rogues: Understanding the Declaration of Independence
As our nation’s 250th anniversary draws near, The Raab Collection welcomes Professor Robert G. Parkinson, author of the new book, Tyrants and Rogues: Understanding the Declaration of Independence, as our next Guest Curator.
Parkinson, who earned his PhD at the University of Virginia, has been a professor of history at Binghamton University in New York since 2014. His research interests are in early American history, especially the American Revolution.
Tyrants and Rogues: Understanding the Declaration of Independence has been hailed by Kirkus Reviews as “a timely and highly useful book in this semiquincentennial year—and far beyond.” Historian Francis D. Cogliano says of it: “Is there anything new to say about the Declaration of Independence? In this brilliant new book, Robert G. Parkinson offers an emphatic ‘yes’…. This is a vitally important book to be read in 2026 and beyond.”
Parkinson has also authored three previous books: The Common Cause, Thirteen Clocks, and Heart of American Darkness. He recently participated in a Ford Evening Book Talk at the George Washington Presidential Library at Mount Vernon to discuss the Declaration of Independence’s turbulent origins, the individuals who shaped this important document, and what its writings have meant to America over the past 250 years. That program is available to watch on Youtube.
The exhibit curated by Professor Parkinson will debut on the Raab website in June.
About the Guest Curators Program at Raab
Several times a year, The Raab Collection invites authors, historians, and thought leaders to choose a selection of documents currently for sale with Raab and curate a themed ‘exhibit’ with commentary by the Guest Curator. They share their experience and expertise, motivations and passions, bringing history to life in ways only they can. Previous Guest Curators have included Massee McKinley, cofounder, VP, and chief of staff of The Society of Presidential Descendants; Mike Makowsky, writer/creator of the historical drama, Death by Lightning; and Dr. Lindsay M. Chervinsky, executive director of the George Washington Presidential Library at Mount Vernon; among others.
The Raab Collection is often on the front line of historical discovery. Many of the pieces we sell are unpublished or were acquired directly from the descendants or heirs of historical figures and collectors, often unseen by the general public or the research community before. This offers each Guest Curator robust and interesting material to highlight.
