Innovator Talk: Richard Vague

The Historical Society of Pennsylvania, in partnership with the Independence Historical Trust, is delighted to host author Richard Vague as its 200th Anniversary signature talk for the theme Americans and Innovation: Science, Technology, and Enterprise. Mr. Vague, a businessperson, venture capitalist, and author, will share his research into the financial industry of early America. By 1776, a clash between two distinct political classes had emerged in Pennsylvania— the elite Anglican and Quaker merchant traders versus the  largely Scots-Irish Presbyterian farmers, artisans and mechanics—which set an enduring tone for America’s politics. This rancorous division played out in the life of Thomas Willing, a leading merchant trader and America’s first banker. 

• This event is being offered in a hybrid format. Both onsite and virtual tickets are available. All ticket reservations will include a Zoom link, but only onsite tickets will be honored at the door.
• Onsite tickets include admission to the talk, a reception afterwards, and the exhibit “All View It As an Object of High Importance”: Banking in the Early Republic.
• We wish to provide complimentary tickets to current secondary, undergraduate, and graduate students. Please email us at [email protected] and tell us where you are enrolled as a student and in what program.

Richard Vague is the author of An Illustrated Business History of the United States and A Brief History of Doom, a chronicle of major world financial crises. He is Chair of the board of the Public School Employees' Retirement System, the largest public pension fund in Pennsylvania, and previously served as Secretary of Banking and Securities for Pennsylvania. He was co-founder and CEO of an electricity and natural gas supply company, and co-founder and CEO of two consumer credit card banks. Richard currently serves on the University of Pennsylvania Board of Trustees and the Penn Medicine Board of Trustees, and on a number of business boards.

The Historical Society of Pennsylvania (HSP) commemorates its 200th birthday in 2024!  Since our founding, we have collected and preserved an astonishing array of documents that bring the people of the past into conversation with us today. We enter our third century eager to invite you to find yourself in history. To connect with the past and make meaningful discoveries about who you are and who we are together. Join us in this endeavor to explore our shared American history. Visit us at hsp.org/200.

Established in 1972, the Independence Historical Trust (formerly known as the Friends of Independence National Historical Park) is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization created to help Independence National Historical Park (INHP) prepare for the bicentennial celebration of the United States in 1976. In its 52-year history, the Trust has helped fund major capital improvement projects, as well as the acquisition and conservation of important documents and artifacts.

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

Historical Society of Pennsylvania, 1300 Locust Street, Philadelphia, United States