Premieres Saturday, May 30, 2026 at 7:30 p.m. on KPBS TV + Encore June 13 at 6 p.m. on KPBS TV / Stream with KPBS+
"Celebrating America 250: Made with Love," a special episode of the Emmy Award-winning MADE WITH LOVE series, shines a spotlight on American artisans who keep the country’s founding spirit alive.
To commemorate the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, the series travels across the country, celebrating the traditions of makers who helped shape this nation.
Crisscrossing the country from Massachusetts to Montana, Kansas City to California, CELEBRATING AMERICA 250 profiles dedicated artisans who work hard to preserve the legacy that’s been passed on to them.
Below is a list of the cities and the makers included in the program:
* Starting in Massachusetts, the site of the Revolutionary War’s first battles, CELEBRATING AMERICA 250 visits Lowell’s Boat Shop in Amesbury, the oldest boat shop in America, which started building dories when George Washington was president.
* In Boston, the program explores the importance of the printing press with a visit to Harcourt Bindery, the oldest and largest hand bookbinder in the United States.
* Philadelphia is where one of the first American flags was created and the home of Humphrys Flag Company, which carries on the flag-making tradition today.
* In New York City, where Jewish tailors thrived by the mid-1800s, rabbi and master tailor Yosel Tiefenbrun works at the intersection of fashion and religion, creating bespoke garments for his clients.
* Moving on to New Orleans, CELEBRATING AMERICA 250 explores the city’s rich blacksmithing tradition. Today, Darryl A. Reeves is one of a handful of blacksmiths who restores metalwork in the city, fusing early techniques with African influences. French settlers also brought their perfume-making skills to New Orleans in the 19th century, and a visit to Hové Parfumeur reveals how new scents are made from different essential oils.
* In Kansas City, known for jazz, Mike Corrigan — aka “Mike the Horn Doctor” — prides himself on carrying on the city’s musical heritage. And weaver and textile artist Debbie Barrett-Jones works with colors from the natural world to create large-scale projects and wearable art, including scarves and other personal items.
* Following the Civil War, cowboys began pushing West across the American frontier. In Three Forks, Montana, saddle maker Mark Brogger is a fifth-generation horseman who uses old-school methods to create saddles for today’s working cowboys. And in Bozeman, Shauna White Bear practices the ancient tradition of making moccasins, likely among the first type of shoes worn in North America.
* Making its way to the Pacific Coast, CELEBRATING AMERICA 250 visits Los Angeles, which began to grow rapidly with the arrival of the Southern Pacific Railroad around 1880. José Nonato, a ceramic tile maker who came to the U.S. from Mexico City, is an expert in recreating the look of historic tiles, made by hand and fired in a kiln.
Also in Los Angeles is glass artist Kazuki Takizawa, who works in this challenging art form, where countless hours of painstaking work are concentrated in a tube of glass. In addition to exhibiting his own creations, Takizawa works with a team of professional glassblowers to create custom glass fabrications for clients and businesses.
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Credits: A Symbio Studios Production. The director and executive producer is Patrick Greene. The directors of photography are Thomas Jacobi and Samuel Legrys. The field producer is Meghan Gunerman. The writer is Adam Meyer.
