U.S. History

Near the confluence of the three forks of the Missouri River, the site where the Jefferson, Gallatin, and Madison rivers meet, in Three Forks, Montana.

A Fork in the River

After deliberating for nine days, the captains choose the tortuous southwest branch of the Missouri toward the Great Falls

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Reversing the Clock

Taking care of the nation's treasures requires art, history and even molecular science

The great Lakota chief Red Cloud at 51, in an 1872 portrait by Alexander Gardner

Chief Lobbyist

He made little headway with President Grant, but Red Cloud won over the 19th century's greatest photographers

The members of the Supreme Court including Chief Justice Charles Evans Hughes (center, front row) ruled against President Franklin Delano Roosevelt's New Deal programs.

History of Now

When Franklin Roosevelt Clashed With the Supreme Court—and Lost

Buoyed by his reelection but dismayed by rulings of the justices who stopped his New Deal programs, a president overreaches

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Rocky Mountain High

After a canoe capsizes, the first sight of the mountainous "snowey barrier" lifts the corps' spirits

Roosevelt in 1893, at the age of 11

Digging Deep

For some stories, the roots go way back, even to childhood

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Rising from the Ashes

The eruption of Mount St. Helens 25 years ago this month was no surprise. But the speedy return of wildlife to the area is astonishing

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Hugs and Kisses from the IRS

A kinder, gentler tax form is on the way

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William Clark and the Shaping of the West

Reconstruction of Fort Mandan, Lewis & Clark Expedition

A Formidable Anamal

After a winter of waiting, the corps leaves Fort Mandan and heads warily into bear country

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Just What the Doctor Ordered

During Prohibition, an odd alliance of special interests argued beer was vital medicine

Among items the archaeologists unearthed were a toothbrush (above) and a gaming die . The artifacts now repose in 630 boxes.

Where East Met (Wild) West

Excavations in a legendary gold rush town uncover the unsung labors of Chinese immigrants on the frontier

Costume designer Charmaine Simmons conceived Jerry's foppish garb to be both "uncomfortable" and "unwearable."

The Shirt Off His Back

Jerry Seinfeld's silly, frilly prop takes its place in television history

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February Anniversaries

Momentous or merely memorable

A Fine Boy

With a little help from a rattlesnake's rattle, Sacagawea gives birth to a baby she names Jean Baptiste

James Meredith, center, is escorted by federal marshals on his first day of class at the University of Mississippi.

Down In Mississippi

The shooting of protester James Meredith 38 years ago, searingly documented by a rookie photographer, galvanized the civil rights movement

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Out of the Shadows

African-American architect Julian Abele is finally getting recognition for his contributions to some of 20th-century America's most prestigious buildings

Homesteader Jack Whinery and his family lived in a "soddy"—a dugout home with log walls and sod roof. Electricity came to Pie Town in the 1940s; telephones in the '60s.

Savoring Pie Town

Sixty-five years after Russell Lee photographed New Mexico homesteaders coping with the Depression, a Lee admirer visits the town for a fresh slice of life

After the Bristish occupying army left Boston, Washington issued general orders (above) to his troops to "live in the strictest Peace and Amity with the [city's] inhabitants." He also urged the town fathers to turn over remaining British supplies and identify spies.

Washington Takes Charge

Confronting the British in Boston in 1775, Gen. George Washington honed the qualities that would carry the day in war and sustain the new nation in peace

Lewis and Clark

Dangerous Liaisons

Severe cold and fraternizing with the Mandan keep Meriwether Lewis' doctoring in demand

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