U.S. History

Congress wanted safe passage for white settlers on the Oregon Trail.

Carving Out the West at the Great Smoke Conference

In 1851, American Indian tribes gathered to seek protection of their western lands from frontiersman on the Oregon Trail

"That cigar bit [that] folks like to tell about is phony," said W.D. Jones, whose photograph of Bonnie was seized in a police raid.

The Irresistible Bonnie Parker

A pistol-wielding, cigar-chomping bank robber hams it up shortly before she and Clyde Barrow met their violent end

Lincoln's watch is a fine gold timepiece that the 16th president purchased in the 1850s from a Springfield, Illinois jeweler. It has been in the safe custody of the Smithsonian Institution since 1958—a gift from Lincoln's great-grandson Lincoln Isham.

The Civil War

Lincoln's Pocket Watch Reveals Long-Hidden Message

The Smithsonian opens one of its prized artifacts and a story unfolds

After a mob attacked a bus with protesters in Alabama in 1961, hundreds more joined the cause.

The Freedom Riders, Then and Now

Fighting racial segregation in the South, these activists were beaten and arrested. Where are they now, nearly fifty years later?

The Lincoln Memorial, Washington, D.C.

The Assassination of Abraham Lincoln

Lincoln's Contested Legacy

Great Emancipator or unreconstructed racist? Each generation evokes a different Lincoln. But who was our sixteenth president?

Charles Darwin

Evolution and Equality

What do Charles Darwin, Abraham Lincoln, and the Freedom Riders have in common with each other?

As First Dog, Laddie Boy was worthy of an official portrait.

The White House’s First Celebrity Dog

Bo, the Obama’s First Pooch, has a legacy to live up to in Laddie Boy, the family pet of President Harding

Abraham Lincoln and Charles Darwin are two of the greatest modern thinkers in history. What did they think of each other?

Darwin on Lincoln and Vice Versa

Two of the world’s greatest modern thinkers are much celebrated, but what did they know of one another?

Six Indian chiefs passing in review before President Roosevelt during his 1905 Inaugural parade. Left to right: Buckskin Charlie (Ute), American Horse (Oglala Sioux), Quanah Parker (Comanche), Geronimo (Chiricahua Apache) and Hollow Horn Bear (Brule Sioux).

Inauguration History

Indians on the Inaugural March

At the invitation of Theodore Roosevelt, six Indian chiefs marched in his inaugural parade as representatives of their tribes

Over the past three years, tourists have pulled more than 1,000 precious stones from the ground at Crater of Diamonds State Park in Arkansas.

The Curious Case of the Arkansas Diamonds

In a state park full of amateur diamond miners, one prospector dug up a valuable stone worth thousands of dollars—or did he?

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Inauguration History

Behind Inaugural Speeches, Meaningful Words

What words do presidents focus on most in their inaugural addresses? Explore speeches, from Washington to Obama

David Frost (Michael Sheen) interviews Richard Nixon (Frank Langella) in "Frost/Nixon."

Frost, Nixon and Me

Author James Reston Jr. discovers firsthand what is gained and lost when history is turned into entertainment

Inauguration History

From Washington to Biden, Inauguration History

Every four years, D.C. celebrates the presidential inauguration

Inauguration of President Kennedy on the East Portico of the U.S. Capitol.

Inauguration History

Inaugural Firsts

When was the first inaugural parade? Who had the longest inaugural address? A look at presidential inaugurations through time

One of the highlights of Emancipation Hall is a skylight view of the Capitol Dome, from below the East steps of the building.

Inside the Capitol Visitors Center

After years of delays and millions of dollars spent, the brand-new Capitol Visitors Center opens in December

Mary's marriage to Cord Meyer would reflect Washington's gender dramas.

44 Years Later, a Washington, D.C. Death Unresolved

Mary Pinchot Meyer's death remains a mystery. But it's her life that holds more interest now

As James Chaney's family awaited the drive to his burial, 12-year-old Ben gazed outward. "There were a dozen questions in that look," says photographer Bill Eppridge.

The Lasting Impact of a Civil Rights Icon's Murder

One of three civil rights workers murdered in Mississippi in 1964 was James Chaney. His younger brother would never be the same

This 1852 lithograph depicts extensions to Thornton's House and Senate Wings; the additions, authorized in 1851, were not yet constructed.

A Capitol Vision From a Self-Taught Architect

In 1792, William Thornton designed America's defining monument, where a new visitor center opens in December

Puritan leader John Winthrop arrives in the Massachusetts Bay Colony.

Sarah Vowell on the Puritans' Legacy

The author and 'This American Life' correspondent talks about her book on the colonies' early religious leaders

Author of "Banner Days," Robert Poole.

Robert Poole on "Banner Days"

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