Abraham Lincoln

Now behind fences erected by the police, the Emancipation Memorial in Washington, D.C.'s Lincoln Park has been criticized ever since its dedication.

What Frederick Douglass Had to Say About Monuments

In a newly discovered letter, the famed abolitionist wrote that ‘no one monument could be made to tell the whole truth'

Written in ornate cursive by a general’s aide and signed by Maj. F.W. Emery on behalf of Granger, “General Orders No. 3” had long been hidden in a book of formal orders housed at the archives.

National Archives Locates Handwritten Juneteenth Order

On June 19, 1865, the decree informed the people of Texas that enslaved individuals were now free

Simon G. Elliott's Antietam battlefield map was one of about 3,000 antique maps digitized by the New York Public Library between 2015 and 2018.

Forgotten Antietam Battlefield Map Shows Locations of Thousands of Graves

The Union and Confederate soldiers buried at the site of the 1862 clash were later moved to nearby cemeteries

Over 800 corten-steel monuments, one for each county in the United States where a racial terror lynching took place, on display at the National Memorial For Peace And Justice

Nearly 2,000 Black Americans Were Lynched During Reconstruction

A new report brings the number of victims of racial terror killings between 1865 and 1950 to almost 6,500

The U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C.

Explore Washington, D.C. From Home With This Free, Smithsonian Scholar-Led Tour

Narrated by Smithsonian Distinguished Scholar Richard Kurin, the 24-part video series blends history with modern mainstays

3-D model of Head of Amenhotep III on Sketchfab

You Can Now Download 1,700 Free 3-D Cultural Heritage Models

A new Sketchfab collection brings models of fossils, artwork and more into the public domain

The hand-tooled leather cover

A Bible Owned by Lincoln, Unknown to Historians for 150 Years, Goes on Display

The relic offers a new opportunity to reflect on Lincoln’s religious beliefs

Walt Whitman in 1869, as photographed by William Kurtz

Rare Walt Whitman Artifacts Go on View at Library of Congress for Poet's 200th Birthday

The library holds the world’s largest collection of Whitman-related items

The years when the teenage Lincoln was an accomplished prankster are retold in an old Smithsonian radio broadcast.

When Abraham Lincoln Played Prankster-in-Chief

Old is new again, as Smithsonian’s Sidedoor podcast revisits a radio drama from 1938

"The Young Lincoln" James Lee Hansen

‘Hot Lincoln’ Stands in Long Line of Attractive Presidential Sculpture

Before hot Lincoln, there was ripped Washington, nude Napoleon and muscular ancient Greek sculptures

This 1860 portrait of Abraham Lincoln, believed to be by John C. Wolfe, depicts the young presidential nominee without his signature beard

More Than 700 Lincoln Collectibles Are Set to Go on Auction

Historian Harold Holzer amassed his extraordinary collection of lithographs, prints and assorted Lincolniana over the course of half a century

Stovepipe hat believed to have belonged to Abraham Lincoln, along with the bloodstained gloves he carried on the night of his assassination.

The Lincoln Presidential Library Foundation May Have to Auction Off Precious Artifacts

A bloodstained pair of gloves, which the president wore on the night of his assassination, is among the relics that could be sold to pay off a hefty loan

What's the Difference Between Moths and Butterflies and More Questions From Our Readers

You asked, we answered

How One Amateur Historian Brought Us the Stories of African-Americans Who Knew Abraham Lincoln

Once John E. Washington started to dig, he found an incredible wealth of untapped knowledge about the 16th president

President Lincoln depicted on a Christmas card from the 1920s. Christmas wasn't as important of a holiday in Lincoln's time, but his personal Christmas story is worth telling.

President Lincoln’s Last Christmas

The character of American Christmas changed as a result of the Civil War

A vintage Thanksgiving postcard featuring pardoned turkeys.

Presidents From Lincoln to FDR Kept the Thanksgiving Tradition Going

Lincoln started the process of making it a federal holiday in 1863, crystallizing something that had been around since the days of the Pilgrims

This illustration from the November 30 issue of Harper's Weekly depicts the two Confederate commissioners being brought aboard the San Jacinto after being removed from the RMS Trent.

A Union Captain Nearly Dragged the British Into the Civil War In 1861

As if the country didn't have enough to worry about

An illustrated depiction of a scene of Lincoln lying in state

When You Die, You'll Probably Be Embalmed. Thank Abraham Lincoln For That

The president was an "early adopter" of embalming technology, helping to bring the modern death industry to the mainstream

George Saunders poses with his book Lincoln in the Bardo, which won the 2017 Man Booker Prize for Fiction.

Five Things to Know About 2017 Man Booker Prize Winner George Saunders

He becomes the second America to win for his book "Lincoln in the Bardo," an experimental ghost story that explores the grief of the 16th president

Despite the best efforts of many investigators, no one was able to solve the riddle of exactly how Mumler created his apparitions.

Meet Mr. Mumler, the Man Who “Captured” Lincoln’s Ghost on Camera

When America’s first aerial cameraman met an infamous spirit photographer, the chemistry was explosive

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