American History

The weapon that shot Abraham Lincoln

The Blood Relics From the Lincoln Assassination

Even now, 150 years later, objects from the murder of the president provide a powerful link to the event

Adulation for Lincoln (a Philadelphia lithographer’s viewpoint, 1865) did not become widespread until years after he was killed.

What the Newspapers Said When Lincoln Was Killed

The initial reaction to the president's death was a wild mixture of grief, exultation, vengefulness and fear

Aerial view of flooded area. Oregon Historical Society, Neg. 67585.

How Oregon's Second Largest City Vanished in a Day

A 1948 flood washed away the WWII housing project Vanport—but its history still informs Portland's diversity

Benjamin Franklin reading letters, which may or may not have been written by his female friends.

The Founding Fathers and the Women, Not Their Wives, Whom They Wrote To

These words today would raise suspicion if written between married men and their female friends

James and Dolley Madison portraits, painted by Gilbert Stuar

The Surprising Raucous Home Life of the Madisons

One of America’s founding families kept their true selves for the friends and family

Monticello, Thomas Jefferson's home

Thomas Jefferson Conducted Early Smallpox Vaccine Trials

When an English doctor discovered a safer kind of immunity, someone had to spread the word to America

"Young people run down a snowy hill with enthusiasm, ca. 1940" in Chicago

Visit 1940s Chicago With a Film Discovered at a Garage Sale

The film, produced in around 1945, offers a thorough, fact-filled tour of the city

David Douglas Duncan, American. Marine Capt. Ike Fenton, Naktong River Permieter, No-Name Ridge, South Korea.

Getting up Close and Personal with American Soldiers

A new photography exhibit takes a multi-decade look

Graphophone, recorded in October 1881. "There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in our philosophy. I am a graphophone and my mother was a phonograph." Voice of Alexander Graham Bell's father.

Until Now, There Was No Play Button for the Recordings Bell and Edison Made in their Lab

An exhibition on sound kicks off the American History Museum's Year of Innovation, enabling visitors to hear some of the earliest recordings

How to Mind Your Manners at Silent Movies

Vintage slides give an etiquette lesson to obnoxious silent movie audiences

George Washington by Charles Willson Peale

The First State of the Union Address: Way Shorter, Way Less Clapping

In his First Annual Message to Congress, George Washington outlined the country’s most pressing issues and kicked off a flexible annual tradition

Cyrus Gates House, in Broome County, New York, was once an important stop along the Underground Railroad.

The Little-Known History of the Underground Railroad in New York

Pultizer-Prize winning historian Eric Foner uncovers the hidden story behind this passage to freedom

Read Through Early Drafts of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s Speeches

One website gives you a peek into the mind of one of America’s most powerful orators

Captain Loebl of the US Coast Guard, Sector New York cuts the birthday cake for Alexander Hamilton at the Museum of American Finance

Crashing Alexander Hamilton's Birthday Weekend

Each year, admirers of the oft-neglected Founding Father gather for a multi-day birthday celebration ranging across Manhattan.

United States Internal Revenue Service "bottle stamp"

Museums Are Now Able to Digitize Thousands of Artifacts in Just Hours

At the American History Museum, a collection of rarely seen historic currency proofs are being made ready for a public debut

The Montanas arrested under the state's sedition law.

The Year Montana Rounded Up Citizens for Shooting Off Their Mouths

During World War I, the powers that ran Montana sought any excuse to silence dissent

Cattle graze on the open range in this shot from ca. 1920-1930.

The 1887 Blizzard That Changed the American Frontier Forever

A blizzard hit the western open range, causing the “Great Die Up” and transforming America’s agricultural history

European immigrants arrive in America.

Ellis Island Isn’t to Blame for Your Family’s Name Change

A long-standing myth obscures the truth behind the Americanization of some European names

A newspaper was the first item found upon opening the capsule.

What Was Found Inside the Oldest American Time Capsule

Historians in Boston have just cracked open a brass box originally buried in 1795 by Paul Revere and Samuel Adams

Marilyn Monroe playing on the beach

Model Your New Year’s Resolutions After Marilyn Monroe’s in 1955

The actress wrote that she wanted to "keep looking around me — only much more so"

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