Leaders
Historical and modern luminaries in business, politics, the military and exploration
Mona Eltahawy on Egypt’s Next Revolution
The Egyptian-American activist speaks out on the dangers women still face in a changing Mideast
May 2013 |
By Ron Rosenbaum
How the Ford Motor Company Won a Battle and Lost Ground
Corporate violence against union organizers might have gone unrecorded—if it not for an enterprising news photographer
April 30, 2013 |
By Gilbert King
The Business of American Business Is Education
From corporate donations to workplace restrictions, what’s taught in the classroom has always been influenced by American industry
April 15, 2013 |
By Dana Goldstein
When New York City Tamed the Feared Gunslinger Bat Masterson
The lawman had a reputation to protect—but that reputation shifted after he moved East
April 03, 2013 |
By Gilbert King
The Most Audacious Australian Prison Break of 1876
An American whaling ship brought together an oddball crew with a dangerous mission: freeing six Irishmen from a jail in western Australia
March 12, 2013 |
By Gilbert King
The Dead Woman Who Brought Down the Mayor
Vivian Gordon was a reputed prostitute and blackmailer—but her murder led to the downfall of New York Mayor Jimmy Walker
February 25, 2013 |
By Rachel Shteir
Eleanor Roosevelt and the Soviet Sniper
Lyudmila Pavlichenko was a Soviet sniper credited with 309 kills—and an advocate for women's rights. On a U.S. tour in 1942, she found a friend in the first lady.
February 21, 2013 |
By Gilbert King
Harry Truman’s Adorable Love “List” to His Wife, Bess
As a celebration of 38 years of marriage, the former president shared his memories, both fond and bittersweet, from each anniversary
February 12, 2013 |
By Megan Gambino
The Battle Over Richard III’s Bones…And His Reputation
Rival towns are vying for the king’s remains and his legacy now that his skeleton has been found 500 years after his death
February 08, 2013 |
By Linda Rodriguez McRobbie
The Unsuccessful Plot to Kill Abraham Lincoln
On the eve of his first inauguration, President Lincoln snuck into Washington in the middle of the night, evading the would-be assassins who waited for him in Baltimore
February 2013 |
By Daniel Stashower
War and Peace of Mind for Ulysses S. Grant
With the help of his friend Mark Twain, Grant finished his memoirs—and saved his wife from an impoverished widowhood—just days before he died
January 16, 2013 |
By Gilbert King
Document Deep Dive: The Menu From President Lincoln’s Second Inaugural Ball
What delicacies and confectionaries were found on the 250-foot-long buffet table?
January 15, 2013 |
By Megan Gambino
The Candor and Lies of Nazi Officer Albert Speer
The minister of armaments was happy to tell his captors about the war machine he had built. But it was a different story when he was asked about the Holocaust
January 08, 2013 |
By Gilbert King
The History of the Teddy Bear: From Wet and Angry to Soft and Cuddly
After Teddy Roosevelt's act of sportsmanship in 1902 was made legendary by a political cartoonist, his name was forever affixed to an American classic
December 21, 2012 |
By Gilbert King
Document Deep Dive: Emancipation Proclamation
When freeing the slaves 150 years ago, Abraham Lincoln traded in his famous lyricism for a dry, legal tone. Harold Holzer explains why
December 19, 2012 |
By Megan Gambino
How the Emancipation Proclamation Came to Be Signed
The pen, inkwell and one copy of the document that freed the slaves are photographed together for the first time
December 2012 |
By Louis P. Masur
White Gold: How Salt Made and Unmade the Turks and Caicos Islands
Turks and Caicos had one of the world's first, and largest, salt industries—which led, indirectly, to their becoming the only tropical jurisdiction to have a pair of igloos on their flag.
December 14, 2012 |
By Mike Dash
The Day Henry Clay Refused to Compromise
The Great Pacificator was adept at getting congressmen to reach agreements over slavery. But he was less accommodating when one of his own slaves sued him
December 06, 2012 |
By Gilbert King
The Kennedy Assassin Who Failed
Richard Paul Pavlick’s plan wasn’t very complicated, but it took an eagle-eyed postal worker to prevent a tragedy
December 06, 2012 |
By Dan Lewis
