Leaders
Historical and modern luminaries in business, politics, the military and exploration
Madeleine Albright on Her Life in Pins
The former Secretary of State reflects on her famous collection of brooches and pins, now the subject of an exhibition
June 2010 |
By Megan Gambino
Lincoln's Missing Bodyguard
What happened to Officer John Parker, the man who chose the wrong night to leave his post at Ford's Theater?
April 08, 2010 |
By Paul Martin
Michelle Obama's Dress Comes to the Smithsonian
The white chiffon dress that Michelle Obama wore to 10 inaugural balls will go on view at the Smithsonian National Museum of American History
March 05, 2010 |
By Beth Py-Lieberman
How Dolley Madison Saved the Day
As invading British troops approached in August 1814, the first lady coolly took command of the White House
March 2010 |
By Thomas Fleming
Abraham Lincoln, True Crime Writer
While practicing law in Illinois, Abraham Lincoln defended a man in a highly unusual case and later recounted the mystery as a short story
February 10, 2010 |
By Laura Helmuth
Myths of the American Revolution
A noted historian debunks the conventional wisdom about America's War of Independence
January 2010 |
By John Ferling
The Waldseemüller Map: Charting the New World
Two obscure 16th-century German scholars named the American continent and changed the way people thought about the world
December 2009 |
By Toby Lester
The Rescue of Henry Clay
A long-lost painting of the Senate's Great Compromiser finds a fitting new home in the halls of the U.S. Capitol
November 2009 |
By Fergus M. Bordewich
How Arlington National Cemetery Came to Be
The fight over Robert E. Lee's beloved home—seized by the U.S. government during the Civil War—went on for decades
November 2009 |
By Robert M. Poole
Meriwether Lewis' Mysterious Death
Two hundred years later, debate continues over whether the famous explorer committed suicide or was murdered
October 09, 2009 |
By Abigail Tucker
John Brown's Day of Reckoning
The abolitionist's bloody raid on a federal arsenal at Harpers Ferry 150 years ago set the stage for the Civil War
October 2009 |
By Fergus M. Bordewich
Columbus' Confusion About the New World
The European discovery of America opened possibilities for those with eyes to see. But Columbus was not one of them
October 2009 |
By Edmund S. Morgan
The Legacy of America’s Largest Forest Fire
A 1910 wildfire that raged across three Western states helped advance the nation’s conservation efforts
September 17, 2009 |
By Timothy Egan
Dancing Around Abraham Lincoln
Bill T. Jones, one of America’s foremost living choreographers, tackles Lincoln’s complicated legacy in his newest work
September 11, 2009 |
By Rebecca Milzoff
Q and A: Astronaut Buzz Aldrin on the Moon
Buzz Aldrin, the second man to walk on the moon, reflects on the Apollo 11 mission
August 2009 |
By Joseph Caputo
On the Hunt for Jefferson's Lost Books
A Library of Congress curator is on a worldwide mission to find exact copies of the books that belonged to Thomas Jefferson
August 11, 2009 |
By Ashley Luthern
Ben Franklin: Patriot, Foodie
American patriot Benjamin Franklin was a fan of food and helped France change their opinion on potatoes
July 02, 2009 |
By Smithsonian.com
Revisiting the First Ladies’ Homes
The oft-overlooked lives of America's first ladies are on display in house museums across the country
June 30, 2009 |
By Robin T. Reid
For General Patton's Family, Recovered Ground
Famed World War II Gen. George S. Patton's grandson finds his calling in the ashes of his fathers journals
June 2009 |
By Benjamin W. Patton
