World History
What Paul Robeson Said
After the singer and activist spoke at a Soviet-sponsored peace conference, he was reviled in the United States. But was the most widely reported version of his remarks accurate?
September 13, 2011 |
By Gilbert King
Events Sept 12-15: The Star-Spangled Banner, The Chawaytiri of Peru, Smith Art Lecture, and Airmen of Note
See American history come alive, listen to lectures by distinguished speakers, and enjoy the sounds of one of the country's top jazz bands
September 12, 2011 |
By Joseph Stromberg
Weekend Events Sept 9-11: Remembering 9/11, Oral Traditions, and Jazz Competition
Friday, September 9 Remembering 9/11 View the documentary, 9/11: Stories in Fragments, featuring interviews with victims, witnesses and ordinary people from New York, the Pentagon, and Shanksville, Pennsylvania. The Smithsonian Channel production also focuses on the Smithsonian Institution’s collection of September 11th objects and the stories each artifact reflects, as told by museum curators and [...]
September 08, 2011 |
By Joseph Stromberg
Pablo Fanque’s Fair
The showman whom John Lennon immortalized in song was a real performer—a master horseman and Britain's first black circus owner
September 08, 2011 |
By Mike Dash
Remembering 9/11 at the American History Museum
Visitors from across the country have made a pilgrimage to the Smithsonian to see an exhibit about the fateful day 10 years ago
September 08, 2011 |
By Joseph Stromberg
The Life and Crimes of “Old Mother” Mandelbaum
She had the eyes of a sparrow, the neck of a bear and enough business acumen to build an empire as the "Queen of Fences."
September 06, 2011 |
By Karen Abbott
Q and A with Nick Stanhope, Creator of Historypin
By merging old photographs with new mapping technology, this site fuses new connections between the generations
August 31, 2011 |
By Megan Gambino
Events August 29-September 1: Zoo Cuisine, “For All the World To See,” Let’s Eat!, Apache 8
This week, see feeding time for exotic animals, get a guided tour of the Civil Rights movement and more..
August 29, 2011 |
By Joseph Stromberg
“Mrs. Sherlock Holmes” Takes on the NYPD
When an 18-year-old girl went missing, the police seemed content to let the case grow cold. But Grace Humiston, a soft-spoken private investigator, wouldn't let it lie
August 23, 2011 |
By Karen Abbott
Events August 22-25: Addy’s World, Draw & Discover, Child of the Civil Rights Movement and More
Take a unique tour through American history, create your own art, listen to an author speak about civil rights, and enjoy a nighttime tour of an exhibition soon to close
August 22, 2011 |
By Joseph Stromberg
One Man Against Tyranny
A lone German carpenter displays astounding determination, skill and ingenuity—and comes within 8 minutes of assassinating Adolf Hitler at the outset of World War II. So why is Georg Elser's name so nearly forgotten?
August 18, 2011 |
By Mike Dash
B.F. Skinner’s Pigeon-Guided Rocket
On this date 21 years ago, noted psychologist and inventor B.F. Skinner died; the American History Museum is home to one of his more unusual inventions
August 18, 2011 |
By Joseph Stromberg
How Babe Ruth Changed Baseball
During his storied career, he set dozens of records, altered the fortunes of a number of teams and developed a new style of play that would lead baseball into a golden era
August 16, 2011 |
By Joseph Stromberg
The Body on Somerton Beach
Name: unknown. Cause of death: unknown. Occupation: unknown. Possessions: a scrap of paper with two words in Persian, torn from a rare first edition book. Welcome to the world's most perplexing cold case.
August 12, 2011 |
By Mike Dash
One Funny Lady, or, How I Was Killed by Phyllis Diller
Phyllis Diller's "Gag File"—a file cabinet full of her jokes—goes on display at the National Museum of American History today
August 12, 2011 |
By Smithsonian Staff
Burr, Ogden and Dayton: The Original Jersey Boys
Known as much for their troubles as their successes, these childhood friends left their mark on early American history
August 12, 2011 |
By David O. Stewart
If There’s a Man Among Ye: The Tale of Pirate Queens Anne Bonny and Mary Read
Renowned for their ruthlessness, these two female pirates challenged the sailors’ adage that a woman’s presence on shipboard invites bad luck
August 09, 2011 |
By Karen Abbott
Where Nixon’s Troubles Began
On this day in 1974, President Nixon resigned from his office. Find out how it all started with a file cabinet
August 08, 2011 |
By Joseph Stromberg
Events August 8-11: Student Sit-ins, When Volcanoes Erupt and John Wayne in the Philippines
This week: experience the Greensboro lunch counter sit-ins, get a lesson on volcano scholarship and attend an evening "Mingle at the Museum" event on the topic of race
August 08, 2011 |
By Joseph Stromberg
The “Spirit of Tuskegee” Stearman Lands in DC
After a month-long trip from California to Washington, D.C., a biplane once used to train Tuskegee Airmen arrives at the Smithsonian
August 05, 2011 |
By Megan Gambino
