National Museum of American History

Visitors look at the Star Spangled Banner. It is dimly lit in its gallery at the museum.

What's Happening in May 2025 at the National Museum of American History

New on exhibit, music and more!

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Museum Happenings This April: Jazz Appreciation Month, Events & More

This April, at the National Museum of American History, we’re celebrating Jazz Appreciation Month! Check out the calendar to learn more!

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When Algorithms Take the Field

A Look Inside MLB’s Robo-Umping Experiment

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Eggs, Luck and the 1957 Bird Flu: Will History Repeat Itself?

A past pandemic was narrowly avoided—can the U.S. dodge another as a new strain spreads?

The interior of the Forensic Science on Trial exhibition. Several large cases with objects and text panels are visible.

Going Behind the Scenes With 'Forensic Science on Trial'

This year, the museum opened "Forensic Science on Trial," a temporary exhibition that explores how people influence the way forensic science is used in the pursuit of justice. The exhibition’s curator, Kristen Frederick-Frost, recently gave us a behind-the-scenes look into its creation. The transcript below is an edited version of our interview, led by Jordan Grant

Entertainment Nation

Mark Your Calendar: Black History Month, Exhibits, Jazz and More at the National Museum of American History

This February at the museum, we're celebrating a new season of the podcast, commemorating Black History Month, and listening to some jazz. Check out the calendar to find out what's going on this month!

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A Brief History of Presidential Inaugural Speeches

From George Washington to Today, a Look at the Precedent for the Inaugural Address

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Jimmy Carter Transformed More Than the Presidency

Former President Carter died Sunday at age 100 in his Plains, Georgia, home

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Last Chance To See Some Pop Culture Favorites including Kermit the Frog

Here's what is happening in January 2025 at the National Museum of American History

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What's Happening at the National Museum of American History in December

Exhibits, Programs, Music and More!

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What's Happening in November: Events for Native American Heritage Month and More!

Here's what's happening this month at the National Museum of American History

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How a Newspaper Revolution Sparked Protesters and Influencers: Disinformation and the Civil War

How the most divided period in the history of U.S. democracy – the mid-1800s – coincided with a sudden boom in new communications technologies, confrontational political influencers, widespread disinformation, and nasty fights over free speech. This media landscape helped bring about the Civil War.

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Bernice Johnson Reagon's Lessons for Living

Bernice Johnson Reagon’s life offers us lessons to navigate an unjust world and work toward change. From her role as a Civil Rights activist to her transformative curatorial position at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History, Reagon demonstrated how songs and musical traditions, particularly those of the oppressed and marginalized, can transform the world.

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What's Happening in October: Food History Weekend and More!

Here's what's happening this month at the National Museum of American History

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To American Revolutionaries, Patriotism Meant Fair Dealing With One Another

When modern Americans call themselves patriots, they are evoking a sentiment that is 250 years old.

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Smithsonian Artifacts Reveal the Historical Significance of Presidential Debates

Bobbleheads, Magic 8 Balls, chairs and other artifacts in the Smithsonian reveal the historical significance of presidential debates.

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The 2024 Political Conventions Find a Home in the Smithsonian Collections

The cheering, clapping and speechifying are over. Historians from the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History have returned after their trips to the 2024 political party conventions to collect materials – from balloons to banners to blinking wristbands – at each of them.

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What's Happening in September: Events, Exhibits and More!

Here’s what’s happening this month at the National Museum of American History

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Smithsonian Curator's Encounters at the Democratic National Convention

At the 2024 Democratic National Convention alongside politicians and delegates from across the country are political history curators from the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History, who are collecting what museum curators call “ephemera” – items that people wear, carry, hand out, display or otherwise use during the convention.

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