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History

Political activists Abbie Hoffman, left, and Jerry Rubin set five-dollar bills on fire at the Financial Center in New York on August 24, 1967.

How the New York Stock Exchange Gave Abbie Hoffman His Start in Guerrilla Theater

Fifty years ago, the anarchist protester sent traders sprawling for dollar bills—and became a media sensation

The H.L. Hunley, a confederate Civil War era submarine, sits in its water tank at the Hunley Lab in North Charleston, SC.

One Scientist May Have Finally Figured Out the Mystery of Why a Civil War Submarine Sank

A Navy engineer used creative modeling and her knowledge of underwater explosions to tackle the century-old Hunley conundrum

A view of the Nevis volcano on the island of Nevis where Alexander Hamilton was born.

Walk in the Footsteps of Alexander Hamilton on This Tiny Caribbean Island

The island of Nevis was no paradise for young Hamilton

Unionville today: The photographer used a process called intaglio printing to give her pictures an antique appearance.

Secrets of American History

After the Civil War, African-American Veterans Created a Home of Their Own: Unionville

One-hundred-fifty years later, the Maryland town remains a bastion of resilience and a front line in the battle over Confederate monuments

Honiara

Dive With WWII Wrecks in the Solomon Islands

75 years after the Battle of Guadalcanal, walk in the footsteps of history

One of the best-known paintings of the doomed Franklin expedition. Full title: "They forged the last link with their lives: HMS ‘Erebus’ and ‘Terror’, 1849–1850."

A Dentist Weighs in On What Really Doomed the Franklin Expedition

Addison’s disease may have blackened the explorers’ gums and hastened their demise, proposes a history-obsessed dentistry professor

Chick Parsons (center and top) was the toast of prewar Manila, a convivial, polo-playing expat businessman with an eagle tattooed across his chest.

Secrets of American History

Without Chick Parsons, General MacArthur May Never Have Made His Famed Return to the Philippines

The full story of the American ex-pat’s daring feats has not been told—until now

The Homefront During the Vietnam War, As Told By One Captivating Photo

In an indelible picture taken 50 years ago, one family faces a loss in Vietnam

Carefree, reckless, flappers seemed to enjoy living on the edge, like these atop Chicago’s Sherman Hotel.

History of Now

Flappers Took the Country by Storm, But Did They Ever Truly Go Away

Women of the Roaring Twenties had a lot in common with today’s millennials

Stone Mountain Confederate Memorial features General Robert E. Lee, Stonewall Jackson and Jefferson Davis—and has stirred up controversy in Georgia for years.

History of Now

What Will Happen to Stone Mountain, America’s Largest Confederate Memorial?

The Georgia landmark is a testament to the enduring legacy of white supremacy

A look inside the Cabinet Room.

Go Behind the Glass of Churchill’s Underground War Rooms

Exploring the secrets of the storied bunker—from its well-worn maps to a leader under extreme duress

The cornerstone of the edifice was laid by Andrew Jackson in 1836. The third-oldest public building currently standing in Washington, D.C. (behind the White House and Capitol), it was named a National Historic Landmark in 1965.

The Fused History of Two of Washington, D.C.’s Beloved Museums

A new exhibition sheds light on the enduring legacy of the Smithsonian American Art Museum and the National Portrait Gallery

Typical of tiki bar serving ware were these ceramic mugs, now held in the collections of the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History.

There’s More to Classic Tiki Than Just Kitsch

Bartender Martin Cate reveals eight fun facts about the past, present and future of tiki culture

"Our hearts are with the families of the victims—the three who lost their lives, the 35 injured and the millions across the country who are traumatized by this dark chapter in our nation’s history."

Smithsonian’s African American History Museum Releases Statement on Charlottesville and Confederate Memorials

The events, says director Lonnie Bunch, are part of a ‘long legacy of violence intended to intimidate and marginalize African Americans and Jews’

The inaugural issue of Gernsback's Amazing Stories magazine. Young readers—in several cases the sci-fi writers of the future—could expect an exciting blend of adventure and technology in every fresh installment.

Fifty Years Later, Remembering Sci-Fi Pioneer Hugo Gernsback

Looking Back on a Man Who Was Always Looking Forward

The airship Italia

Flying to the North Pole in an Airship Was Easy. Returning Wouldn’t Be So Easy

It would take an international icon to toss aside a bitter rivalry to help a crew in need

New genealogical scholarship reveals more of the history of an enslaved man, named Chance Bradstreet, who once lived in this house in Ipswich, Massachusetts.

Newly Uncovered Documents Address the Mystery of One Slave’s Life

New details surrounding the identity of the enslaved man who once lived in the storied Ipswich house at the American History Museum

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