History

A Treasury of Archives

Though seldom seen by the public, the Smithsonian's vast repositories are vital to the institution

July 1997

Women and Flight

July 1997

Around the Mall & Beyond

Kites aren't just for kids. Ben Franklin knew it, as did the 20,000 kiters and kite fans at this year's 31st annual Smithsonian kite festival

June 1997

Smithsonian Perspectives

Through object-based education and other programs, the Smithsonian reaches out to teachers and students

June 1997

All the Presidents' Pooches

June 1997

The Maginot Line

It is known as a great military blunder, but in fact this stout network of ingenious bunkers did what it was designed to do

May 31, 1997

Near and Far, We're Waving the Banner for Flags

Across time and distance, these colorful emblems fluttering in the breeze are symbols steeped in our history and our cultures

May 31, 1997

Smithsonian Perspectives

A patriarch of flight, Paul Garber devoted his Smithsonian career to the preservation of historic aircraft

May 1997

Even Our Most Loved Monuments Had a Trial by Fire

Controversies like those swirling around the FDR Memorial are the rule when Americans try to agree on anything to be cast in bronze

April 30, 1997

Declaring an Open Season on the Wisdom of the Ages

Under the stewardship of scholars Diderot and d'Alembert, the 18th-century's Encyclopédie championed fact and freedom of the intellect

April 30, 1997

If You've Always Been a Hacker, Why Would You Want to Be Like Mike?

April 1997

Sieur de La Salle's fateful landfall

After 300 years, the wreck of a beautiful French ship in Texas yields clues and treasure from a bold explorer's last voyage

April 1997

Bang! Went the Doors of Every Bank in America

Cashless, we carried on with nothing to fear but fear itself; by the time FDR opened them again, something called the New Deal was hard upon us

April 1997

The Object at Hand

A bejeweled box from a sorely beset emperor leads to a Yankee dentist, and how he rescued the beautiful empress Eugénie from a Paris mob

March 1997

A Family, a Colony, a Life of Good Works in the Holy City

Founded more than a century ago, the American Colony in Jerusalem has endured hardships, wars, upheaval, and the ebb and flow of empires

March 1, 1997

A Stout Ship's Heartbreaking Ordeal by Ice

Heading north for the pole, the Jeannette was frozen fast for 21 months, then sank; for captain and crew, that was the easy part

March 1, 1997

The Grave at Vukovar

A war crimes tribunal sent forensic scientists to investigate mass graves in the former Yugoslavia. What happened there?

March 1, 1997

Smithsonian Perspectives

As financial demands soar, the Institution seeks corporate dollars while safeguarding its integrity

February 1997

Vintage Radios By the Score

Tucked into an Elgin, Illinois, office building, Ralph Muchow's Historical Radio Museum houses the world's foremost antique collection

February 1, 1997

Cleopatra: What Kind of a Woman Was She, Anyway?

Serpent of the Nile? Learned ruler? Sex Kitten? Ambitious mom? African queen? History is still toying with the poor lady's reputation

February 1997