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History / U.S. History

Graves of unidentified soldiers who died at the Battle of Camden

DNA Reveals the Identity of a Teenager Who Died in the Revolutionary War, Cracking a Nearly 250-Year-Old Cold Case

John Pumphrey was still a boy when he enlisted in the Continental Army in 1777. After archaeologists discovered his remains, a genetic genealogy analysis identified 20,000 DNA matches for living relatives

Individuals and objects associated with Irish contributions to the American Revolution (clockwise from top left): Surgeon and statesman James McHenry, Quaker spy Lydia Barrington Darragh, Commodore John Barry, a letter written by Irish-born printer John Dunlap, Continental Army officer Stephen Moylan, Pennsylvania politician James Smith, Delaware politician Thomas McKean, and Charles Thomson's proposal for the Great Seal

America's 250th Anniversary

How Tens of Thousands of Irish Immigrants Led the Patriots to Victory During the American Revolution

Soldiers of Irish heritage accounted for up to 50 percent of the Continental Army’s ranks. Driven from their homeland by British oppression, Irish-born rebels also served as spies, politicians and more

A 1916 photo of Frances Kellor

During World War I, This Woman Asked Americans to Welcome Immigrants—and Urged New Arrivals to Assimilate

Progressive reformer Frances Kellor spearheaded efforts to celebrate Americanization Day, arguing that immigrants should fully embrace U.S. culture to better adapt to life in their new home

A circa 1846 photo of the Patent Office Building

This Building Hosted Lincoln’s Inaugural Ball and Displayed the Declaration of Independence. Today, It’s Home to Two World-Class Art Museums

The Old Patent Office Building now houses the Smithsonian American Art Museum and the National Portrait Gallery. A new exhibition spotlights the structure’s rich history of encouraging innovation

An early 20th-century depiction of the Battle of Little Bighorn

A Century and a Half After Custer’s Last Stand, the Battle of Little Bighorn Continues to Mystify

The June 1876 firefight resulted in the deaths of George Armstrong Custer and 267 of his men. Historians continue to debate exactly how the Lakota Sioux and the Northern Cheyenne secured their victory over the U.S. Army

Around two million graduating high school students in the United States—more than half—take the SAT each year.

100 Years Ago, Students Across the U.S. Took the First SAT. Today, Relatively Few Colleges Require the Test. Where Is It Headed?

The standardized exam has evolved over the past century, all in the name of testing for college readiness. Now, it has become a symbol of the American higher education system

A painting of the Hannah, a Continental schooner that captured a British vessel in September 1775

America's 250th Anniversary

How Angry, Out-of-Work Fishermen Saved the Patriots During the American Revolution

The British punished rebellious New Englanders by depriving them of their livelihood. This led unemployed mariners to enlist in the patriot cause

With a full-size basketball court, and conspicuously without any presidential paper documents, the center, in many ways, is a departure from presidential institutions that came before.

Here’s How the Obama Presidential Center Is Different From Other Presidents’ Museums

More than a library and archives, the new Chicago institution is a place for the community to gather, talk and play together

After moving 1,093 miles, the Jackson home sits in Greenfield Village, where visitors can tour it beginning this weekend.

The Events That Took Place in This Selma, Alabama, Home Were Key to the Civil Rights Movement, and You Can Now Visit It

The Jackson family opened their home to civil rights leaders planning the Selma-to-Montgomery march, which led to the passage of the 1965 Voting Rights Act. The entire house was recently moved to Greenfield Village at The Henry Ford, in Dearborn, Michigan

American journalist, lecturer and political philosopher Lincoln Steffens (1866-1936), in Union Square, New York City, April 1914.

When a Journalist Took on Corruption, He Used a Tool That Hadn’t Been Used Much in American History: the Unvarnished Truth

Lincoln Steffens was a reporter so dogged that political party bosses called him a “born crook that’s gone straight.” He and his fellow muckrakers redefined modern journalism

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America at 250: The Revolutionary Spark

After the Concept of Peaceful Disobedience Was Established in America, It Traveled Around the World Before Taking Hold

“Force may subdue, but love gains”: The Quaker practice of conscientious objection evolved through Thoreau, Tolstoy and Gandhi before becoming the hallmark of the Civil Rights movement

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America at 250: The Revolutionary Spark

One of the Quietest Leaders in the Civil Rights Movement, Ella Baker Led by Encouraging Everyone to Get Involved

Baker’s work was instrumental in the success of the NAACP and other organizations, but she did it in a way that didn’t put herself in the spotlight. That was by design

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America at 250: The Revolutionary Spark

Woodrow Wilson’s Legacy Is Loaded With Good and Bad, but His Work to Even the Economic Playing Field Is Often Overlooked

He won the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts in ending WWI and strove to improve the plight of American workers. Today, his blind spots shroud most of his accomplishments

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America at 250: The Revolutionary Spark

Some Presidents Offer More Than Just Policy. Here Are Five Who Brought Their Innovative Spirit to the Office

One president invented campaign buttons so he could just stay home during election season. Another one rallied Americans to go to the moon. And one—only one—holds a patent.

Theodore Roosevelt greeting supporters shortly before the assassination attempt in October 1912

Theodore Roosevelt Survived an Assassination Attempt Because a Speech Tucked Inside His Pocket Slowed the Bullet. He Insisted on Delivering His Remarks Anyway

“I am very much uninterested in whether I am shot or not,” he told an audience in Milwaukee. Newly discovered documents shed light on how the 26th president wanted the incident to shape his legacy

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America at 250: The Revolutionary Spark

At a Pivotal Moment of the Civil War, Frederick Douglass Delivered a Speech That Reframed What Was at Stake if Slavery Stood

In “The Mission of the War,” America’s incomparable orator helped turn public sentiment in favor of the Union and Abraham Lincoln, beginning the process of “national regeneration”

The author and abolitionist, surrounded by silhouette renderings of vignettes from her vivid, world-changing novel.

America at 250: The Revolutionary Spark

Harriet Beecher Stowe Wrote a Work of Fiction That Seemed So Real That It Changed the History of the Country

To fight against slavery, the author collected true stories then picked up a pen and distilled them into “Uncle Tom’s Cabin”

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America at 250: The Revolutionary Spark

Among All the Great Things Benjamin Franklin Invented or Discovered, His Alter Egos Gave Him the Most Freedom

Silence Dogood. Richard Saunders. Benevolus. Sidi Mehemet Ibrahim. All were pen names that allowed Franklin to say things he couldn’t have otherwise said

Carrie Chapman Catt stands with flags of 22 nations in 1917.

America at 250: The Revolutionary Spark

A Woman’s Right to Vote Was Secured After Work That Was Inspired by Mothers and Driven by Maternal Instincts

In a poignant pattern, many of the most important contributions to suffrage were enacted—or inspired—by mothers

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America at 250: The Revolutionary Spark

When George Washington Decided It Was Time to Leave Office, He Inadvertently Set a Lasting Precedent

While history recorded his refusal to seek a third term as a legendary act of statesmanship, the opinions of the day were actually quite mixed on the issue

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