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History / U.S. History

Capturing America’s Fight for Freedom

Smithsonian experts help the makers of Mel Gibson’s new movie, The Patriot, create scenes and bring the conflict’s many factions into sharper focus

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Our Flag Was Still There

It’s the star-spangled banner; the anthem it inspired plays on as a musical salute to the stars and stripes

George Mason

George Mason: Forgotten Founder, He Conceived the Bill of Rights

This wise Virginian was a friend to four future presidents, yet he refused to sign the Constitution

The Hatfield clan in 1897

A Tale of Fatal Feuds and Futile Forensics

A Smithsonian anthropologist digs for victims of a West Virginia mob murder

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Myles and Me

The author, who according to family legend is a direct descendant of Myles Standish, surveys the checkered career of his pugnacious Pilgrim ancestor

A Noble and Absurd Undertaking

The Federal Writers’ Project gave Depression-era writers a second chance…and America its first comprehensive self-portrait

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Day by Day, In Pursuit of Justice

In Washington County, Vermont, prosecutors face mounting caseloads, looming deadlines —and ongoing drama

Secretary Lawrence M. Small

A Renaissance Man

From finance to feathers, Secretary Lawrence M. Small brings diverse talents to the Smithsonian

Toussaint Louverture

A Mystery in Miniature

An enigmatic button once decorated the uniform of Haitian liberator Toussaint Louverture

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Washington Slept Here

A look at the first president’s “best bed” leads to a recollection of the real man and his exemplary life

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Looking to the Future

Five years of heading the Smithsonian continues a proud legacy, but much remains to be done

Uniform worn by George Washington during the American Revolution.

George Washington Slept Here

A great and good man, but bringing him to life in a debunking age is a hard row to hoe

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Mr. Edison Takes a Holiday

At Seminole Lodge, where the inventor wintered over in Fort Myers, Florida, he kept a second lab going strong

A Darkness in Donora

When smog killed 20 people in a Pennsylvania mill town in 1948, the clean air movement got its start

A Passion for Learning

The opportunity to broaden one’s horizons at the Smithsonian is a job perk to be relished

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