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History / U.S. History

Abraham Lincoln by Mathew B. Brady, Feb. 27, 1860

How One Mathew Brady Photograph May Have Helped Elect Abraham Lincoln

Before chronicling the Civil War, the nation’s first photojournalist took these portraits

Elizabeth Streb’s troupe is part of a new wave of circus performers. “The drama is in danger,” says Streb. “I’m trying to make people wonder, What’s going to happen next?”

Step Right Up! See the Reinvention of the Great American Circus!

As Ringling Bros. packs up its tent for good, all sorts of newfangled spectacles have sprung up to take its place

Racing the Storm: The Story of the Mobile Bay Sailing Disaster

When hurricane-force winds suddenly struck the Bay, they swept more than 100 boaters into one of the worst sailing disasters in modern American history

The Hell Gate Bridge in NY, one of the main targets

The Inside Story of How a Nazi Plot to Sabotage the U.S. War Effort Was Foiled

J. Edgar Hoover’s FBI took the credit, but it was really only because of a German defector that the plans were blown

In his journal, Earl Shaffer, who walked in 16-mile stages, documented his 124-day odyssey.

The Army Veteran Who Became the First to Hike the Entire Appalachian Trail

His journal and hiking boots are in the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History

Despite being largely forgotten today, Lowell Thomas was a pioneering journalist of the 20th century who reshaped news media.

History of Now

The Forgotten Man Who Transformed Journalism in America

Lowell Thomas was the first host of a TV broadcast news program, and adopted a number of other new technologies to make his mark in the 20th century

A Pack Horse Librarian returning over the mountain side for a new supply of books

Horse-Riding Librarians Were the Great Depression’s Bookmobiles

During the Great Depression, a New Deal program brought books to Kentuckians living in remote areas

Bronze sculpture of Mercy Otis Warren stands in front of Barnstable County Courthouse, Massachusetts.

The Woman Whose Words Inflamed the American Revolution

Mercy Otis Warren used her wit to agitate for independence

In this March 13, 1959 file photo, A group of supporters of statehood drive through the street in Waikiki, Honolulu, Hawaii.

The Political Dealmaking That Finally Brought Hawaii Statehood

And what Puerto Rico can learn from the prolonged process

Rachel and Andrew Jackson's marriage was a source of controversy throughout his political career.

Rachel Jackson, the Scandalous Divorcee Who Almost Became First Lady

Rachel Jackson ran away from her husband and got divorced to marry Andrew, an incident that haunted her for life

The bird feathers attached to artifacts in the John Wesley Powell collection can give anthropologists further insight into customs and trade.

The Innovative Spirit fy17

Telling the Story of 19th-Century Native American Treasures Through Bird Feathers

Famed explorer John Wesley Powell’s archive of his 19th century travels is newly examined

The only way Robert Smalls could ensure that his family would stay together was to escape.

The Thrilling Tale of How Robert Smalls Seized a Confederate Ship and Sailed it to Freedom

He risked his life to liberate his family and became a legend in the process

Vice President-designate Gerald Ford holds up a copy of Evergreen Review, a magazine which Ford described as obscene. One of Ford's charges against Douglas was that he had allowed an article he had written to be published in Evergreen.

History of Now

The History of American Impeachment

There’s a precedent that it’s not just for presidents

In this June 13, 1917 file photo, U.S. Army General John J. Pershing, center, inspects French troops at Boulogne, France

World War I: 100 Years Later

“I Hope It Is Not Too Late”: How the U.S. Decided to Send Millions of Troops Into World War I

The Allies were desperate for reinforcements, but the U.S. wasn’t quite ready to provide them

The Treaty of Medicine Creek

Medicine Creek, the Treaty That Set the Stage for Standing Rock

The Fish Wars of the 1960s led to an affirmation of Native American rights

Mobster Frank Costello testifying before the Kefauver Committee.

History of Now

How Watching Congressional Hearings Became an American Pastime

Decades before Watergate, mobsters helped turn hearings into must-see television

A View in Louisburg in North America

Canada

When Nova Scotia Almost Joined the American Revolution

New England expats felt a strong allegiance to the struggles felt by their American friends to the south

GIFs began as still images in the early days of the Internet before becoming the animated loops that are seen everywhere now.

History of Now

A Brief History of the GIF, From Early Internet Innovation to Ubiquitous Relic

How an image format changed the way we communicate

The historical marker in Enterprise, Alabama describing the significance of the statue.

American South

Why an Alabama Town Has a Monument Honoring the Most Destructive Pest in American History

The boll weevil decimated the South’s cotton industry, but the city of Enterprise found prosperity instead

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