James Madison | smithsonianmag.comhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/rss/tag/james-madison/RSS feed for James MadisonenFri, 13 Feb 2026 13:00:00 +0000Commemorate Presidents’ Day With 15 Images That Celebrate the Founding Fathershttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/observe-presidents-day-with-15-images-that-celebrate-the-founding-fathers-180988159/See Smithsonian magazine contest photos that honor U.S. presidents and their monumentsFri, 13 Feb 2026 13:00:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/observe-presidents-day-with-15-images-that-celebrate-the-founding-fathers-180988159/What’s the Real Story With Ben Franklin and the Kite? And More Questions From Our Readershttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/whats-the-real-story-with-ben-franklin-and-the-kite-and-more-questions-from-our-readers-180987855/You’ve got questions, we’ve got expertsFri, 09 Jan 2026 12:00:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/whats-the-real-story-with-ben-franklin-and-the-kite-and-more-questions-from-our-readers-180987855/The Founding Father Who Lost a Leg, Romanced Married and Single Women Alike, and Escaped the Bloodshed of the French Revolutionhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/the-founding-father-who-lost-a-leg-romanced-married-and-single-women-alike-and-escaped-the-bloodshed-of-the-french-revolution-180987242/Gouverneur Morris wrote the preamble to the Constitution and shaped the future of the nascent United States. Later in life, he rejected the foundational document as a failureTue, 02 Sep 2025 10:30:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/the-founding-father-who-lost-a-leg-romanced-married-and-single-women-alike-and-escaped-the-bloodshed-of-the-french-revolution-180987242/Discover Why Thomas Jefferson Meticulously Monitored the Weather Wherever He Wenthttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/discover-why-thomas-jefferson-meticulously-monitored-the-weather-wherever-he-went-180985727/The third president knew that the whims of nature shaped Americans' daily lives as farmers and enslaversFri, 03 Jan 2025 11:00:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/discover-why-thomas-jefferson-meticulously-monitored-the-weather-wherever-he-went-180985727/What the American Revolution Taught the United States' First Presidentshttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/what-american-revolution-taught-united-states-first-presidents-180984842/A new book by historian William E. Leuchtenburg examines how the first six commanders in chief embodied the revolutionary spirit and set precedents that shaped their successors' tenuresThu, 15 Aug 2024 11:15:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/what-american-revolution-taught-united-states-first-presidents-180984842/The Smithsonian Acquires the Earliest Known Photograph of an American First Ladyhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/the-smithsonian-acquires-the-earliest-known-photograph-of-an-american-first-lady-180984639/The National Portrait Gallery purchased an 1846 daguerreotype of Dolley Madison for $456,000Mon, 01 Jul 2024 19:41:45 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/the-smithsonian-acquires-the-earliest-known-photograph-of-an-american-first-lady-180984639/This Peaceful Nature Sanctuary in Washington, D.C. Sits on the Ruins of a Plantationhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/this-peaceful-nature-sanctuary-in-washington-dc-sits-on-the-ruins-of-a-plantation-180983716/Before Theodore Roosevelt Island was transformed into a tribute to the nation's "conservation president," a prominent Virginia family relied on enslaved laborers to build and tend to its summer home thereWed, 07 Feb 2024 12:15:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/this-peaceful-nature-sanctuary-in-washington-dc-sits-on-the-ruins-of-a-plantation-180983716/How George Washington Wrote His Farewell Addresshttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/how-george-washington-wrote-farewell-address-180982346/A candle stand used by the first president illuminates his extraordinary last days in officeFri, 23 Jun 2023 12:00:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/how-george-washington-wrote-farewell-address-180982346/Lizzo Played a 200-Year-Old Glass Flute Given to James Madisonhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/lizzo-played-200-year-old-glass-flute-james-madison-180980861/The Library of Congress invited the musician, a classically trained flutist, to play the instrument at her concert this weekThu, 29 Sep 2022 12:05:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/lizzo-played-200-year-old-glass-flute-james-madison-180980861/The Ten Best History Books of 2020https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/ten-best-history-books-2020-180976423/Our favorite titles of the year resurrect forgotten histories and help explain how the country got to where it is todayTue, 01 Dec 2020 17:00:57 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/ten-best-history-books-2020-180976423/