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American History

The Earl of Chatham, previously a Royal Navy vessel called the HMS Hind, was discovered in February 2024 on the shores of Sanday.

America's 250th Anniversary

A Boy Found a Shipwreck on a Scottish Beach. It Turned Out to Be a 250-Year-Old Warship From the American Revolution

The HMS “Hind,” later renamed the “Earl of Chatham,” was a frigate in the British Royal Navy before it was repurposed as a whaling vessel

Amelia Earhart stands in front of her Lockheed Vega flanked by two men in 1932

Amelia Earhart Made History in a Plane She Called Her ‘Little Red Bus.’ Here’s How It Became a Revered Museum Artifact and Hallowed Symbol

As the Smithsonian presents the aviator’s restored Vega in Washington, a special replica of the aircraft quietly re-emerges after decades in obscurity

The portrait is dated to 1844, making it the oldest known portrait of Davidge.

Cool Finds

A Rare Portrait of Maryland’s Medical Hero Was Rediscovered in a Mussels Joint

The painting depicts John Beale Davidge, a physician known for his ideas about yellow fever and founding the University of Maryland School of Medicine

A February 1936 snapshot of a migrant who declined to be photographed due to the Los Angeles Police Department's "Bum Blockade"

Los Angeles’ 1936 ‘Bum Blockade’ Targeted American Migrants Fleeing Poverty and Drought During the Great Depression

The two-month patrol stopped supposedly “suspicious” individuals from crossing into California from other states. But its execution was uneven, and the initiative proved controversial

UNESCO, the cultural arm of the United Nations, is headquartered in Paris and has 194 member countries.

The U.S. Is Withdrawing From UNESCO for the Third Time in the Agency’s 80-Year History

The country previously left the agency for two brief stints—once from 1984 to 2003 and again from 2017 to 2023. The newly announced decision will take effect by the end of 2026

The sled is central to the plot of Citizen Kane.

One of the Rosebud Sleds From ‘Citizen Kane’ Just Became the Second Most Expensive Piece of Movie Memorabilia Ever Sold

The iconic prop, which went for $14.75 million at auction, is one of several sleds used in the production of Orson Welles’ 1941 classic

Christa McAuliffe in her NASA uniform

Christa McAuliffe’s Life Ended in Tragedy on the ‘Challenger’ Shuttle. Here’s How the High School Teacher Was Chosen for the Ill-Fated Flight

NASA’s “Teacher in Space” added joy to many Americans’ lives and increased excitement for the future of spaceflight, though she never reached her destination

Archaeologists found the battlefield on private land a few miles away from Fort Ligonier in Pennsylvania.

Cool Finds

Archaeologists Discover Site Where George Washington Stopped a Friendly Fire Incident by Blocking Muskets With His Sword

In 1758, during the French and Indian War, the future president saved lives by stepping into the middle of a deadly skirmish in Pennsylvania

Karin Wulf's new book, Lineage: Genealogy and the Power of Connection in Early America, explores the many ways in which people of the past reflected on their family histories.

Why 18th-Century Americans Were Just as Obsessed With Their Genealogy as We Are Today

People living in British America and later the nascent United States recorded their family histories in needlework samplers, notebooks and newspapers

Brendon Baillod, president of the Wisconsin Underwater Archeology Association, and Kendra Kennedy, a maritime archaeologist with the Wisconsin Historical Society, used side-scan sonar to map a 2.5-mile stretch of the Fox River this spring.

Underwater Archaeologists Were Looking for a Lost Shipwreck in Wisconsin. They Stumbled Upon a Different Vessel Instead

Researchers think they have located the final resting place of the “L.W. Crane,” a wooden side-wheel steam ship that caught fire and sank in the Fox River in 1880

The horses that transport caskets at Arlington National Cemetery will remain in service.

The U.S. Army Is Getting Rid of Most of Its Ceremonial Horse Units

Senior military leaders at five forts will have one year to transfer, adopt out or donate the horses under their command

A romanticized 1975 depiction of Daniel Morgan's riflemen at the Battle of Bemis Heights in Saratoga, New York, on October 7, 1777

America's 250th Anniversary

How a Relentless, 484-Mile March From Virginia to Massachusetts Fueled the Legend of the Dashing Frontier Rifleman

In the early months of the American Revolution, Daniel Morgan and his soldiers raced north to join the Continental Army during the so-called Beeline March

At left, Tony Buttino prepares Western New York book reviewers (from left to right: Stephanie, Percy and Afrika) with production assistant Pam Johnson at right.

To Combat Summer Reading Slumps, This Timeless Children’s Television Show Tried to Bridge the Literacy Gap With the Magic of Stories

With a charismatic host and charming book readings and reviews, the hit series “Reading Rainbow” stands as a beacon of children’s literature

A firefighter stands beside the charred remains of a burned structure near the Grand Canyon Lodge.

Historic Grand Canyon Lodge Destroyed by Wildfire as Blaze Continues Across National Park’s North Rim

Constructed in 1937, the lodge was one of dozens of buildings consumed by the fast-moving Dragon Bravo wildfire, which has raged across thousands of acres

The structure and stamps on the base of the anchor helped researchers confirm the bow belonged to the USS New Orleans. The words "Navy Yard" are still visible through the marine growth.

Lost Bow of American Warship Found Eight Decades After It Was Blown Off by a Japanese Torpedo in World War II

After the attack, crews sailed the USS “New Orleans” backward for more than 1,000 miles across the Pacific. Since then, the location of the vessel’s bow has been a mystery

An 1880 Harper's Weekly illustration titled Women at the Polls in New Jersey in the Good Old Times

America's 250th Anniversary

How Women in New Jersey Gained—and Lost—the Right to Vote More Than a Century Before the 19th Amendment Granted Suffrage Nationwide

Vague phrasing in the state’s Revolutionary-era Constitution enfranchised women who met specific property requirements. A 1790 law explicitly allowed female suffrage, but this privilege was revoked in 1807

Christopher Reeve's costume from Superman is seen on display at an auction at Christie's in London, December 16, 2003

Here’s How Superman’s Iconic Motto of ‘Truth, Justice and the American Way’ Evolved Over Time

The quintessential superhero has always stood for truth and justice, but the final part of his catchphrase has morphed to match a more connected world—and his place in it

Griffin spent $18 million for the two documents.

A Rare Copy of the 13th Amendment Signed by Abraham Lincoln Sells for a Record $13.7 Million

Kenneth Griffin, the billionaire art collector and hedge fund founder, purchased the document that abolished slavery, as well as a copy of the Emancipation Proclamation

Thousands attended the afternoon circus show in Hartford, Connecticut, on July 6, 1944. A fire broke out around 2:40 p.m., killing at least 167 people.

How a Deadly Circus Fire on the ‘Day the Clowns Cried’ Traumatized a Community—and Led to Lasting Safety Reforms

On July 6, 1944, a blaze broke out at a Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey show in Hartford, Connecticut. At least 167 people died, and hundreds were injured

On June 10, state and tribal officials recovered the vessel from the water.

Cool Finds

This Dugout Canoe Made From a 12-Foot-Long Log Was Found Bobbing in a North Carolina River

The newly discovered vessel is one of 79 known dugout canoes that have been unearthed throughout the state

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