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American Presidents

A cartoon entitled "At the Polls," depicting an election day brawl, that appeared in Harper's Weekly in 1857.

History of Now

Why Are There Laws That Restrict What People Can Wear to the Polls?

A new Supreme Court ruling changes the course of a century-long debate over speech and conduct when voting

Monticello's main house and South Wing

Putting Enslaved Families’ Stories Back in the Monticello Narrative

An oral history project deepens our understanding of U.S. history by sharing accounts of the community owned by Thomas Jefferson

Woodrow Wilson at his desk in the Oval Office c. 1913.

World War I: 100 Years Later

Woodrow Wilson’s Papers Go Digital, Leaving Microfiche Behind

This increased accessibility of Wilson’s papers coincides with a new wave of interest in the 28th president

Stovepipe hat believed to have belonged to Abraham Lincoln, along with the bloodstained gloves he carried on the night of his assassination.

The Lincoln Presidential Library Foundation May Have to Auction Off Precious Artifacts

A bloodstained pair of gloves, which the president wore on the night of his assassination, is among the relics that could be sold to pay off a hefty loan

President George H.W. Bush at the White House on January 12, 1991, the day Congress voted to authorize the Persian Gulf War.

An Unlikely Hardliner, George H. W. Bush Was Ready to Push Presidential Powers

Though he ended up seeking congressional approval for the Gulf War, Bush was unconvinced he needed it – saying he would have gone regardless of the vote

John Adams didn't literally call the Philadelphia Aurora (also known as the Aurora General Adviser) "fake news," but he was not pleased by the way he was often depicted in it.

History of Now

The Age-Old Problem of “Fake News”

It’s been part of the conversation as far back as the birth of the free press

(Left to Right): Karen David as Young Denise Christopher, Claudia Doumit as Jiya, Abigail Spencer as Lucy Preston

'Timeless' Recapped

Who Shot the Sheriff? ‘Timeless’ Season 2, Episode 8, Recapped

The Time Team travels to D.C. to prevent a presidential assassination, but instead runs into a new old friend

President Donald Trump, French President Emmanuel Macron, first lady Melania Trump, and Brigitte Macron stand during a State Arrival Ceremony on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, Tuesday, April 24, 2018

A Brief History of State Dinners

The White House first hosted King David Kalākaua, of the Kingdom of Hawaii for a state dinner back in 1874

Theodore Roosevelt and his Big Stick in the Caribbean (1904)

Why Teddy Roosevelt Is Popular on Both Sides of the Political Aisle

A historian considers the forces that have shaped the Rough Rider’s presidential legacy in the decades since his death more than 100 years ago

Ulysses Simpson Grant, Oil on canvas by Thomas Le Clear

Cool Finds

Ulysses S. Grant’s 1849 Home in Detroit May Be Restored

The house he rented as a young officer is now boarded up and full of trash on the site of the former Michigan state fairgrounds

Years after she captured this tender, reflective image of the First Lady, photographer Diana Walker sent a print of the photograph to George H. W. Bush. “It does seem like so long ago, but seeing this image brings everything back into focus,” President Bush wrote in response: “The photo now hangs in my office in Maine, and I enjoy it every day.”

Smithsonian Curators Reflect on How Barbara Bush Will Be Remembered

As both the First Lady and the mother of a President, Mrs. Bush leaves a legacy of a national grandmother with an iron backbone

A young JFK is all, like, "Whoa" when he gets taken from 1934 Connecticut to 2018 Palo Alto.

'Timeless' Recapped

JFK’s Excellent Adventure: “Timeless,” Season 2, Episode 5 Recapped

We learn a lot about the once and future President, and he learns way too much about himself, in a tense twist with the past coming to the present

In the late 19th century, the Democratic Party (represented here by Grover Cleveland and his running mate Adlai Stevenson) was the party of free trade, while the GOP was the faction of harsh tariffs. By the late 20th century, these roles had completely reversed.

A History of America’s Ever-Shifting Stance on Tariffs

Unpacking a debate as old as the United States itself

Trending Today

North Dakota Makes a Push for a Teddy Roosevelt Presidential Library

The towns of Dickinson and Medora are raising money in hopes of establishing a library and museum to the 26th president who once ranched in the area

James K. Polk. Oil on canvas.

Trending Today

Tennessee Votes to Keep Polk’s Grave Where It Is. For Now

A resolution to move the grave from the capitol grounds in Nashville to one of his boyhood homes failed by one vote

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See Rare Images Depicting Life, Work at the White House

A team of librarians at the White House Historical Association are digitizing 25,000 behind-the-scenes photographs from 1962 to 1987

The Senate as a Court of Impeachment for the Trial of Andrew Johnson

The Political Circus and Constitutional Crisis of Andrew Johnson’s Impeachment

When the 17th president was accused of high crimes and misdemeanors in 1868, the wild trial nearly reignited the Civil War

The rose buds are the universal symbol for love and courage.

In Obama’s Official Portrait the Flowers Are Cultivated From the Past

Kehinde Wiley’s painting is full of historical art references says Kim Sajet, the director of the National Portrait Gallery

How One Amateur Historian Brought Us the Stories of African-Americans Who Knew Abraham Lincoln

Once John E. Washington started to dig, he found an incredible wealth of untapped knowledge about the 16th president

Eisenhower National Historic Site

Take a Look Inside These Six Presidential Homes

The White House isn’t the only address worth visiting this Presidents’ Day

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