American History

Frederick Douglass' pivotal 19th century abolitionist newspaper has been relaunched for a 21st century audience.

By Carrie Tatro

Before the 1964 Civil Rights Act and even after it, the tradition of the "great American road trip" was very different for families of color.

By Dave Roos

Yep – there is a hidden space behind those famous presidential faces.

By Patrick J. Kiger

The last vestiges of America's early transcontinental airmail beacon system still exist as giant arrows across the landscape.

By Carrie Tatro

The roughly 2,000-mile boundary between the countries has been around only since the mid-1800s. But today it's a political line in the sand — literally and figuratively.

By John Donovan

Penn Center, located on sleepy St. Helena Island in South Carolina, may be the most important African-American historical landmark you probably don't know about.

By Carrie Tatro

Does February have special historical significance in African-American history?

By Carrie Tatro

William McKinley was a popular and very successful president who also was assassinated. Why isn't the 25th president better known?

By Patrick J. Kiger

It made geographical sense for Russia to sell its territory of Alaska to Canada, but it opted to sell it to the U.S. instead. Why was that?

By Mark Mancini

During America's War for Independence, the British promised enslaved Africans their freedom if they'd join their side. Thousands signed up. What happened next?

By Dave Roos

Has a nuclear bomb ever been dropped on the United States? Well, it happened back in the 1950s. But... it was an accident.

By Laurie L. Dove

Treasure hunter Tommy Thompson claims he can't remember where he put 3 tons of gold from the shipwreck of the S.S. Central America. The courts don't believe him.

By Jesslyn Shields

A Wild West governor once wore a pair of shoes made of the skin of an executed felon named Big Nose George. The gruesome but true story is predictably involved.

By Jesslyn Shields

Ethnic brand identities and mascots affect people with different political leanings in surprising ways, at times increasing associations with Native American stereotypes.

By Christopher Hassiotis

In 1985, the Hanshin Tigers won the Japanese World Series. In the ensuing celebration, though, a statue of Colonel Sanders was drowned, and the team hasn't won since.

By Bryan Young

Rainbow parties in the 1960s may sound like good fun, but the frivolity actually centered around an H-bomb radiating the Earth's atmosphere.

By Laurie L. Dove

We think the Wild West was a big shoot-'em-up, but statistically speaking, people of the wild frontier were more likely to encounter a handshake than a bullet.

By Laurie L. Dove

Folk hero Johnny Appleseed planted apple trees across the United States during the mid-1800s. Can you actually take a bite out of history and pick an apple from one of those trees today?

By Laurie L. Dove

Forget George Washington’s cherry tree and Ben Franklin’s inveterate womanizing. You're about to meet patriots you've never heard of, plus a few you thought you knew.

By Kate Kershner

In the early 1800s, the United States witnessed the birth of the railroad industry and along with it, dramatic changes in American society and business. What was life like before and after the railroads?

By the Editors of Publications International, Ltd.

The railroad expansion of the 1800s changed America forever. By 1900, the people North America had settled a continent that previous generations had thought would take a thousand years to occupy.

By the Editors of Publications International, Ltd.

The turn of the century brought a new wave of optimism and amazing new technologies. It was also a time of unprecedented expansion in the railroad industry -- until World War I arrived.

By the Editors of Publications International, Ltd.

Railroads of the 1920s reflected a time of uncertainty in the industry at the time. Technology greatly improved train transportation, but the Great Depression brought about a bust in the industry. Learn more about the railroads of the 1920s.

By the Editors of Publications International, Ltd.

By the 1960s the lonesome whistle of the steam railroads was a thing of the past. The decline of railroads came about during the 1960s and 1970s as the automobile dominated transportation.

By the Editors of Publications International, Ltd.

Railroads of the 1990s explains the history of American railroads through the 1990s. Technological advancements have shaped the railroads of this decade. Learn about the history of railroads of the 1990s.

By the Editors of Publications International, Ltd.