The United States took shape in the age of European empires, and it didn’t take long for the new nation to embark on its own imperial projects. This exhibit traces 500 years of empire-building efforts, from the Age of Exploration to the North American Indian Wars to the extension of American military and economic power over island nations from the Caribbean to the Pacific. It also considers America’s role in the 20th-century clashes between global empires, and the extent to which 21st-century conflicts are still driven by the imperative to dominate far-flung peoples and lands.