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Slavery, and American Racism, Were Born in Genocide

Martin Luther King Jr. recognized that Imperial expansion over stolen Indian land shaped and deepened the American Revolution’s relationship to slavery.

‘A Doubtful Freedom’

Andrew Delbanco's new book positions the debate over fugitive slaves as a central factor in the nation's slide toward disunion.

Nationalist Anthems

Remembering a time when composers mattered more.

How Slavery Shaped American Capitalism

The New York Times is right that slavery made a major contribution to capitalist development in the United States — just not in the way they imagine.
Signing of the Declaration of Independence

The Universalist Principles of the Declaration of Independence

The Declaration of Independence advocates for liberty and equality. We would do well to remember those principles today.

The Fourth of July Has Always Been Political

The question is which vision of America it’s being used to advance.

What Could Go Wrong for Trump on July 4th? In 1970, Protests and Tear Gas Marred the Day.

"Honor America Day" was designed to showcase support for President Nixon at a time of bitter division.
Liberty bell.

The Sounds of Independence

How was the Fourth of July celebrated during the Revolutionary War?

Jill Lepore on Early American Ideas of Nationalism

"Inevitably, the age of national bootblacks and national oyster houses and national blacksmiths produced national history books."
Yellow ribbon.

The Many Meanings of Yellow Ribbons

The strange and convoluted history of why yellow ribbons became a symbol of the Gulf War in the 1990s.
Map of the United States from 1828.

In Its First Decades, The United States Nurtured Schoolgirl Mapmakers

Education for women and emerging nationhood, illustrated with care and charm.

The Question Without a Solution

The horrors of the fugitive slave laws, the costs of union, and the value of comity.
Union troops of 5th and 9th Corps receiving Thanksgiving rations during the American Civil War, c. 1864.

For Decades, Southern States Considered Thanksgiving an Act of Northern Aggression

In the 19th century, pumpkin pie ignited a culture war.

Revisiting the Prayer at Valley Forge

The fable of George Washington's prayer was meant to foster religious tolerance, not paint him as a pious leader.

Remembrance of War as Warning

Might a new approach to war memorials keep us out of future unnecessary wars?

Why Do Sports Teams Visit the White House?

The president’s patriotic pageant renews a question dating back to the first White House visit by a champion sports team.

Standing Armies: The Constitutional Debate

Why did Alexander Hamilton and James Madison take up the cause of the very thing that revolutionaries had vehemently opposed?

The Attention Economy of the American Revolution

How Twitter bots help us understand the founding era.

How Congress Used the Post Office to Unite the Nation

Trump says Amazon is scamming the USPS. But its low shipping rates were a game changer for rural America.
"Liberty Leading the People," an 1830 painting by Eugene Delacroix.

Religion and the Republic

Looking to the French Revolution and the writings of Tocqueville for insight into Trump’s America.

The Powerful Tune That Drives ‘The Battle Hymn of the Republic’

A melody can carry an undeniable purpose even before it gets paired with a lyric.

What’s So Bad About Ken Burns?

The modern historical profession's purpose has changed drastically in the past century.

Patriotism, Partisanship, and “The Star-Spangled Banner”: A View from the Early Republic

Music continues to hold an allure for elites seeking to politicize patriotism in support of their privilege.
Ken Burns presenting about his Vietnam documentary.

The Insidious Ideology of Ken Burns’s The Vietnam War

Burns and co-director Lynn Novick take a "many sides" approach to history at a time when "many sides" is a tool of obfuscation.
An American flag at the Vietnam Memorial on the National Mall.

Ken Burns’s American War

The filmmaker wants ‘The Vietnam War’ to unite America. Can anyone do that under Trump?

Ken Burns's American Canon

Even in a fractious era, the filmmaker still believes that his documentaries can bring every viewer in.
Lithograph of ladies' fashions from Godey's Lady's Book magazine.

The Women’s Magazine That Tried to Stop the Civil War

Godey’s Lady’s Book, one of the most influential American publications of the nineteenth century, tried to halt the Civil War.
Washington D.C. in 1860.

Draining the Swamp

Washington may be the only city on Earth that lobbied itself into existence.
Furniture and carpet store in the 1789 Boston directory.
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Revolutionary Spirit

On the widespread boycotts of British-made goods in the American Colonies.
Political cartoon of U.S. President Martin Van Buren sitting on a fence as men on each side try to pull him toward them.
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The Spirit of Party and Faction

On factional strife in the Early Republic, and why parties themselves were universally despised.

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