Panic of 1837 — Bunk History

A political cartoon of the panic, depicting mobs, drunkards, and class struggles.

Panic of 1837

The panic of 1837 was a financial crisis in the United States that triggered a multi-year economic depression.

by Stephen Campbell via The Economic Historian on November 12, 2020

Political cartoon showing the effects of the recession, including idle ships, drunk men, and a woman and child begging a banker for mercy.

The Panic of 1837

A primary source set and teaching guide created by educators.

by Samantha Gibson via Digital Public Library of America on January 1, 2017

A political cartoon of Benjamin Harrison and Grover Cleveland emptying the U.S. treasury.

Radical Tariffs Aren’t New, But They Have Been Disastrous

An American story.

by Scott Reynolds Nelson via Perspectives on History on April 14, 2025

Andrew Jackson was A Slaver, Ethnic Cleanser, and Tyrant

Andrew Jackson deserves nothing but contempt from modern America, not a place on our currency.

by Dylan Matthews via Vox on April 20, 2016

How Poverty Was, and Was Not, Pictured Before the Civil War

Images were important in defining the Republic between the Revolution and the Civil War and they distinctively both did and did not show Americans in need.

by Jonathan Prude via Commonplace on April 12, 2010

Martin Van Buren

The Prudence and Principles of Martin Van Buren

The eighth president defined the future of politics.

by Daniel N. Gullotta via Law & Liberty on February 12, 2025

Portrait of Martin Van Buren.

The Father of the Party System

Because Martin Van Buren was an unsuccessful president, his more significant contributions to the nation’s political life have also been obscured.

by James M. Bradley via OUPblog on October 18, 2024

Henry David Thoreau with a propeller cap.

Henry David Thoreau Was Funnier Than You Think, Particularly on the Subject of Work

On the necessary “deep sincerity” of dark humor.

by John Kaag, Jonathan van Belle via Literary Hub on June 26, 2023

Diagram with three mollusks

Edgar Allan Poe: Pioneering Mollusk Scientist

Poe’s work reminds us that the separation of “Arts” and “Sciences” into discrete discourses of knowledge is itself a quite recent invention.

by James D. Lilley via Commonplace on November 1, 2022

Painting entitled "Sulking," by Edgar Degas, c. 1870, depicting a man and woman perusing documents.

Rate the Room

The early history of rating credit in America.

by Bruce Carruthers via Lapham’s Quarterly on September 21, 2022

Image of John C. Calhoun

How Slavery Haunts Today’s Big Debates About Federal Spending

John C. Calhoun knew what a strong federal government might do.

by Ariel Ron via Slate on September 22, 2021

Tucker Carlson’s Cries About Immigrants Have a Disturbing 19th-Century Parallel

The “great replacement theory” is nothing new.

by Zachary M. Schrag via Made By History on May 17, 2021

‘The Lehman Trilogy’ and Wall Street’s Debt to Slavery

If the play holds up a mirror to our moment, it is by registering slavery in a peripheral glance only to look away.

by Sarah Churchwell via New York Review of Books on June 11, 2019

Men observing teams of horses and mules.

Andrew Jackson and the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal

How the so-called champion of the common man set a precedent for using federal troops to quash labor unrest.

by Joshua D. Rothman via We're History on January 29, 2019

Former Lehman Brothers Chief Executive Richard Fuld.

The Financial World and the Magical Elixir of Confidence

The financial world is a theatrical production, abundantly lubricated by that magical elixir of illusionists: confidence.

by Matt Seybold via Aeon on February 19, 2018

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