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Collage of drawings of various people and objects, including Abraham Lincoln and Mary Todd Lincoln.

Throngs of Unseen People

A new history of spiritualism during the Civil War era suggests an unexpected link between the Lincoln family and that of John Wilkes Booth.
by David S. Reynolds via New York Review of Books on September 15, 2022
Black and white photo of Elvis Presley in a recording studio.

Was There Anything Real About Elvis Presley?

Presley never wrote a memoir. Nor did he keep a diary. His music could have been a window into his inner life, but he didn’t even write his songs.
by Michael T. Bertrand via The Conversation on June 22, 2022
The front cover of Jonathan W. White's new book.

Calling on Lincoln

A new book explores Abraham Lincoln's interactions with African Americans during his presidency.
by Ronald White via Los Angeles Review of Books on June 16, 2022
A drawing of Blanche Chesebrough with her husband standing out of frame, his hand on her shoulder.

Escape From the Gilded Cage

Even if her husband was a murderer, a woman in a bad marriage once had few options. Unless she fled to South Dakota.
by April White via Smithsonian on May 24, 2022
A horse trotting photogravure

The Murderer Who Made Movies Possible

When horses gallop, do all four hooves ever leave the ground at once? This episode of The Disappearing Spoon recounts the saga that led to the answer.
via The Disappearing Spoon on May 10, 2022
Illustration of Asian woman surrounded by flowers

Sex, Death, and Empire: The Roots of Violence Against Asian Women

The line from America’s earliest empire in the Philippines to Japan, Korea, Vietnam—and anti-Asian violence at home—is straight, clear, and written in blood.
by Panthea Lee via The Nation on April 18, 2022
Enemy monsters in first-person shooter game

A History of 'Hup,' The Jump Sound in Every Video Game

You can hear it in your head: the grunt your character makes when hopping a fence or leaping into battle. Its sonic roots trace all the way back to 1973.
by Bryan Menegus via Wired on March 26, 2022
John Gunther sitting in his library.

The Birth of the American Foreign Correspondent

For American journalists abroad in the interwar period, it paid to have enthusiasm, openness, and curiosity, but not necessarily a world view.
by Krithika Varagur via The New Yorker on March 17, 2022
James Brown on stage singing, with people standing in shadow behind him.

Hanif Abdurraqib Breaks Down History’s Famous Beefs

On who gets caught in the crosshairs when it comes to “beef."
by Hanif Abdurraqib via Literary Hub on March 8, 2022
Pen sketch of Robert Frost.

Frost at Midnight

A new volume of Robert Frost’s letters finds him at the height of his artistic powers while suffering an almost unimaginable series of losses.
by Dan Chiasson via New York Review of Books on November 24, 2021
James Dobson speaking at a Focus on the Family event

The Eugenics Roots of Evangelical Family Values

Although they have different beliefs, eugenicists and evangelicals have historically worked together to further a joint agenda.
by Audrey Clare Farley via Arc: Religion, Politics, Et Cetera on May 12, 2021
Coffee table with books

A Brief History of Coffee Table Books: Origin, Precursors, and Popularity

Ever look at the tome on a coffee table and wonder why coffee table books are a thing? Consider this brief history of coffee table books.
by Addison Rizer via Book Riot on April 13, 2021
Two characters in Animal Crossing: New Horizons, one rabbit and one human.

Archivists Are Trying to Chronicle Animal Crossing: New Horizons’ Unforgettable First Year

The challenge of documenting a virtual world.
by Jay Castello via The Verge on March 16, 2021
Presidents Obama, Trump, Bush, and Clinton
partner

Who Is The Worst American President of All Time?

The answer can change over time.
by Bruce J. Schulman via Made By History on January 25, 2021
The Oval Office as redecorated for President Biden

A Look Inside Biden’s Oval Office

The oval office looks different now that President Biden is its occupant.
by Annie Linskey via Washington Post on January 20, 2021
Drawing of a lightbulb illuminating an inventor's laboratory.

The Real Nature of Thomas Edison’s Genius

The inventor did not look for problems in need of solutions; he looked for solutions in need of modification.
by Casey N. Cep via The New Yorker on October 21, 2019
Sandra Day O'Connor and Ruther Bader Ginsburg speaking at the Congrsssional Women's Caucus.

The First and Last of Her Kind

The legal academy has grown dismissive of Justice O’Connor, but the Supreme Court is not a law school faculty workshop. She saw herself as a problem-solver.
by Linda Greenhouse via New York Review of Books on October 17, 2019
Nina Simone

The Remarkable Story of the Drive to Preserve Nina Simone's Childhood Home

Simone's birthplace in Tryon, North Carolina, was declared a National Treasure. Now, local events celebrate her and raise money for preservation efforts.
by Sarah Edwards via INDY Week on August 14, 2019
Maybelle and Helen Carter.

For Women Musicians, Maybelle Carter Set the Standard and Broke the Mold

One of the most indispensable guitarists of all time, Carter was a quiet revolutionary.
by Tift Merritt via NPR on August 13, 2019

The Magic of Estate Sales

These collections of everyday objects are clues to strangers’ daily lives.
by Ann Friedman via Curbed on May 1, 2019
Douglas Engelbart wearing an earpiece, sitting at a computer, in 1968.

The Future, Revisited: “The Mother of All Demos” at 50

How the ’60s counterculture gave birth to personal computers and the vast tech industry that builds and sells them.
by Andy Horowitz via Los Angeles Review of Books on December 8, 2018

Is History Being Too Kind to George H.W. Bush?

The 41st president put self-interest over principle time and time again.
by David Greenberg via Politico Magazine on December 1, 2018
Trix cereal logo with bunny mascot

The White Rabbit and His Colorful Tricks

Breakfast cereal, dietary purity, and race.
by Catherine Keyser via Cabinet on November 16, 2018

Who's the Boss?

When conductor and soloist clash, a concerto performance can turn into a contest of wills.
by Sudip Bose via The American Scholar on July 26, 2018
Photographs of Oscar Wilde and Walt Whitman.

When Wilde Met Whitman

As he told a friend years later, "the kiss of Walt Whitman is still on my lips."
by Michèle Mendelssohn via Literary Hub on July 16, 2018

A Disgruntled Federal Employee's 1980s Desk Calendar

A nameless Cold Warrior grew frustrated in his Defense Department job, and poured out his feelings in an unusual way.
by Ted Widmer via The Paris Review on June 13, 2018

Why Do People Sign Yearbooks?

Commemorative class books evolved from practical notebooks into collections of hair clippings, two-line rhymes, and summer wishes.
by Jennifer Billock via The Atlantic on June 3, 2018

William Randolph Hearst for President

Another news cycle, another media mogul stirring up electoral buzz.
by Jonathan Zimmerman via Lapham’s Quarterly on January 22, 2018
Bob Dylan and The Band performing on stage

The Brotherhood of Rock

The story of how The Band, in Robbie Robertson's words, "acted out an ideal of democracy and equality."
by Greil Marcus via New York Review of Books on March 2, 2017

When Americans Thought Hair Was a Window Into the Soul

Christian, criminal or cowardly? People once thought your hair could hold the answer.
by Sarah Gold McBride via The Conversation on April 20, 2016
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