What happens when a people decide to govern themselves? America’s national treasures come to life in this compelling exhibition that examines the bold experiment to create a government “of the people, by the people, and for the people.” American Democracy: A Great Leap of Fait

Costume worn by Lin-Manuel Miranda portraying Alexander Hamilton in the original Broadway production of Hamilton: An American Musical. The costume consists of a white shirt with ruffles, green coat, green waistcoat with small gold metal decoration on proper right side, green breeches, a pair of blac

“Lin-Manuel Miranda's award-winning Broadway hit Hamilton: An American Musical turned international attention to the story of founding leader Alexander Hamilton, but also sparked the public rediscovery of his wife Eliza Hamilton's philanthropy. Hamilton dramatizes the life and death of Alexander

Originally a bakery or milk delivery wagon, tradition says that Lucy Stone used it at speaking engagements and to distribute the Woman's Journal. Around 1912 suffragists found the wagon in a barn on Stone's property. They painted it with slogans and continued to use it to sell the Woman's Journal

This buckskin coat was worn by Custer when he was Lieutenant Colonel with the 7th U. S. Cavalry in the Dakotas. It was one of several owned and worn by Custer, who prefered to dress like a frontiersman while out West. In 1912, Custer's widow, Elizabeth, donated this buckskin coat t

In addition to artifacts and background information on the first ladies, this website features thematic overviews of the many roles of the first ladies, a timeline of first ladies, and behind-the-scenes details on the history of the first ladies exhibitions at the Smithsonian. The Smithsonia

This teacher's resource challenges students to think about the Lincoln-Keckley as an object that has multiple symbolic meanings. It includes a preliminary activity intended to introduce students to doing history with objects and 3 lesson plans focused on the multiple meanings of the dress, t

This object-based learning activity revolves around a dress that connects the lives of Mary Todd Lincoln and Elizabeth Keckley, a popular African-American dressmaker who lived in Washington, D.C at the time of the Civil War. Students will learn how one object can tell many different stories.

La Malinche, the title of this lithograph, was the indigenous woman who translated for Cortés between Maya, Náhuatl, and Spanish during his first years in Mexico. Considered either as a traitor or a founding mother by some Mexicans, La Malinche was Cortés' lover and the mother of his

In this section of the online exhibition Treasures of American History, students will learn that by understanding the challenges of the past, they can draw lessons and inspiration for confronting new challenges in the present and future. The topics discussed in this sectio