“In October 1792, the United States of America was still a new country, not even a decade old, fresh from a complete government overhaul just four years earlier. With only one federal election by that point, and one president, it was a nation long on ambition, but short on history. There were hero

“Wartime often catalyzes developments in philanthropy. In 2017, the museum added the Bowl of Rice party banner, from fundraising efforts to aid people in China during the Second Sino-Japanese War, to its collection. Curator Theodore S. Gonzalves, a scholar of Asian American history, answered three

The American Party, also called the Know-Nothings, was a major national political force in the 1850s. It saw immigrants and Catholics as the greatest threat to self-government and to the nation. Arguing for rule by native-born Protestants, the Know-Nothings ran former President Millard Fillmore as t

This undated black and white print depicts an Irish immigrant wearing a large campaign ribbon, tails, and striped breeches standing in front of two adjacent, flag draped campaign booths. One booth is occupied by a member of the “Loco Foco Committee,” and the other by a member of the “Tammany C

This historical investigation is aligned with the C3 Framework and is from C3teachers.org. This inquiry leads students through an investigation of recent studies that try to quantify a country’s hap

This historical investigation is aligned with the C3 Framework and from C3teachers.org. This inquiry leads students through an investigation of political issues and political parties. By exploring the

This archived webcast features filmmaker Ken Burns discussing this documentary The Roosevelts: An Intimate History. The webcast included historian Clay Jenkinson, Smithsonian curator Harry Rubenstein, and Roosevelt biographer Geoffrey Ward. The conversation covered varied topic

This teapot was made in England about 1766-1770, possibly by the Cockpit Hill Factory, Derby, England. Inscribed on one side of the teapot is “No Stamp Act” and on the other is “America, Liberty Restored,” both within flowerheads and stylized scrolling leaftips in black. The cover is pain

In this episode of the History Explorer podcast series, hear activist and Mississippi native June Johnson discuss her work in the civil rights movement, including during Mississippi Freedom Summer.  Johnson was a teenager when she became active in the movement, and worked alongside Fannie Lo

The Distinguished Service Cross, the DSC, is the second highest award for valor bestowed on a solider. President Woodrow Wilson established the award on January 2, 1918. The DSC is awarded to a person who, while serving in any capacity with the army, distinguished himself or herself by extraordin