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

A poster calling attention to the break in at the Watergate.

Pennsylvania Germans near the Conestoga River first made Conestoga wagons around 1750 to haul freight. By the 1810s, improved roads to Pittsburgh and Wheeling, Virginia (now West Virginia) stimulated trade between Philadelphia, Baltimore, and settlers near the Ohio River. Wagoners with horse-drawn C

A Lewis Hine silver print from about 1906–1918, this image of a young boy working at a loom in a cotton mill in Rhode Island is one in a series of photographs made by Hine for the National Child Labor Committee. The photographs document child labor throughout America in the early 20th century. As

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 allegorical print displays hopes for reconciliation through the federal program of Reconstruction. The nation and government are symbolized by an enormous canopy-like structure, upon which is emblazoned with a map of the United States. An eagle holding a crest and American flag sits atop the ma

During the Spanish flu pandemic of 1918 the best medical minds in the country were focused on the problem of discovering the cause of the flu and how to prevent it — and they failed. Sherman’s Vaccine was developed in response to the pandemic. Essentially it was a “stew” of numerous bacteria

Friedan's book was instrumental in the rise of a new wave of feminism in mid-20th century America by confronting beliefs and systems that limited women's roles in society.

The Haymarket Riot, or Haymarket Incident, occured on May 4, 1886 near Chicago's Haymarket Square. What began as a protest against the killing and wounding of several workers during a strike at the McCormick Reaper Works, turned into a violent riot as an unidentified person threw a bomb at the polic

Many immigrants sought to preserve their cultural heritage while at the same time embracing their new identity as Americans. Manfred Anson did so in designing this Hanukkah lamp to mark the centennial of the Statue of Liberty in 1986. Anson, who escaped Nazi Germany as a teenager, later reunited wit