History Matters
“We’ve seen a force that would shatter our nation rather than share it, would destroy our country if it meant delaying democracy. And this effort very nearly succeeded. But while democracy can be periodically delayed, it can never be permanently defeated.
In this truth, in this faith, we trust. For while we have our eyes on the future, history has its eyes on us.” – Amanda Gorman
Trump’s Gotterdammerung
Gotterdammerung((The last days of the Third Reich, taking its name from the end of Wagner's ‘Der Ring des Nibellungen.' The word means "Twilight of the Gods," and signals the end with chaos and destruction.)) Our understanding of historical narrative is not static....
Washington Post: History isn’t just for patriots
Perspective | We teach students how to understand the U.S., not to love it - or hate it Is the United States the world's greatest country? When asked that question eight years ago, 70 percent of citizens surveyed said yes. Now, a recent study by the Chicago Council on...
CNN: This is the woman whose statue will replace that of Robert E. Lee in the US Capitol
This is the woman whose statue will replace that of Robert E. Lee in the US Capitol When Barbara Johns was just 16 years old, she led a walkout at her high school to protest poor and unequal school conditions. The moment is one that many historians believe helped...
AP Was There: Battle of the Bulge
AP WAS THERE: Battle of the BulgeIn 2020, the world marked the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II. Sterling Publishing, in cooperation with The Associated Press, released an illustrated book called "Victory: World War II In Real Time," filled with original AP...
Thanksgiving Proclamation by Abraham Lincoln
Proclamation of Thanksgiving This is the proclamation which set the precedent for America's national day of Thanksgiving. During his administration, President Lincoln issued many orders similar to this. For example, on November 28, 1861, he ordered government...
Boston Globe: Escaped slave and Navy sailor recounted his remarkable Civil War story in a diary. Now Dedham looks to honor his legacy
“Here is a man who under the most difficult, adverse circumstances that one can imagine was able to stand up, speak in a mature and independent fashion, and evaluate the world around him critically." Escaped slave and Navy sailor recounted his remarkable Civil...
An American Coup d’Etat: The Founders didn’t prepare for a president who refuses to step down, historians say
So why didn’t the founders plan for this particular scenario, of a president simply denying that he had lost an election? Because they couldn’t even fathom it, Engel said. “They couldn’t fathom two things: a person who had become president who was so utterly lacking...
CNN: 60 years ago, 6-year-old Ruby Bridges walked to school and showed how even first graders can be trailblazers
"For me, being 6 years old, I really wasn't aware of what was going on," Bridges, now 66, told NPR in 2010. "I mean the only thing that I was ever told by my parents that I was going to attend a new school and that I should behave." 60 years ago today,...
CNN: Military carrier pigeon message turns up 110 years after it was sent
A message lost by a carrier pigeon has been found some 110 years after it was sent. Carrier pigeon message found 110 years after it was sent A message lost by a carrier pigeon during military exercises has been found in France some 110 years after it was...
We Are Not Enemies
The United States in 1861 was even more divided than we are today. Abraham Lincoln, running on the Republican platform of no expansion of slavery, won the presidency without one Southern vote (he was not on the ballot in Southern States). Before his inauguration,...