While the concept of a dictionary dates back to ancient civilizations, the first English dictionary wasn't published until 1604. In the centuries that followed, many more dictionaries were written by individual authors who chose what to...

In episode 16 of Supreme Court Briefs, two dudes fight over whether or not one can operate his steamboat in New York. In the end, the federal government just gets more power.

Lawyer, orator and politician, Daniel Webster was one of the United States’ most famous and accomplished people in the 19th century. But what made him so special and how did he help change America?

New York State 1808 The New York state legislature grants Robert Livingston and Robert Fulton exclusive privileges to operate their steamboats on the rivers of the state. If those names sound familiar, it's because Livingston was, I...

The world's largest scientific archive of animal signal recordings, the Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds, is partnering with other institutions to co-curate and digitize an enormous archive of animal audio and video recordings from...

The 13th episode in a very long series about the American presidential elections from 1788 to the present. I hope to have them done by Election Day 2016. In 1836, the Whig Party emerges and runs four candidates against incumbent Martin...