Curated Video
What is the Statue of Liberty?
The Statue of Liberty is more than just a statue – it’s a collection of powerful symbols that represent the United States, its history and the ideals that it holds dear.
Curated Video
Building The White House
The White House stands as a symbol of freedom, but the story behind its construction reveals some important contradictions.
Curated Video
Types of People in the Colonies
Colonial America housed many diverse inhabitants—from the enslaved to the gentry—each contributing to society in different ways.
Curated Video
Life in the Colonies: African Enslavement
Africans brought to the Thirteen Colonies faced hardships and resisted slavery in their quest for freedom.
Curated Video
Life in the Colonies: Women
In the Thirteen Colonies, women had limited rights and freedoms. Their lives, influenced by marriage, status, and coverture laws varied greatly, reflecting the evolving society of the time.
Curated Video
Federal and State Powers
The U.S. Constitution divides power between the federal government and states, granting specific national powers and reserving others to states via the 10th Amendment, with federal laws generally overriding state laws.
Curated Video
Constitution
The U.S. Constitution, drafted in 1787, established a strong federal government, outlining legislative, executive, and judicial branches, and remains the nation's supreme governing document.
Curated Video
What is The Liberty Bell?
From its creation in 1701 to its role in American independence and beyond, the Liberty Bell embodies the United States’ enduring values of liberty, equality, democracy, and freedom for all.
Curated Video
Julia Stockton Rush: Love and Family Amid War
Julia Stockton Rush's letters offer a unique glimpse into the lives of women during the American Revolution, capturing a nation's birth from a female perspective.
Curated Video
What are Unalienable Rights?
What are unalienable rights and why are they so important? In this video, we explore why Thomas Jefferson included them for the first time in the Declaration of Independence.
PBS
The Dark Origins of Hansel and Gretel
Hansel and Gretel is one of the most famous fairy tales of the Western world, and contains one of the most notorious witches. In this episode you’ll learn about witch trials in Germany, the role famine and poverty play in creating...
Amor Sciendi
Portrait of Paul Revere: Moral Consumerism
John Singleton Copley portrait of Paul Revere illustrates the ethical nature of creating luxury goods in pre-revolution America and how it lead to revolt.
Curated Video
Being a Historian
Five eminent historians give us a sense of both the excitement and frustration of life as a professional historian on the front lines of research. Featured are: Richard Janko (University of Michigan), Miri Rubin (QMUL), Darrin McMahon...
Curated Video
Declaration of Independence
For those taking the U.S. Citizenship test, knowing and understanding the importance of the Declaration of Independence is essential.
Weird History
Origins of Common Terms
Have you ever heard a word or phrase and wondered when people started saying it? And why? Language is constantly changing, and many of the common terms and phrases we use in everyday conversation have much deeper meanings than we...
Curated Video
Understanding American Religiosity
Historian David Hollinger (UC Berkeley) gives his perspective on why the United States appears to be internationally unique in its contemporary attitude towards religion.
Curated Video
Unexpected Windows
Intellectual historian Darrin McMahon (Dartmouth) describes the benefits of engaging in intellectual history.
Curated Video
Tracing A Path
Intellectual historian Darrin McMahon (Dartmouth) details how investigating the etymology of "genius" naturally led him to a deeper understanding of what he had previously thought was primarily an 18th-century phenomenon.
Curated Video
The Future of the Past
Classicist Richard Janko (Michigan) describes his motivation to find new perspectives of the past, and his excitement at the possibility of retrieving long-lost manuscripts.
Curated Video
In Need of Revision
UCLA historian Margaret Jacob describes how, in her view, much of what scholars currently say about Unitarianism is wrong and that the time is ripe for a rigorous historical analysis of its intellectual origins and influences.
Curated Video
Investigating States
Historian David Armitage (Harvard) details the evolution of his interest in the overlap of history and politics.
Curated Video
Empires, States, and Independence
Harvard historian David Armitage describes the evolution of his thinking on the role of the state throughout history.
Curated Video
Oath of Office
Promises might just seem like words, but in the legal system and government, they’re crucial. Oath of Office is part of a tradition that dates back hundreds of years.