News On This Day: Stock Market Crash, 1929 On October 24, 1929, the stock market experienced its first major crisis in the Wall Street Crash of 1929, eventually leading to the Great Depression . On that day, known as Black Thursday, stock prices fell sharply as investors...
News Explore "Who Can Vote?" as It Travels across the Country This June This summer, the Gilder Lehrman Institute invites you to view Who Can Vote?: A Brief History of Voting Rights in the US as it tours the country. From June 3 through June 28, this traveling exhibition—created as part of The Right to...
Basic Page History U | World War II World War II This History U course aims to add more context and nuance to the traditional American views of the Second World War. Course Instructor : Professor Michael Neiberg, US Army War College Eligibility : High school students Image Source: A...
Basic Page History U | The 1960s in Historical Perspective The 1960s in Historical Perspective This History U course explores the myths and memories that constitute our perceptions of the 1960s. Course Instructors : Professor Michael Flamm, Ohio Wesleyan University, and Professor Michael Kazin, Georgetown...
Basic Page History U | Making Modern America Making Modern America This History U course explores key moments and people in the history of the United States from the end of World War I to the present. Course Instructor : Professor Margaret O’Mara, University of Washington Eligibility : High...
Basic Page History U | The History of American Protest The History of American Protest This History U course explores the rich history of progressive protest literature in the United States from the American Revolution to contemporary music. Course Instructor : Professor John Stauffer, Harvard...
Basic Page History U | The Global Cold War The Global Cold War This History U course examines the origins, strategy, and consequences of the Cold War from a global perspective. Course Instructor : Professor Jeremi Suri, University of Texas at Austin Eligibility : High school students Image...
Basic Page History U | Black Women's History Black Women's History This History U course focuses on African American women’s history in the United States with certain aspects of Black women’s activism and leadership within the African Diaspora. Course Instructor : Professor Kellie Carter...
Basic Page History U | The American West The American West This History U course will examine the expansion of the United States to the Pacific, the exploration of the West, the defeat and dispossession and profound tragedy of its Native peoples, and unparalleled environmental...
Basic Page History U | The American Revolution The American Revolution This History U course focuses on the story of the birth and initial growth of the United States of America. Course Instructor : Professor Carol Berkin, Baruch College and The City University of New York Eligibility : High...
Basic Page History U | American Indian History: Recasting the Narrative American Indian History: Recasting the Narrative This History U course will introduce and explore the complexities of American Indian history from the Columbian Exchange through Native activism in the twentieth century. Course Instructor : Professor...
Basic Page History U | American Immigration History: People, Patterns, and Policy American Immigration History: People, Patterns, and Policy This History U course enables students to better understand the history of American immigration from the colonial period to the twenty-first century. Course Instructor : Professor Madeline Y...
Video: Book Breaks Amanda Bellows - "The Explorers: A New History of the United States in Ten Expeditions" World History Amanda Bellows’s writing has appeared in the New York Times , the Washington Post , and Talking Points Memo . She currently teaches at The New School in New York City. Order The Explorers at the Gilder Lehrman Book Shop We receive an...
Spotlight on: Primary Source "Men of Color, To Arms! To Arms," 1863 After the Emancipation Proclamation was enacted on January 1, 1863, Black leaders including Frederick Douglass swiftly moved to recruit African Americans as soldiers. “A war undertaken and brazenly carried on for the perpetual...
Program/Event Traveling Exhibitions | Who Can Vote? A Brief History of Voting Rights in the US > This exhibition examines voting rights with an emphasis on the role of the US Constitution and the interplay between the states and federal government in determining who is allowed to vote. Beginning with the founding...
Program/Event Collection Programs | Student Transcription Project Welcome to the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History Digital Volunteer Transcription Project. You may start transcribing documents from the Gilder Lehrman Collection by selecting one of the projects below and logging in with...
Special Topics The Declaration at 250 “The Declaration at 250” is a multi-year, broad-based initiative by the Gilder Lehrman Institute to recognize the importance of the Declaration of Independence in the history of America, and of the world. The initiative will produce...
Program/Event Internship Program July 20 Applications for the 2024–2025 Academic Year Program are now closed. If you would like to be notified about future internship opportunities, please complete the internship interest form here . The Gilder Lehrman Institute...
Basic Page Scholarships and Financial Aid Scholarships and Financial Aid There are many ways to help fund your master's degree. Thanks to funding from generous donors, the Gilder Lehrman Institute awards scholarships every term for new and returning students in the MA in American History...
Classroom Resources Infographic: The Vietnam War Military Statistics Government and Civics, World History 9, 10, 11, 12 Download Infographic as PDF Questions for Discussion In what year were the greatest number of US service members stationed in Vietnam? In what year were there the greatest number of US battle deaths in Vietnam? How many...
Lesson Plan The Trail of Tears 5, 6, 7, 8 Historical Background In 1830, under President Andrew Jackson, Congress passed the Indian Removal Act directing the executive branch to negotiate for American Indian lands. The act set the tone for President Jackson in dealing with...
Video: Book Breaks Robert W. Merry - "Decade of Disunion: How Massachusetts and South Carolina Led the Way to Civil War, 1849-1861" Government and Civics Robert W. Merry has authored six books, including President McKinley: Architect of the American Century and A Country of Vast Designs: James K. Polk, the Mexican War and the Conquest of the American Continent . Order Decade of...
Program/Event Teacher Seminars Online We are pleased to be celebrating thirty years of Teacher Seminars that give K–12 educators the opportunity to study with eminent American history professors and dive deep into primary sources with master teachers. Each seminar is composed of...
Lesson Plan Children’s Attitudes about Slavery and Women’s Abolitionism as Seen through Anti-slavery Fairs 6, 7, 8 Overview Over two days, students will examine the attitudes that children from northern states had about slavery during the 1830s to 1860s and how abolitionists tried to change their way of thinking. They will also explore how woman...
About page 2024 George Washington Prize Nominees Announced Mount Vernon, VA, July 25, 2024—Five books published in 2023 and authored by some of the nation’s most respected historians are finalists for the 2024 George Washington Prize. This annual literary award recognizes the past year’s...
About page Finalists for the Eleventh Annual Gilder Lehrman Military History Prize Announced New York, NY, July 30, 2024 – The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History and the New-York Historical Society announced today the three finalists for the eleventh annual Gilder Lehrman Military History Prize. The $50,000 prize is...