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Video: Book Breaks

David Eltis - "Atlas of the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade"

Government and Civics

David Eltis is the Robert W. Woodruff Professor Emeritus of History at Emory University. Order Atlas of the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade at the Gilder Lehrman Book Shop We receive an affiliate commission from every purchase through the...

Video: Book Breaks

Robert W. Lee - "A Sin by Any Other Name: Reckoning with Racism and the Heritage of the South"

Government and Civics

Robert W. Lee is an author, activist, commentator, and clergyman. Order A Sin by Any Other Name at the Gilder Lehrman Book Shop We receive an affiliate commission from every purchase through the link provided. Thank you for...

Lesson Plan

Native American Cultures and the Impact of the Boarding Schools

3, 4, 5

Click to download this four-lesson unit.

Video: Book Breaks

Paul Ortiz - "An African American and Latinx History of the United States"

Government and Civics

Paul Ortiz is an associate professor of history and the director of the Samuel Proctor Oral History Program at the University of Florida. Order An African American and Latinx History of the United States at the Gilder Lehrman Book...

Program/Event

Classroom-Ready PD Modules

Our Classroom-Ready PD modules have been designed to provide teachers with ready-made, classroom-friendly resources on the origins and evolution of key topics in American history that have great resonance today. The new online modules...

News

June 2, 2022, Veterans Legacy Program Virtual Program: History of Women in the US Military

In partnership with the National Cemetery Administration’s Veterans Legacy Program, we have been pleased to offer free professional development sessions in the spring of 2022 focusing on different aspects of America’s Unseen Soldiers...

Video: Book Breaks

Linda Colley - "The Gun, the Ship, and the Pen"

Government and Civics

Linda Colley is the Shelby M. C. Davis 1958 Professor of History at Princeton University. Order The Gun, the Ship, and the Pen at the Gilder Lehrman Book Shop We receive an affiliate commission from every purchase through the link...

News

How Did We Get Here? On Demand: “Race Relations and African American History,” Volumes 1 and 2

How Did We Get Here? is a professional development series offered by the Gilder Lehrman Institute that provides teachers with ready-made, classroom-friendly resources on topics in American history that are front-and-center in current...

Video: Book Breaks

Brenda Stevenson - "What Is Slavery?"

Government and Civics, World History

Order What Is Slavery? at the Gilder Lehrman Book Shop We receive an affiliate commission from every purchase through the link provided. Thank you for supporting our programs!

Video: Book Breaks

Noah Feldman - "The Broken Constitution: Lincoln, Slavery, and the Refounding of America"

Government and Civics

Noah Feldman is Felix Frankfurter Professor of Law, Chairman of the Society of Fellows, and founding director of the Julis-Rabinowitz Program on Jewish and Israeli Law at Harvard University. Order The Broken Constitution at the...

About page

Gilder Lehrman Institute Voting Rights Project Wins 2022 Leonore Annenberg Award

$200,000 prize to develop curriculum on the role of states in voting May 18, 2022, PHILADELPHIA – The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History has been awarded the 2022 Leonore Annenberg Institute for Civics Award by the Annenberg...

News

Gilder Lehrman Institute Voting Rights Project Wins 2022 Leonore Annenberg Award

The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History has been awarded the 2022 Leonore Annenberg Institute for Civics Award by the Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania to develop a high school program on the...

Lesson Plan

Explorers and Exploration in Early American History: Shifting the Narrative, 1489-1609

3, 4, 5

Click to download this five-lesson unit.

Spotlight on: Primary Source

Teddy Roosevelt campaigns for a third term, 1912

6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12

In February 1912, former president Theodore Roosevelt stunned the country by challenging President William Howard Taft for the Republican nomination. The move was not only a rejection of his friend Taft, it also violated an unwritten...

Spotlight on: Primary Source

Theodore Roosevelt supports women’s suffrage, 1912

Government and Civics

6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12

In this letter written in July 1912, during his campaign for a thrid term as president, Theodore Roosevelt informs the state and county chairmen of the Progressive Party of his plan to support women’s suffrage. The document shows the...

Video: Inside The Vault

Inside the Vault: D-Day in maps and letters from soldiers and families

Geography, Government and Civics, Science, Technology, Engineering and Math, World History

6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13+

On June 2, 2022, our curators discussed D-Day, the Allied invasion of Normandy on June 6, 1944. They were joined by Professor Michael Neiberg, Chair of War Studies at the US Army War College, who gave an overview of the battle and...

News

Two New Self-Paced Courses: History of Childhood in America and Making Modern America

The Gilder Lehrman Institute is excited to offer two new Self-Paced Courses. History of Childhood in America , led by Steven Mintz, University of Texas at Austin Making Modern America , led by Margaret O’Mara, University of Washington...

Interactive

Timeline: The Era of Theodore Roosevelt

6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12

About page

Announcing the Gilder Lehrman College Fellows in American History for 2022

May 24, 2022, NEW YORK CITY – The Gilder Lehrman Institute is pleased to announce the selection of ten Gilder Lehrman College Fellows in American History for 2022. Through its newly launched College Fellowship Program in American...

Video: Book Breaks

Marcia Chatelain - "Franchise: The Golden Arches in Black America"

Economics

Marcia Chatelain is a Provost's Distinguished Associate Professor of History and African American Studies at Georgetown University. Order Franchise at the Gilder Lehrman Book Shop We receive an affiliate commission from every...

History Now Issue

The Declaration of Independence and the Long Struggle for Equality in America

#63 Summer 2022

History Now Essay

The Escape of Black Women during the American Revolution

Karen Cook Bell

In 1961, Morgan State University historian Dr. Benjamin Quarles published the now classic study The Negro in the American Revolution , which became the definitive account of the role African Americans played in the War for...

Appears in:

63 | The Declaration of Independence and the Long Struggle for Equality in America Summer 2022

History Now Essay

A Second Declaration of Independence: The 1848 Declaration of Sentiments

Sally G. McMillen

“We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men and women are created equal. [1] Upon casual reading, this phrase should sound familiar. Yet unlike what appeared in our nation’s 1776 Declaration of Independence, the 1848...

Appears in:

63 | The Declaration of Independence and the Long Struggle for Equality in America Summer 2022

History Now Essay

From the Editor

Carol Berkin

The Declaration of Independence was written to explain the just causes for the Americans’ break with their mother country. In it, Thomas Jefferson carefully listed the American grievances against the king, creating a catalogue of...

Appears in:

63 | The Declaration of Independence and the Long Struggle for Equality in America Summer 2022

About page

2022 George Washington Prize Awarded to Bruce A. Ragsdale for “Washington at the Plow”

May 26, 2022, MOUNT VERNON, VA — Bruce A. Ragsdale has been awarded the 2022 George Washington Prize for his work Washington at the Plow: The Founding Farmer and the Question of Slavery . The annual award recognizes the past year’s...

History Now Essay

Polish Political Exiles and the Legacy of the American Revolution in the Antebellum US

Derek Kane O'Leary

World History

In the second of the Cabinet rap battles in Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Hamilton (2015), Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton wage a fiery debate in 1796 about whether the US should honor its old treaty obligations to a newly...

Appears in:

63 | The Declaration of Independence and the Long Struggle for Equality in America Summer 2022

Essay

An Introduction to Juneteenth

Graham Hodges

Juneteenth is the most widely recognized, long-lived Black commemoration of slavery’s demise. Juneteenth marks June 19, 1865, when federal troops commanded by General George Granger arrived in Galveston, Texas, to proclaim freedom to...

News

2022 George Washington Prize Awarded to Bruce A. Ragsdale for “Washington at the Plow”

Bruce A. Ragsdale has been awarded the 2022 George Washington Prize for his work Washington at the Plow: The Founding Farmer and the Question of Slavery . The annual award recognizes the past year’s best works on the nation’s founding...

News

Announcing the Gilder Lehrman College Fellows in American History for 2022

The Gilder Lehrman Institute is pleased to announce the selection of ten Gilder Lehrman College Fellows in American History for 2022. Through its newly launched College Fellowship Program in American History, the Gilder Lehrman...

News

Announcing the Summer 2022 Issue of HISTORY NOW: The Declaration of Independence and the Long Struggle for Equality in America

The Summer 2022 issue of History Now , " The Declaration of Independence and the Long Struggle for Equality in America ," illustrates the ways in which the centuries-long struggle of African Americans, women, and others to achieve...

Video: Book Breaks

Megan Kate Nelson - "Saving Yellowstone: Exploration and Preservation in Reconstruction America"

Economics

Megan Kate Nelson is a writer and historian who has written about the Civil War, US western history, and American culture for the New York Times , the Washington Post , The Atlantic , Time , and Smithsonian Magazine . Order Saving...

Video: Book Breaks

Ricardo A. Herrera - "Feeding Washington's Army: Surviving the Valley Forge Winter of 1778"

Government and Civics

Ricardo A. Herrera is a professor of military history in the School of Advanced Military Studies at the US Army Command and General Staff College. Order Feeding Washington’s Army at the Gilder Lehrman Book Shop We receive an...

News

Cold War Video Series from Gilder Lehrman History School Wins Telly Award

The Gilder Lehrman Institute is proud to announce that the Cold War series created by Retro Report for the 2021 History School course led by 2018 National History Teacher of the Year Joe Welch is a Silver Winner in the Education &...

News

Four Book Breaks from the Archives for Juneteenth

Every week, the Gilder Lehrman Institute interviews award-winning historians about important topics in American history on Book Breaks . Our growing archive of past episodes serves as a diverse and abundant resource for students,...

Video: Book Breaks

C. Patrick Burrowes - "Liberia & the Quest for Freedom"

World History

Carl Patrick Burrows is a leading Liberian historian. He has served as vice president for academic affairs at Cuttington University and the Carter G. Woodson Distinguished Professor at Marshall University. Order Liberia & the...

News

Mix and Match Your Teacher Seminars: Examples from Real Teachers

Gilder Lehrman Institute Teacher Seminars —part of our 2022 Summer PD programming –are being held online this summer, which means teachers can participate from anywhere, even on vacation. But the quality is still top-notch, providing...

Program/Event

Celebrating American Historical Holidays

News

A New Resource Collection for Celebrating American Historical Holidays

Recognizing and celebrating historical holidays—from memorializations of monumental American figures such as Martin Luther King Jr. to remembrances of events like Juneteenth—offer entry points for a deeper exploration of the pivotal...

Video: Book Breaks

Jeanne Theoharis - "A More Beautiful and Terrible History: The Uses and Misuses of Civil Rights History"

Government and Civics, Literature

Jeanne Theoharis is a Distinguished Professor of Political Science at Brooklyn College. Order A More Beautiful and Terrible History at the Gilder Lehrman Book Shop We receive an affiliate commission from every purchase through the...

News

Celebrate the Fourth of July with Gilder Lehrman Resources and Book Breaks

Fourth of July Resources The Gilder Lehrman Institute invites everyone—students, teachers, and history enthusiasts—to visit our new Fourth of July resource page and explore materials related to American independence. Expect to find:...

Lesson Plan

What Does Liberty Look Like?

Government and Civics

" We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness ." Declaration of...

Video: Book Breaks

Elliott West - "The Essential West: Collected Essays"

Geography

Elliot West is an Alumni Distinguished Professor of History at the University of Arkansas Order The Essential West: Collected Essays at the Gilder Lehrman Book Shop We receive an affiliate commission from every purchase through the...

News

History U Offers New Course on the American Revolution for High School Students

The Gilder Lehrman Institute’s History U offers free, graduate-level American history courses with top scholars for high school students. NEW COURSE! The American Revolution with Professor Carol Berkin This course focuses on the story...

Video: Book Breaks

Denver Brunsman - "The Evil Necessity: British Naval Impressment in the Eighteenth-Century Atlantic World"

Government and Civics, Science, Technology, Engineering and Math, World History

Denver Brunsman is an associate professor of history at The George Washington University. Order The Evil Necessity at the Gilder Lehrman Book Shop We receive an affiliate commission from every purchase through the link provided....

News

Announcing Our 50th Self-Paced Course: American Colonies, led by Alan Taylor

Gilder Lehrman Self-Paced Courses offer graduate-level instruction in American history led by the nation’s top historians. We are pleased to announce that the addition of Alan Taylor’s American Colonies course now brings us to 50 Self...

Video: Book Breaks

David Hackett Fischer - "African Founders: How Enslaved People Expanded American Ideals"

Art, Economics, Foreign Languages, Geography, Government and Civics, Literature, Religion and Philosophy

David Hackett Fischer is University Professor and Earl Warren Professor of History, Emeritus at Brandeis University. Order African Founders at the Gilder Lehrman Book Shop We receive an affiliate commission from every purchase...

News

Spotlight on the MA: The Revolutionary Lives of Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr.

Registration is now open for fall courses in the new Gettysburg College–Gilder Lehrman MA in American History —an affordable, fully online master’s degree program, led by renowned, award-winning historians, that brings together the...

Video: Book Breaks

Susan Schulten - "A History of America in 100 Maps"

Geography

Susan Schulten is a professor of history at the University of Denver. Order A History of America in 100 Maps at the Gilder Lehrman Book Shop We receive an affiliate commission from every purchase through the link provided. Thank you...

Video: Book Breaks

Dorothy Wickenden - "The Agitators: Three Friends Who Fought for Abolition and Women's Rights"

Government and Civics

Dorothy Wickenden is the executive editor of The New Yorker . Order The Agitators at the Gilder Lehrman Book Shop We receive an affiliate commission from every purchase through the link provided. Thank you for supporting our programs...

News

Announcing the 2022 Frederick Douglass Book Prize Finalists

We are pleased to announce the finalists for the twenty-fourth annual Frederick Douglass Book Prize, one of the most coveted awards for the study of the African American experience. Jointly sponsored by the Gilder Lehrman Institute of...

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The Declaration of Independence and the Long Struggle for Equality in America

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