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This archive of twenty-six documents was compiled by Pierce Butler when he served as one of South Carolina’s delegates to the US Constitutional Convention in 1787. It includes the printed first and second drafts of the Constitution;...

The Gilder Lehrman Collection has more than 10,000 letters written by soldiers during the American Civil War, and when you read dozens or even hundreds of letters by the same person, it is very much like reality television. You become...

The Henry Knox Papers in the Gilder Lehrman Collection contain more than 10,000 documents dating from 1750 to 1820. The bulk of the archive chronicles the American Revolution and early founding era. The depth and complexity of the...

A good primary source will give you a sense of immediacy and awe that makes history come alive and leaves you with a deeper understanding of an event. It is one of the key elements we look for when adding materials to the Gilder...

The Gilder Lehrman Collection includes a letter and a painting by Ulysses S. Grant when he was a cadet at the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York. These unique items reveal Grant as the equivalent of a modern-day...

If you don’t see the full story below, click here (PDF) or click here (Google Docs) to read it—free!

If you don’t see the full story below, click here (PDF) or click here (Google Docs) to read it—free!

If you don’t see the full story below, click here (PDF) or click here (Google Docs) to read it—free!

If you don’t see the full story below, click here (PDF) or click here (Google Docs) to read it—free!

If you don’t see the full story below, click here (PDF) or click here (Google Docs) to read it—free!

If you don’t see the full story below, click here (PDF) or click here (Google Docs) to read it—free!

If you don’t see the full story below, click here (PDF) or click here (Google Docs) to read it—free!

If you don’t see the full story below, click here (PDF) or click here (Google Docs) to read it—free!

Sometimes documents leave us with more questions than answers. That is definitely true for this letter of October 8, 1859, from an unidentified man to his mother—both of whom appear to be slaves! The author refers twice to having a...

These miniature portraits of Jane and Franklin Pierce, attributed to artist Moses B. Russell, were painted shortly after the couple was married in 1834. Measuring only 4 ¼ inches tall by 3 ½ inches wide, the paintings have gilt-metal...

Between battles, marches, and military exercises, Civil War soldiers spent their free time in camp playing music, writing and reading letters, and, for those with the skill, sketching scenes from the day. This unknown soldier’s...

In the fall of 1941 Thomas Barwiss Hagstoz Askin Jr. was on board USS Memphis counting down the days until his enlistment in the United States Navy ended. He recorded his experience in a diary he entitled "Memorys and Incidents of My...

After his escape from slavery in 1838, Frederick Douglass became a well-known orator and abolitionist. In 1845, he wrote an autobiography that increased his influence, but also increased the chances that he would be captured and...

When World War I ended, President Woodrow Wilson attended the Paris Peace Conference, where the Allied nations met to write the Treaty of Versailles . In September 1919, President Woodrow Wilson embarked on a speaking tour of US...

Explore in depth Paul Revere’s 1770 print "Brittish Ships of War Landing Their Troops, 1768" and check out Paul Revere’s related propaganda print of the Boston Massacre .

View the full Battle of the Thames document and read an essay on the Battle for Baltimore during the War of 1812 .

View Columbus’s letter , read an excerpt , or view a depiction of his landing .

On Monday, October 12, many Americans had the day off and stores hosted sales under the name of that 15th-century Italian explorer, Christopher Columbus. But Columbus’s impact on our world reaches past a 3-day weekend and great deals...

Ever wonder why the name "Fido" has become synonymous with dogs? It all goes back to a very special dog belonging to Abraham Lincoln. Lincoln always had a fondness for animals, and it has been speculated that he relied on his pets to...

On October 27, 1904, New York City was forever changed. Nine miles of what one day would become 137 miles of subway track were ready for travel. After months of construction and a few iffy test rides, the IRT (Interborough Rapid...