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Take a closer look at George Washington’s letter using 18th-century abbreviations.

There’s less than one month left until the Hamilton student matinee on April 13! This week, discover Alexander Hamilton in the American Imagination , the newest issue of History Now , Gilder Lehrman’s online journal . In five essays,...

Yesterday, the cast of Hamilton were welcomed to the White House by President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama for a day of events that honored the musical’s groundbreaking qualities and showcased its ability to inspire...

There are only three short weeks until the first student matinee of Hamilton on April 13! This week, discover a letter written by Alexander Hamilton. When the hotly contested election of 1800 ended in a tie between the two Democratic...

On the afternoon of Saturday, March 25, 1911, the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory in New York City caught fire, killing 146 of the 500 employees—mostly young immigrant women and girls . The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory produced women’s...

We’re almost there—only two more weeks until the first student matinee of Hamilton ! This week, watch Ron Chernow, author of Alexander Hamilton — the biography that inspired the musical — discuss the Founding Father ’ s achievements...

Watch highlights from the Frederick Douglass Book Prize ceremony , on February 4. The highlights include remarks by James G. Basker, president of the Gilder Lehrman Institute; David Blight, director of the Gilder Lehrman Center for...

In exactly one week, the Hamilton Student Education Program launches with its first matinee performance. This 1804 letter was written by Angelica Schuyler Church, Alexander Hamilton’s sister-in-law and close friend, after Hamilton’s...

On April 3, 2016, Joseph Medicine Crow, the last living link to the Battle of Little Bighorn , died at the age of 102. Medicine Crow heard firsthand accounts of the 1876 battle from his great uncle White Man Runs Him, who was one of...

On the night of April 14–15, 1912, the world’s largest passenger steamship, the RMS Titanic , sank in the Atlantic Ocean after hitting an iceberg during its maiden voyage, with approximately 1,500 people still on board. This letter,...

Martha Hodes’s 2016 Gilder Lehrman Lincoln Prize–winning book Mourning Lincoln is an in-depth look at the national trauma that followed Abraham Lincoln’s death on April 15, 1865. In this video Hodes talks about her extensive research...

He had led the country for more than a dozen years, guiding Americans through the Great Depression and a global war. On April 12, 1945, Franklin Roosevelt, the leader that many Americans had grown up with, died at Warm Springs,...

Today is the Hamilton Education Program ’s first student matinee! 1,300 New York City high school students are participating in the launch of the program, which includes presenting original student performances, having a special Q-and...

We’ve got tips on how to tackle all the sections of the AP Exam: Check out the videos from our AP US History Study Guide below!

Historian Adam Rome tells the story of a teach-in that sparked an international movement. Find out more about Earth Day events in your area.

Earthquakes are very much in the news, with devastating events in Ecuador and Japan within the past week. On April 18, 1906, a devastating earthquake, still by far the deadliest in US history, hit San Francisco. Almost immediately,...

Historian Catherine Clinton traces the life and times of the woman whose face will grace the new twenty dollar bill.

Thinking of hosting a Gilder Lehrman traveling exhibition at your school? Get some tips for incorporating one of our exhibitions into your curriculum from New Dorp High School in Staten Island, New York! New Dorp High School has...

The second Hamilton Education Program student matinee is underway! Over 1,200 high school students are having a day of student performances inspired by the musical, a cast Q-and-A session, and a performance of Hamilton. Stay tuned for...

On May 17, 1954, the US Supreme Court handed down a landmark decision in Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas , unanimously ruling that racial segregation in schools was unconstitutional. The decision overturned the 1896...

Many Americans are familiar with at least a few of the haunting images taken at the behest of the federal government during the Great Depression and World War II. Dorothea Lange’s haunting " Migrant Mother " is among the most...

On this day in 1932 Amelia Earhart took off from Harbor Grace, Newfoundland. Although Earhart aimed for Paris, icy weather forced her to land in a farmer’s pasture in Ireland fifteen hours after takeoff. She became the second person...

The Indian Removal Act was passed by Congress on this day in 1830 and signed by President Andrew Jackson two days later. The act called for the removal of American Indians residing within state borders in the East to a newly created...

According to the US Veterans Administration, every three minutes a veteran of World War II dies. That means that some 430 memories of that conflict go missing each and every day. You can help preserve important memories of WWII and...

When Helen Keller died on June 1, 1968, the world mourned. The American Federation for the Blind summarized her life: "Her story is, in brief, that of a half-wild creature become a highly intelligent and sensitive citizen with a...