58,176 items
On December 2, 1823, President James Monroe delivered his annual message to Congress. In one portion, now known as the Monroe Doctrine , he declared that the United States would not meddle in European affairs, and warned European...
A Jamestown Settler Describes Life in Virginia: On This Day, January 13, 1622
In 1622, colonist Sebastian Brandt wrote a letter to a merchant in London , seeking supplies and assistance. Brandt had arrived in Jamestown intending to scour the land for precious minerals such as gold, silver, and copper. But he...
A Christmas V-Mail from World War II
V-mail, or Victory Mail, was a WWII-era operation to expedite mail service for Americans serving overseas. V-mail was written on standardized stationery, photographed onto 16mm microfilm, transported to the US or other destination,...
Inside the Vault: British Troops Landing in Boston Harbor
Explore just one of the fascinating items from the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History collection!
Thanksgiving as a National Holiday
Read an excerpt from Lincoln’s Thanksgiving Proclamation of 1863 or learn more about the history of Thanksgiving as a national holiday .
Inside the Vault: The "Long S"
Take a closer look at the first draft of the US Constitution to see an example of the "long S" in print.
Back in 1734
Introduction Present the following scenario to your students. You can either read it to them or enlist students to act it out. The scenario is about two children who lived in 1734 and were the age of your students. "Anna Elizabeth and...
Affiliate School Program | Gettysburg College–Gilder Lehrman Institute History Scholarship
The Gilder Lehrman Institute and Gettysburg College are pleased to offer the Gettysburg College–Gilder Lehrman Institute History Scholarship. Each year, Gettysburg College will provide two scholarships at $5,000 per year for four...
Inside the Vault: Abraham Lincoln, Mary Owens, and the Accidental Engagement
Read the full transcript of the letter Lincoln wrote Mary Owens and view the Lincoln Speaks exhibition that explores the power of Lincoln's words.
The March on Washington: A Virtual Tour
Join Dr. Clayborne Carson, Director of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute at Stanford University, for a virtual tour of the 1963 March on Washington.
Calvin Coolidge and Economic Growth
Amity Shlaes, chair of the Calvin Coolidge Presidential Foundation and author of Coolidge (2013), discusses Calvin Coolidge and his economic policies during a seminar for history teachers in Wichita, Kansas.
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Inside the Vault: JFK Assassination Ticker Tape
Read a transcript of the Dow Jones News Service ticker tape and read about the power of John F. Kennedy’s inaugural address in Great Inaugural Addresses: History Now 36 (Summer 2013) .
Frederick Douglass on Lincoln and Reconstruction
Dickinson College historian Matthew Pinsker describes changes in Frederick Douglass’s opinion of Abraham Lincoln between Lincoln’s assassination in 1865 and the unveiling of the Freedmen’s Monument in Lincoln Park, Washington, DC, in...
History Scholar Award for Undergraduates Accepting Applications through April 15
For the 2019 Gilder Lehrman History Scholar Award , up to fifteen outstanding college students will be recognized for excellence in American history or American studies as well as commitment to public service, leadership, and...
Traveling Exhibitions | Frequently Asked Questions
General Exhibition FAQ How can I pay? We can accept credit card, check, or purchase order. We cannot accept bank transfers at this time. Do you offer any discounts or grants? Unfortunately, we aren’t able to offer any discounts or...
The Post-Revolutionary Generation
Joyce Appleby, Professor Emerita, University of California, Los Angeles, explores how the men and women born after the American Revolution experienced and developed the theoretical ideas of liberty and independence put in place by...
Reason and Emotion in Revolutionary America
New York University historian Nicole Eustace discusses the "tempest of emotion" that swept through the Age of Reason, epitomized by the earliest call for a full break between the American colonies and Great Britain, Thomas Paine’s...
Programs & Events
The Institute promotes and celebrates accomplishments in American history education and scholarship at every level. Deepen your understanding and appreciation of American history by participating in a program or joining the Institute...
Arguing Cases in the Supreme Court
Jeffrey L. Fisher is Associate Professor of Law at Stanford University Law School and Co-Director of the Supreme Court Litigation Clinic. He analyzes the current Supreme Court including the personalities and philosophies involved,...
The Calhoun School Cyanotype Album: Document in a Minute
Gilder Lehrman curator Beth Huffer discusses a cyanotpe album from the Calhoun Industrial School around the turn of the century. The Calhoun School was a social experiment of the Hampton Institute in Virginia, in which local...
The Lewis and Clark Expedition
View a full-screen version of The Lewis and Clark Exhibition . Learn more about the Louisiana Purchase in Elliott West’s essay " America the Newcomer: Claiming the Louisiana Purchase " and a printed copy of the map Meriwether Lewis...
Spotlight on Primary Sources
Spotlights on Primary Sources Each of the Spotlights from our Collection provides explanatory text, a transcript, and an image of the featured document. Questions for classroom discussion are available to K–12 teachers. Below are some...
SAT US History Exam
The SAT US History Exam is only two weeks away, on January 21! Forty percent of the exam will focus on the momentous events and changes of the twentieth century. Prepare by reviewing the prewar , postwar , and present-day eras, or...
Activist for Equality: Frederick Douglass at 200
Born to Harriet Bailey, an enslaved woman in Maryland in February 1818, Douglass lived twenty years as a slave and nearly nine years as a fugitive. From the 1840s to his death in 1895, he attained international fame as an...
Meeting Miss Wright: Orville and Wilbur’s Talented Sister
On December 17, 1903, the Orville and Wilbur Wright achieved the first successful airplane flight. Historian David McCullough says one of the most enjoyable things about working on his book The Wright Brothers was becoming acquainted...
Progressive Era Reform Movements at a Glance
Are you teaching the Progressive Era this spring? Use the infographic below to provide your students an overview of the reform movements that make the Progressive Era stand out as a time of massive social, political, and economic...
His Excellency George Washington
Joseph J. Ellis, who won the Pulitzer Prize for Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation and the National Book Award for American Sphinx , examines George Washington’s career as a general and the challenges he faced as the...
Living and Dying in the Civil War
West Virginia University historian Aaron Sheehan-Dean offers thoughts on the Library of America series The Civil War Told by Those Who Lived It at a Gilder Lehrman webinar on the Civil War 150 traveling exhibition. The exhibition is...
Inside the Vault: Columbus Reports on His First Voyage, 1493
Gilder Lehrman curator Beth Huffer explores a report from Columbus to his sponsors. When Columbus arrived back in Spain on March 15, 1493, he immediately wrote a letter announcing his discoveries to King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella,...
Dear George Washington Contest Winners 2018
Fifth-Grade Division First Place Sarah Lowe, Destin Middle School, Destin, FL Second Place Padmalakshmi Ramesh, Spring Creek Elementary School, Laramie, WY Third Place Allison Fleck, Richard B. Wilson K-8 School, Tuscon, AZ Fourth...
"Thanksgiving: Another Serving" from Jill Lepore
Harvard professor and New Yorker staff writer Jill Lepore describes how, within a single generation, relations between the settlers and the Wampanoags declined from the fabled First Thanksgiving to a devastating war. Lepore notes: ...
"Bookending" the Twentieth Century
The twentieth century was packed with socio-economic changes in American society. It is often difficult to understand just how different our country was at the beginning of the century. Use the infographic below as you are teaching...
WWI Project Deadline Fast Approaching
The deadline for the WWI and America Project is January 13, 2017, in just three weeks! Public, academic, and community college libraries have the opportunity to join institutions across the country in commemorating the 100th...
Traveling Exhibitions | World War I and America
World War I and America examines the role the United States played in World War I and the impact of this move away from a policy of isolationism. Viewers will learn about life on the homefront and at war through documents, posters,...
"The Wall"
A young boy and his father visit the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. Read by Rory O'Maley , who is King George in the North American Tour of Hamilton. Published in 1990 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Order The Wall at the Gilder Lehrman...
Library Programs | Library Affiliate Web Portal
As a member of the Library Affiliate Program, you have access to valuable resources for librarians, teachers, and students, including: RESOURCES developed for K–12 school students, such as a study guide for the AP US History test FREE...
Affiliate School Program | Affiliate School History Scholarships
The Gilder Lehrman Institute is pleased to partner with Gettysburg College and Marist College to offer scholarships of $5,000 or more each year for up to four years exclusively for Gilder Lehrman Affiliate School students. Click the...
Traveling Exhibitions | Becoming the United States: Colonial America to Reconstruction
Becoming the US is designed to introduce upper elementary-aged students to the beginnings of American history and the skills involved in primary source analysis. Using items from the Gilder Lehrman Collection, it explores individuals,...
Who Will Tell Your Story? Get Creative with EduHam
Have you seen other students’ performance pieces from the Hamilton Education Program and wondered, “How do I do that?” In this class, we will look at primary source documents on the Hamilton Education Program website and find their...
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