Letter From The Editors

Richard’s praise is extravagant, for what we have put together (with untiring help from him, of course) is just the beginning. We want the new americanheritage.com to be the definitive site for history on the Web, and to achieve that, it will grow and grow. But even at the beginning we think it offers a great deal. The highlight, and the first thing you see on the homepage, is at least one new feature article every day, timely, provocative, and touching on any aspect of our shared past. October 2005 brings us not only the 513th anniversary of Columbus’s discovery, which launches American history as we know it, but also the 10th anniversary of the O. J. Simpson verdict. Both those events have affected all of us, and we’ll cover them both and look at their import. We’ll also respond to breaking news as a six-times-a-year publication never could. When a new Chief Justice is being selected, we’ll tell you how that was done differently in the past; when Social Security comes back to the political fore, we’ll rediscover how it all began; when scandal hits Washington, as it surely will, we’ll give the perspective no one else offers. And we’ll keep you up-to-date on all the new books and movies you want to know about. The Greatest Game Ever Played , a film about the unbelievable first U.S. Open golf tournament, premieres this month. We’re the ones who will tell you how true to history it is.

That’s just the tip of the iceberg. We’re building an archive of 50 years of articles from American Heritage magazine, fully indexed and searchable, to create a powerful resource for students and anyone else curious about the past and eager to read great writing about it. We’re offering an authoritative guide to all the best other sites out there about history, from travel sites to museum sites and enthusiast sites and scholarly sites, and on and on. Speaking of travel, we’re creating a travel page that will carry frequently changing feature articles in the spirit of “History Happened Here,” as well as listings of the best events and tours and festivals and shows all over the country, both nationally and by region. And at www.americanheritage.com/blog , we bring you American Heritage ’s top contributors, with their unique perspective and historical insight, responding instantly to news, events, books, entertainment, and anything else that strikes them.

The final ingredient added to all that, to make it complete, is you, the site’s user. We’re including discussion links with every article, so that you can respond to it, agree or disagree, and get a conversation going. We’ll offer e-mail updates, so you can know when articles on your favorite subjects are appearing. And we’ll want you to tell us how we’re doing. Please Email Comments to tell us what you like, what you don’t like, and what you’d wish to see on the site that isn’t yet there.

We want americanheritage.com to be the new place where history happens. The final test of our success will be what you think of it. Check it out, and please let us know.

—Frederick E. Allen