Bernard A. Weisberger
Bernard A. Weisberger, distinguished former history professor of Wayne State University and the Universities of Chicago and Rochester, was the associate editor of American Heritage from 1970 to 1972. He recently authored When Chicago Ruled Baseball: The Cubs-White Sox World Series of 1906 (William Morrow 2006), and has also written Reporters for the Union, a study of Civil War newspapermen.
Articles by this Contributor
November 1997
Why the possible liaison between Thomas Jefferson and his slave Sally Hemings matters to us
December 1997
Whenever a new information technology has been born, there’s been somebody on hand to try to censor it
May/June 1998
On Israel’s fiftieth anniversary, we should remember the role a black American played in its creation
July/August 1998
In the past century the two major opponents on the question of free trade have changed sides completely
September 1998
What should a union offer its members? A century-old fight heats up again.
October 1998
It was born of a slew of compromises—which may be the secret of its survival in a vastly changed world
November 1998
‘Who’s next?” sang Tom Lehrer in his darkly funny Cold War ballad about nuclear proliferation. We’re still asking.
December 1998
A new book argues that Americans are deeply interested in the past—but in highly personal ways
February/March 1999
William Jefferson Clinton, Andrew Johnson, and the judgment of history

American Heritage is proud to host the
National Portal to
Historic Collections
Recently added:
- American Revolution Center
- National Museum of Civil War Medicine
- National Museum of the U.S. Navy
- Manassas National Battlefield
- Maryland State House
In association with the
American Association for State and Local History
Why do we need a national nonprofit membership society for American history?
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“Save America’s Treasures” has been totally eliminated—the largest Federal program supporting preservation of such treasures as the original Star Spangled Banner and George Washington’s tent.
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65% of Americans don’t know what happened at the Constitutional Convention, according to a recent survey by Newsweek.
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The “Teaching American History” grants—the largest Federal program supporting history education—have been completely eliminated.
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Visits to the Top 20 Civil War battlefields have dropped in half from 1970 to 2009 according to official National Park Service statistics.
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40% of Americans can’t identify whom we fought in World War II, according to a recent survey by Newsweek.
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A quarter of Americans believe Congress shares power over U.S. foreign policy with the United Nations, according to a recent Annenberg survey.
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“There is little that is more important for an American citizen to know than the history and traditions of his country,” John F. Kennedy wrote in American Heritage.
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The “We the People Program,” which touched some 30 million students and 90,000 teachers over 25 years, has been completely eliminated.
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Two-thirds of Americans could not correctly name Yorktown as the last major military action of the American Revolution, according to a recent national Gallup survey.
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The National Heritage Areas and Scenic Byways program, the only major Federal program encouraging visits to historic places, has been completely eliminated in Congressional committee.




