Trusted Writing on History, Travel, Food and Culture Since 1949
For 70 years, American Heritage has been the leading magazine of U.S. history, politics, and culture. Read more >>
The magazine was forced to suspend print publication in 2013, but a group of volunteers saved the archives and relaunched it in digital form in 2017. Free subscription >>
Please consider a donation to help us keep this American treasure alive. Support with a donation>>
Featured Articles
American barbecue is more than a way of cooking — it’s myth, folklore, and history
In 1942, over a quarter of a million ordinary citizens volunteered to help defend our country as Nazi submarines terrorized the East Coast and Caribbean waters, sinking fuel tankers and cargo ships with near impunity.
Our research reveals that 19 artworks in the U.S. Capitol honor men who were Confederate officers or officials. What many of them said, and did, is truly despicable.
What the future president learned during a coast-to-coast military motor expedition would later transform America.
Web Exclusive
SUPPORT THIS WEBSITE BY BUYING A NEW EBOOK!
History around the web
The Mask Slackers of 1918, by Christine Hauser
As the influenza pandemic swept across the United States in 1918 and 1919, masks took a role in political and cultural wars.
How a Lincoln-Douglass Debate Led to Historic Discovery, by Ted Mann
Texting exchange by two professors led to Frederick Douglass letter on Emancipation Memorial
In 'Hamilton', Angelica Schuyler's husband is called 'not a lot of fun.' Here's his real story, by Daryl Austin
While the play's creator, Lin-Manuel Miranda, has delivered Hamilton his long-overdue public acclaim, many other historical figures are overlooked or represented in a less-than-flattering manner throughout the production.
How America’s Founding Fathers Missed a Chance to Abolish Slavery, by Michael Hirsh
They swept the issue under the rug, and even Thomas Jefferson realized that civil war was inevitable before he died on July 4, 1826. But history could have taken a different direction.
The Dr. Strange of the American Revolution, by Brian Gallagher
Benjamin Rush was a strange, or a strangely gifted, man, and one of the youngest—at 30—to sign the Declaration of Independence.
What is Juneteenth? The history behind the oldest commemoration of the abolishment of slavery in the US, by Lucia Suarez Sang
Black Americans began to celebrate Juneteenth in honor of when Texas - the last rebel state - officially abolished slavery.
-
First civilian prisoners to Alcatraz
-
Lewis shot in leg
-
Watts riot