AMERICAN HERITAGE

Featured Articles

The Constitution is more than a legal code. It is also a framework for union and solidarity.

In the hundred years since his death, features of Woodrow Wilson’s philosophy have become central to international politics and American foreign policy.

FDR’s War of Words with Lindbergh

by Paul Sparrow

Charles Lindbergh and the isolationists of American First opposed Lend Lease and Roosevelt’s attempts to prepare for possible war in Europe.

The Tragedy of Emmett Till

by Ronald Collins

The boy's vicious killing in Mississippi in 1955 helped to transform America's racial consciousness.

Classic Essays from Our Archives

Columbus and Genocide | October 1975, Vol 26, No 6

By Edward T. Stone

The discoverer of the New World was responsible for the annihilation of the peaceful Arawak Indians

The Day The Civil War Ended | June/July 1978, Vol 29, No 4

By Bruce Catton

At the Gettysburg reunion fifty years after the battle, it was no longer blue and gray. Now it was all gray.

Ike's Son Remembers George S. Patton Jr. | Summer 2012, Vol 62, No 2

By John D. Eisenhower

The author, who once served under General Patton and whose father, Dwight D. Eisenhower, was Patton's commanding officer, shares his memories of "Ol' Blood and Guts."

“The Tide is Setting Strongly Against Us” | Winter 2010, Vol 59, No 4

By Edward L. Ayers

Lincoln’s bid for reelection in 1864 faced serious challenges from a popular opponent and a nation weary of war.

The Meaning of 1918 | Fall 2018 - World War I Special Issue, Vol 63, No 3

By John Lukacs

A century after the guns fell silent along the Western Front, the work they did there remains of incalculable importance to the age we inhabit and the people we are.

"The Sparck of Rebellion" | Winter 2010, Vol 59, No 4

By Douglas Brinkley

Badly disguised as Indians, a rowdy group of patriotic vandals kicked a revolution into motion.

Today in History

USS Constitution

USS Constitution is launched in Boston Harbor. The 1794 Naval Act authorized its construction along with five other frigates, and the USS Constitution, nicknamed "Old Ironsides", served through the Barbary Wars and the War of 1812.
More »
Edison successfully tests incandescent light bulb

Thomas Edison successfully tests his incandescent light bulb with a cotton carbonized filament. The light bulb would stay electrified for over 13 hours.
More »
Battle of Aachen

American soldiers triumph at the Battle of Aachen following the surrender of 5,000 German soldiers. Aachen, along the Belgian and Dutch borders, is the first German city captured by the Americans.