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Featured Essays
A private pilot named Kenneth Arnold kicked off a worldwide craze when he claimed he saw a string of shiny saucers fly past Mount Rainier in 1947.
While Robert Morris is remembered as the "financier of the Revolution," his partner and former boss, Thomas Willing, has been lost to history despite his own contributions to early American business and finance.
Decades before the Ayatollah, even before the shah, early Americans found themselves enchanted with Iranian culture, politics, and history.
By organizing weekly gatherings of political leaders and citizens, she proved democracy works best when rivals see one another as human beings.
America 250!
Discovered: First Maps of the American Revolution | Spring 2025, Vol 70, No 2
By Edwin S. GrosvenorPreviously unknown, a map drawn by Lord Percy, the British commander at Lexington, sheds new light on the perilous retreat to Boston 250 years ago this month.
Glover and the “Indispensables” Save Washington’s Army | Spring 2024, Vol 69, No 2
By Patrick K. O'DonnellJohn Glover and the men of Marblehead saved the Continental Army several times, and then helped it cross the Delaware to victory at Trenton and Princeton.
For America’s 250th Birthday, Let’s Think Local | Summer 2023, Vol 68, No 4
By Hans ZeigerCommunities around the U.S. hope that the nation's upcoming 250th anniversary will inspire Americans to appreciate the importance of shared experience and preserving history.
“Shall We Have a King?” | Fall 2025, Vol 70, No 4
By William E. LeuchtenburgSome delegates at the Constitutional Convention wanted a strong executive, while others feared the American president might become a king.
An Update on “Save the Glover!” | Spring 2026, Vol 71, No 2
By Nancy L. SchultzEfforts continue to preserve the historic home of General John Glover in Swampscott, Massachusetts, which is still slated for demolition.
Classic Essays from the Archives
Columbus and Genocide | October 1975, Vol 26, No 6
By Edward T. StoneThe discoverer of the New World was responsible for the annihilation of the peaceful Arawak Indians
On History | February 1964, Vol 15, No 2
By John F. Kennedy"Americans are united by their history and by a faith in progress, justice, and freedom," writes President Kennedy
The Hawthornes In Paradise | December 1958, Summer 2025, Vol 70, No 3
By Malcolm CowleyNathaniel was poor and sunk in his solitude; Sophia seemed a hopeless invalid, but a late-flower love gave them at last “a perfect Eden.”
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