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Featured Essays

Recent rehabilitation of this important site at the Gettysburg battlefield provides a much improved experience for visitors.

In the Age of Discovery, maps held closely guarded secrets for the kings, adventurers, and merchants who first acquired them.

Since her untimely death in 1963, the legendary country music star—and the first female to be inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame—continues to inspire new audiences and artists.

A Chinatown cook's fight to re-enter the U.S. in 1895 went up to the Supreme Court, which upheld his claim to birthright citizenship and guaranteed it for all through the 14th Amendment. 

America 250!

Glover and the “Indispensables” Save Washington’s Army | Spring 2024, Vol 69, No 2

By Patrick K. O'Donnell

John 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.

washington delaware

"The Sparck of Rebellion" | Winter 2010, Summer 2025, Vol 59, No 4

By Douglas Brinkley

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

boston tea party

Boston's Freedom Trail | July/August 2020, Vol 65, No 4

By Brent Glass

Sixteen historic sites in Boston remind Americans of the events that led to our nation’s birth, from the Boston Massacre to Breed's Hill and the USS Constitution.

freedom trail

Drama at the Old North Bridge | Spring 2025, Vol 70, No 2

By Rick Atkinson

“Now the war has begun and no one knows when it will end,” said one minuteman after the fight.

drama at old north bridge

Lafayette: A Hero Among Heroes | Summer 2021, Vol 65, No 5

By Harlow Giles Unger

No figure in the Revolutionary era inspired as much affection and reverence as Gilbert du Motier, the Marquis de Lafayette

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Classic Essays from the Archives

“Perdicaris Alive or Raisuli Dead” | August 1959, Summer 2025, Vol 70, No 3

By Barbara W. Tuchman

John Hay’s ringing phrase helped nominate T. R., but it covered an embarrassing secret that remained concealed for thirty years.

perdicaris incident

Lincoln As Commander in Chief | Winter 2009, Summer 2025, Vol 58, No 6

By James M. McPherson

Even though he had no military training, Lincoln quickly rose to become one of America’s most talented commanders.

lincoln as commander in chief

Two Intimate Enemies | September 2000, Summer 2025, Vol 70, No 3

By Joseph J. Ellis

When John Adams was elected president, and Thomas Jefferson as vice president, each came to see the other as a traitor. Out of their enmity grew our modern political system.

jefferson adams

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