By a strange coincidence Jefferson and his old rival John Adams both died on the 50th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence—July 4, 1826. On the evening of July 3, Jefferson was in bed, his life ebbing rapidly. "This is the Fourth?" he whispered
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Shortly before he left the White House, Roosevelt, planning a big-game hunting trip to Africa, heard that a famous white hunter was visiting Washington. He invited the man to come along and give him some advice. After a two-hour tête-à-tête the hunter cam
Continue reading >>We salute it, sing songs to it and many of us pledge our allegiance to it daily, and the U.S. government encourages all Americans to pause and pay tribute to the flag on its official holiday, June 14. In honor of the this year’s Flag Day, check out some t
Continue reading >>Amid the harsh repression of slavery, Americans of African descent, and particularly black women, managed--sometimes at their own peril--to preserve the culture of their ancestry and articulate both their struggles and hopes in their own words and images.
Continue reading >>George Washington was excessively fond of hazelnuts. Chester Arthur was a celebrated gourmand who put away mutton chops by the dozen. James Garfield enjoyed nothing more than a steaming bowl of squirrel soup. We’ve heard about the quirky favorite foods of
Continue reading >>In her mother’s opinion, at least, Bess Wallace could have done much better than Harry Truman, a farmer’s son who never graduated from college and couldn’t seem to hold down a job.
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