John Brown’s Day of Reckoning
Source: Smithsonian
Read about controversial abolitionist John Brown and the violent raid he and his men launched on a federal arsenal at Harpers Ferry, Virginia, 150 years ago; it set the stage for the Civil War.
Historic Figures
Plymouth Colony
Source: HISTORY
Read this article to learn about the settlement of Plymouth and the small but powerful group of English Separatist Church members, including William Bradford, who influenced its founding.
The Hudson River School
Source: The Metropolitan Museum of Art
The Hudson River School was a group of distinctly American artists who painted landscapes in the mid-1800s. View the slideshow and consider how their depictions of nature reflected the ideas of the Transcendentalist writers of the same time period.
The Real Story of Revere’s Ride
Source: Paul Revere House
Learn the facts about Paul Revere’s famous midnight ride, and scroll down to see an interactive map of his route.
Deep Survival: Anne Frank’s Extraordinary Act of Survival
Source: National Geographic Adventure Blog
In 2009, Anne Frank would have been 80 years old. Read about why her life in hiding can be called an inspiring true story of survival under extreme and terrifying circumstances.
Famous Ghosts in American History
Source: History
Everyone knows that ghosts aren’t real. But that doesn’t mean that there aren’t plenty of ghost stories to go around. This site lists a few of those stories, describing tales sometimes told about the nation’s most famous ghosts.
Lincoln-Douglas Debates
Source: HISTORY
You can read, watch, and listen to materials on the seven debates that took place between Stephen A. Douglas and Abraham Lincoln during the 1858 Illinois state election campaign. The prize was a seat in the Senate, but the debates mainly focused on the important and contentious issue of slavery.
Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales 2012 – a multimedia pilgrimage
Source: The Guardian
In 2012, a group of people retraced the route of Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales pilgrims in a four-day trek. Listen to the audio and watch the videos embedded throughout the article to hear the participants recite pieces from the work.
Eugene O’Neill Biography
Source: Biography
Over the course of his career, Nobel Prize-winning writer Eugene O’Neill used his struggles as inspiration for his moving plays. Read about his life in this biography.
Hiram R. Revels Biography
Source: Biography
Hiram R. Revels was the first African American to serve in the United States Senate. An academic and a minister, he supported integrated schools and equal opportunities for black workers.