As the United States election gets closer, the country is more divided than ever. Listen in as Michael Ross joins Suzanne Harris for the Books on Air podcast to discuss parallels between the US at the time of the Civil … Continued
In 1860, the United States was a deeply divided country, and the divide was most evident in the split in the Democratic party. The issues were both economic and race-related, much as it is today. Southern Democrats wanted to defend … Continued
Did you know Charley Parkhurst (1812–1879)?Tales of the Old WestOnce there was a girl, Charlene Parkhurst, born in 1812 in Sharon, Vermont. Charlene’s parents died, and there was no one to take care of her, so she ended up in … Continued
Charles was the first black physician to attend a sitting president when he attended President James Garfield after he was shot by an assassin in 1881, and a founder of Howard University medical school.
Kansas is a state rich in history. Originally just a stopping point in the westward movement during the nineteenth century, settlers eventually recognized the value of the prairie for cropland, grazing, and even oil. Long before the European and African … Continued
Horace Mann and Henry Barnard We’ve traced the beginnings of education in America through the seventeenth and eighteenth century, and shown how the genesis was in New England, Virginia, and Louisiana. Public schools had Christian roots, as the clergy and … Continued
Did you know… Mother’s day was started to promote peace at the end of the Civil War?Ann Reeves Jarvis, a mom, arranged mother’s friendship day in West Virginia in the 1860s, with the surprisingly serious purpose of quieting animosity between … Continued
First in a series on the history of education In America today, the idea of compulsory government run education is widely accepted, and mandated by law – or is it? In this series we will examine the history of education, … Continued
In late April 1862, David Farragut used naval power to augment the land attacks on forts along the Mississippi River, in preparation for the capture of New Orleans. An observer along the river, witnessing the bombardment of Forts Jackson and … Continued
Continuing series on the Signers of the Declaration of Independence Many volumes have been written about Sam Adams, and we can’t hope to cover all the relevant research here – but for a quick look at the colorful colonial founder, … Continued