164 items
University of Virginia historian Barbara Perry describes John F. Kennedy’s inaugural address, including background information on the President’s life and family, the writing of the speech, and major accomplishments of his...
A Teacher’s Tour of Ford’s Theatre
Historian Matthew Pinsker (Dickinson College) leads a tour of Ford’s Theatre campus, including the main building, the Petersen House, and the Center for Education and Leadership, to explore how history teachers can use the site’s...
A Teacher’s Tour of the Battle of Gettysburg
Historian Matthew Pinsker leads a virtual teacher’s tour of the Battle of Gettysburg, highlighting key moments and individuals to illustrate the broad story of the battle, its implications for the Civil War, and its legacy in...
Alexander Hamilton, American
Richard Brookhiser, senior editor at National Review , discusses his book, Alexander Hamilton, American . Brookhiser recounts Alexander Hamilton's great successes and tragic failures as Revolutionary, bovernment-shaper, financial...
America before Columbus
Charles Mann’s book 1491: New Revelations of the Americas before Columbus (Knopf, 2005) won the US National Academy of Sciences’ 2006 Keck Award for the best book of the year. In this lecture he looks at new research on pre-Columbian...
American Antislavery Writings: Colonial Beginnings to Emancipation
James G. Basker (Barnard College, Columbia University) discusses his latest book, American Antislavery Writings: Colonial Beginnings to Emancipation (The Library of America, 2012). Basker, who is also the president of the Gilder...
American Scripture: The Making of the Declaration of Independence
Pauline Maier, William R. Kenan Jr. Professor of American History at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), discusses several aspects of her book American Scripture: Making the Declaration of Independence . She reveals that...
Book of Ages: The Life and Opinions of Jane Franklin
Historian Jill Lepore of Harvard University discusses her book, Book of Ages: The Life and Opinions of Jane Franklin, a finalist for the 2013 National Book Award, with James G. Basker, president of the Gilder Lehrman Institute.
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Burr, Hamilton, and Jefferson: A Study in Character
Roger Kennedy, former director of the National Park Service, discusses the "fatal twins," Aaron Burr and Alexander Hamilton, whose military, legal, and political careers intersected for nearly thirty years before they came to duel in...
Chat with the Curator: Amelia Earhart and Neta Snook
Curator of the Gilder Lehrman Collection, Sandra Trenholm, describes documents in the Neta Snook Collection, including letters and photographs of Amelia Earhart. Biographer Susan Butler (East to the Dawn: The Life of Amelia Earhart)...
Elizabeth Cady Stanton: An American Life
Lori D. Ginzberg, professor of history and women’s studies at Pennsylvania State University, discusses her 2010 biography, Elizabeth Cady Stanton: An American Life.
Emancipation and the Question of Agency: The Power of the Enslaved, the Power of Policy
Historian James Oakes (The Graduate Center, City University of New York) addresses the timeless question of agency in emancipation—who freed the slaves?—by suggesting that the query demands greater nuance. The agency of slaves and...
Exchanges of Culture and Conflict in the Southwest
Professor DeLay looks at changes in thought, technology, and outlook that prompted early exploration, and Spain’s late entry into colonial pursuits.
Federalists vs. Anti-Federalists
Historian Carol Berkin briefly discusses the arguments put forth by Federalists and Anti-Federalists in the state ratification conventions.
Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation
Joseph J. Ellis, Professor of History at Mount Holyoke College, discusses his Pulitzer Prize–winning book Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation, explains the emergence of the men who led the Revolutionary War and created...
Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln
In this short clip, historian David Blight discusses the relationship between Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass.
Frederick Douglass on Lincoln and Reconstruction
Dickinson College historian Matthew Pinsker describes changes in Frederick Douglass’s opinion of Abraham Lincoln between Lincoln’s assassination in 1865 and the unveiling of the Freedmen’s Monument in Lincoln Park, Washington, DC, in...
Guns, Horses, and the Grass Revolution
In this lecture Elliott West, a professor of history at the University of Arkansas, describes how the introduction of Old World phenomena such as guns, horses, and new diseases affected the Native peoples of the New World. Those who...
Hamilton's New York: Lower Manhattan Walking Tour
Join the Gilder Lehrman Institute and Professor Cindy Lobel on a virtual walking tour of Alexander Hamilton’s Lower Manhattan.
Historians Now: Founders’ Son: A Life of Abraham Lincoln by Richard Brookhiser
Richard Brookhiser discusses his book, Founders' Son: A Life of Abraham Lincoln . Brookhiser traces Lincoln's quest to follow in the footsteps of the Founding Fathers.
Historians Now: Lincoln’s Selected Writings edited by David S. Reynolds
David S. Reynolds talks about editing the Norton Critical Edition of Lincoln's Selected Writings. The volume not only includes an wide range of annotated texts, but perspectives on Lincoln's writings from his contemporaries and...
Historians Now: Mourning Lincoln by Martha Hodes
Martha Hodes discusses her book Mourning Lincoln. Hodes is the first historian to delve into personal and private responses—of African Americans and whites, Yankees and Confederates, men and women, soldiers and civilians, rich and...
Historians Now: The Fiery Trial by Eric Foner
Eric Foner discusses his book The Fiery Trial: Abraham Lincoln and American Slavery. The book begins with Lincoln's youth and through his career The book follows Lincoln's personal and political positions on slavery from childhood...
Historians Now: The Radical and the Republican by James Oakes
James Oakes discusses his book, The Radical and the Republican: Frederick Douglass, Abraham Lincoln and the Triumph of Antislavery Politics.
Historians Now: The Wright Brothers by David McCullough
David McCullough discusses his new book The Wright Brothers.
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