On Monday, May 8 the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History held its 2017 Gala, bringing together more than 300 supporters at the Mandarin Oriental in New York City. This year we honored John L. Nau, III, and Jeffrey Seller, raising over $1.1 million in recognition of these individuals who have made an enormous impact on American history education and historic preservation.
President of the Gilder Lehrman Institute James G. Basker praised the honorees for having "risen to the very top of their respective businesses while also making transformative contributions to American history, to
Fifteen college juniors and seniors were chosen for the Gilder Lehrman History Scholar Award based on their exemplary leadership skills, commitment to public service, academic excellence, and demonstrated passion for American history. This summer, the scholars will spend a week New York City, where they’ll have the opportunity to explore the field of American history through archival visits, special presentations, and meetings with eminent historians. They will also be honored at a celebratory dinner.
Learn about our newest scholars below:
Michael Antosiewicz attends Rutgers University School
Lin-Manuel Miranda received the 2017 US Capitol Historical Society Freedom Award on September 12 for his efforts in creating the musical Hamilton and the Hamilton Education Program, a program developed in partnership with the Gilder Lehrman Institute and The Rockefeller Foundation.
"We are very honored to present this award to Mr. Miranda," said Donald Carlson, chair of the US Capitol Historical Society. "We give him this award because of his unique ability to engage new audiences with our history and his dedication to inspiring informed civic participation."
Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi,
For the end of the school year, from June 1 to June 30, all products in the Gilder Lehrman History Shop are 40% off. Use the summer to earn professional development hours with self-paced courses, stock up on classroom posters, and develop dynamic, interactive lesson plans with our teaching resources, books, and multimedia!
Click here to view special sales sets.
Yesterday, the Hamilton Education Program wrapped up its first full school year of matinees. From October 2016 to June 2017, the program held 24 matinees in New York, Chicago, and San Francisco, giving students from more than 430 Title I schools across the country the opportunity to tap into their own creativity, discover the Founding Era through dynamic lessons, and attend a special student matinee of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s musical Hamilton.
However, this is just the beginning for #EduHam—the program will continue this fall in New York, Chicago, and, starting with Los Angeles, in select
Need professional development credit? Several Gilder Lehrman programs can be used by educators to obtain professional development points (PDPs) or continuing education units (CEUs) in historical content knowledge and curriculum design.
1. Self-Paced Courses
Self-Paced Courses are online, graduate-level courses on a diverse range of American history topics that can be taken at a teacher’s own time and pace, with no expiration dates or deadlines. Each course includes lectures by an eminent historian and pedagogical tools/videos, as well as supplementary primary source readings.Credit: 15 clock
On the night of February 17, 1864, during the Civil War, the Confederacy made naval history off Charleston, South Carolina. The H. L. Hunley became the first submarine to sink an enemy ship, the USS Housatonic, in combat. Captain Joseph Foster Green of the USS Canandaigua took on the Housatonic’s survivors. Captain Green’s official letterbooks are a part of the Gilder Lehrman Collection. Through them, we see the Union navy’s response to this game-changing innovation. On February 18, Green wrote to Commodore Stephen C. Rowan to report the sinking:
I have respectfully to report that a boat
In June 1940, President Franklin Roosevelt wrote to NAACP president Arthur B. Springarn, seeking support in the event of war. Though the US would not enter the war until December 1941, the letter demonstrates that President Roosevelt was already anticipating American involvement. In his appeal to the NAACP, he praises the "unflinching loyalty" of African Americans in wars "from Bunker Hill to Flanders Field," and, looking forward, expresses his expectation that the African American community "will not hesitate to pledge their allegiance anew, in these ominous days, to the cause of human
Melanie Sheehan is a 2017 Gilder Lehrman History Scholar. These 15 exceptional college students were in New York City, June 4–9, learning from eminent historians and exploring New York City through a historical lens. Here Melanie describes highlights from the program.
As a Gilder Lehrman History Scholar, I had the opportunity to meet with some prominent historians and to hear them discuss their current research. Because some talks covered a large swath of American history, I was able to connect discussions with professors like Ken Jackson and Thomas Heinrich with my own research interests in
On June 30, 1906, President Theodore Roosevelt signed the Pure Food and Drug Act and Meat Inspection Act, marking an achievement in federal regulation of the food industry. The catalyst for these acts was Upton Sinclair’s best-selling book, published just six months prior, The Jungle. The book chronicles a fictional Lithuanian immigrant family’s attempts to earn a living amidst the exploitative labor practices of the Chicago meatpacking industry. Sinclair hoped that getting readers to sympathize with the difficult lives of the laboring classes would increase interest in socialism. But it was
Jacob Bruggeman is a 2017 Gilder Lehrman History Scholar. These 15 exceptional college students were in New York City, June 4–9, learning from eminent historians and exploring New York City through a historical lens. Here Jacob describes highlights from the program.
In early June, I was honored to be one of fifteen undergraduate participants in the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History’s 2016-2017 History Scholar Program, through which I was flown out to New York City and housed at New York University with the fourteen other participants in the program. The program’s length is just
On July 24, 1959, at the height of the Cold War, Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev and Vice President Richard Nixon held a "Kitchen Debate." Since the end of WWII, the Soviet Union and United States had been locked in a fierce battle for technological, industrial, and military dominance. In their brief exchange, however, the two leaders put military prowess aside to pit the American lifestyle against the Soviet, and capitalism versus communism.
Nixon extolled the wonders of consumer choice and benefits of access to the newest products and technological advancements. He noted that new kitchen
The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History recently acquired a letter from President Harry Truman to Dr. Channing Frothingham of Boston. In this letter, written in 1951, the President thanked Channing for his support of Truman’s plan for national health insurance.
I am more grateful than I can tell you for this assurance of your continued loyal support of the national health insurance program. As you so frankly indicate, that program has powerful enemies who are not above misrepresenting its aim and purpose, in fact its fundamental principle.
Despite all obstacles it has been my
Once a month, the Gilder Lehrman Institute offers teachers the opportunity to visit the Gilder Lehrman Collection for a behind-the-scenes show-and-tell with our curatorial staff. Last Friday, July 7, the curators were joined by Megan Elias, Director of Online Courses at GLI and author of Food on the Page: Cookbooks and American Culture. Together, we explored documents that focus on food and discussed what they tell us about the past and how food history can be used in the classroom. Some topics that came up were weevils as a source of protein, one hundred gallons of wine ordered for the
The Hamilton Education Program is going on tour for the 2017–2018 school year! As Hamilton: The Musical makes its way across America, the Hamilton Education Program will be holding special full-day programs for students in the following cities:
San Diego, CATempe, AZSeattle, WADenver, COSt. Louis, MOSalt Lake City, UTHouston, TXWashington, DC (2018–2019 school year)
Are you a teacher at a Title I–eligible high school in or near one of these cities? Your students can participate in a dynamic history and arts curriculum based on the musical and attend a once-in-a-lifetime day at the theater
On July 23, 1885, Ulysses S. Grant, a Union general in the Civil War and the 18th president of the United States, died at the age of 63. He had struggled with throat cancer for a year while rushing to finish his memoirs, the proceeds from which he hoped would support his wife, Julia Grant. Grant died surrounded by his family, including his eldest son, Frederick Dent Grant. Soon after, Frederick sent a telegram to his brother’s father-in-law:
To Hon J B Chaffee,
Father died at Eight Oclock this morning,
F. D. Grant
The news arrived in Denver, Colorado, later that same day. The telegraph in
This year, Gilder Lehrman recognized 52 State History Teachers of the Year for their tireless and innovative efforts to make history come alive for their students. These exceptional educators were awarded $1,000 and an archive of books and resources for their school library, and were honored in state ceremonies.
But who are they, really? We asked these talented teachers to answer a few questions about themselves and to reflect on the challenges and joys of teaching. We will feature one state winner every Tuesday and Thursday between now and September, so keep checking back to learn more about
This year, Gilder Lehrman recognized 52 State History Teachers of the Year for their tireless and innovative efforts to make history come alive for their students. These exceptional educators were awarded $1,000 and an archive of books and resources for their school library, and were honored in state ceremonies.
But who are they, really? We asked these talented teachers to answer a few questions about themselves and to reflect on the challenges and joys of teaching. We will feature one state winner every Tuesday and Thursday between now and September, so keep checking back to learn more about
This year, Gilder Lehrman recognized 52 State History Teachers of the Year for their tireless and innovative efforts to make history come alive for their students.
But who are they, really? We asked these talented teachers to answer a few questions about themselves and to reflect on the challenges and joys of teaching. We will feature one state winner every Tuesday and Thursday between now and September, so keep checking back to learn more about these outstanding educators!
This week, meet Adam Johnson:
Adam Johnson, Romig Middle School 2017 Alaska State History Teacher of the Year
Do you
This year, Gilder Lehrman recognized 52 State History Teachers of the Year for their tireless and innovative efforts to make history come alive for their students.
But who are they, really? We asked these talented teachers to answer a few questions about themselves and to reflect on the challenges and joys of teaching. We will feature one state winner every Tuesday and Thursday between now and September, so keep checking back to learn more about these outstanding educators!
This week, meet Caroline Young:
Caroline Young, Rockford High School2017 Minnesota State History Teacher of the Year
Today is National Friendship Day, and to celebrate, we’re showcasing a vivid letter from the Gilder Lehrman Collection that shows the enduring strength of friendship forged in war. In January 1784, the Marquis de Lafayette, back home in France, wrote a warm letter to Henry Knox. Both men had served as generals in the Revolutionary War, and the hardships and triumphs they shared had nurtured a strong bond. Lafayette affirmed his attachment to Knox despite their great distance, and implored his friend to keep in touch:
You know my tender affection to you, my dear knox, it is Engraved in my
This year, the Gilder Lehrman Institute recognized 52 State History Teachers of the Year for their tireless and innovative efforts to make history come alive for their students.
But who are they, really? We asked these talented teachers to answer a few questions about themselves and to reflect on the challenges and joys of teaching. We will feature one state winner every Tuesday and Thursday between now and September, so keep checking back to learn more about these outstanding educators!
This week, meet Paul Howard:
Paul Howard, LaSalle-Backus Education Campus2017 District of Columbia History
This year, Gilder Lehrman recognized 52 State History Teachers of the Year for their tireless and innovative efforts to make history come alive for their students.
But who are they, really? We asked these talented teachers to answer a few questions about themselves and to reflect on the challenges and joys of teaching. We will feature one state winner every Tuesday and Thursday between now and September, so keep checking back to learn more about these outstanding educators!
This week, meet Georgette Hackman:
Georgette Hackman, Cocalico Middle School2017 Pennsylvania State History Teacher of
The Library Affiliate Program is offering public libraries six $400 grants to fund student-focused American history programming. Applications are being accepted until September 15, and grant recipients will be notified on October 2. The grant for this period will cover programming held between November 1, 2017, and May 1, 2018. Click here to apply!
Grants are open to all public libraries who are part of the Gilder Lehrman Library Affiliate Program. If your library is not yet an affiliate, you can easily register for the program here.
This year, the Gilder Lehrman Institute recognized 52 State History Teachers of the Year for their tireless and innovative efforts to make history come alive for their students.
But who are they, really? We asked these talented teachers to answer a few questions about themselves and to reflect on the challenges and joys of teaching. We will feature one state winner every Tuesday and Thursday between now and September, so keep checking back to learn more about these outstanding educators!
This week, meet Blake Busbin:
Blake Busbin, Auburn High School2017 Alabama History Teacher of the Year
