The Battle of Buena Vista
The advantage swung from one side to the other in the battle of Buena Vista, one of the most hard-fought battles of the Mexican War. While 5,000 American soldiers withstood…
Abigail Adams
In America’s early days, women had no voice in government and were not expected to know much about politics. But Abigail Adams, the wife of the second U.S. Prwsident, was…
1789
The crowd roared as the tall Virginian appeared on the balcony of New York City’s Federal Hall. George Washington, hero of the revolution, had agreed to serve his country in…
The Camp David Accords
The presidential retreat at Camp David, Maryland, was the setting for a historic moment in September, 1978. With the help of U.S. President Jimmy Carter, the leaders of Egypt and…
"Lemonade Lucy" Hayes
The press jokingly called her “Lemonade Lucy,” because no alcoholic beverages were served in the White House while she was First Lady. But Lucy Hayes, wife of the 19th President,…
The American Flag
Did Betsy Ross really sew the first American flag? Probably not. There seems to be no truth to the popular legend that a committee headed by George Washington asked Ross,…
Frederick Remington
A rider clings to a wildly rearing horse. A cavalry unit gallops across the plains. Rough-and-ready cowboys ride full tilt through a frontier town. These scenes of action and adventure…
The Ashcan School
In art, the term “school” usually refers to a group of artists who work in similar style. But the painters of the so-called Ashcan School were even more closely bound…
James Whistler
James Whistler believed that art should speak for itself, and that the subject matter of a painting was not important. To underline this point, he called his paintings symphonies, nocturnes,…
Winslow Homer
Winslow Homer is regarded as one of America’s greatest artists. No other American painter has captured the power and beauty of the sea as effectively. As a child in Massachusetts,…