Reasons for Re-Enacting at the Renaissance Faire
Why do we love donning period costumes and re-enacting our history through mock battles, pioneer villages, and Renaissance Faires?
Making Scents of Jesuit Missionary Work
The use of sensory stimulants like incense gave Jesuits a common framework with the North American nations they encountered on missionary trips.
Gaylord Wilshire’s Boulevard of Marxist Dreams
One of the first American socialists to run for office, Wilshire was born rich and got richer before losing it all by self-publishing a socialist magazine.
How Native Americans Guarded Their Societies Against Tyranny
Many Native American communities were consensus democracies that survived for generations because of careful attention to checking and balancing power.
The “Vanishing Types” of Doris Ulmann
As her extensive body of work shows, Ulmann felt the loss of an imagined simpler time and tried to preserve it with her camera.
How Al Capone Made Greyhound Racing Great
In the 1920s, Chicago became the greyhound racing capital of the country, thanks in part to the power of mobsters like Capone, who was a big fan.
The Treaty of Paris 1783: Annotated
The Treaty of Paris marked the end of the Revolutionary War and the hostilities between Great Britain and the newly independent United States—at least temporarily.
Portico’s Part in Telling the Story of Emmett Till
The Emmett Till Memory Project teaches new generations about the tragedy that kickstarted the Civil Rights Movement. Preserving its digital assets is vital.
Draft Resistance in Japanese American Internment Camps
Arguing that they had been stripped of their citizenship and rights, hundreds of Nisei risked extending their imprisonment by resisting the draft.
Could “Rosie the Riveter” Be Chinese American?
Despite having their citizenship withheld before the war, Chinese American women in the Bay Area made significant contributions to the wartime labor force.