How Annie Lee Moss Survived McCarthyism
Moss, a Black government employee with activist experience, was hauled in front of Congress on suspicion of being a Communist.
“Hard Times Tokens” Were Not One Cent
The counterfeit currencies issued in response to 1837’s coin shortage were worthless—or were they?
The Forgotten Craze of Women’s Endurance Walking
Hardy athletes called pedestriennes wowed the sporting world of the nineteenth century. They also shocked guardians of propriety.
How to Gather the Oral Histories of COVID-19
The Federal Writers’ Project offers vital lessons for capturing the oral histories of ordinary Americans living through the coronavirus pandemic.
How Trumbull Park Exposed the Brutal Legacy of Segregation
Frank London Brown’s 1959 novel, which presents a powerful story of white supremacist hatred, has been selected for the Chicago Literary Hall of Fame.
How Mass Incarceration Has Shaped History
A historian argues that it's time to look at the consequences of locking up millions of people over several decades.
The Red Scare and Women in Government
In 1952, a government administrator named Mary Dublin Keyserling was accused of being a communist. The attack on her was also an attack on feminism.
Abolitionist “Wide Awakes” Were Woke Before “Woke”
“Now the old men are folding their arms and going to sleep,” said William H. Seward while campaigning for Lincoln, “and the young men are Wide Awake.”
How Jewish Immigrants Changed American Psychology
Secular Jewish psychologists like Boris Sidis criticized the positive optimism of Protestant-centered psychology.
The Undercover Abolitionists of the 18th Century
Since many people considered them an off-putting radical sect, some Quaker abolitionists worked behind the scenes to eradicate slavery.