The Gendering of Holiday Labor
Women in heterosexual relationships still do most of the domestic work. During the holiday season, the tasks multiply.
Thanksgiving Stories
Americans are getting ready to celebrate Thanksgiving, the middle entry in the Halloween-Thanksgiving-Winter holidays trifecta. Plate up with some ...
Thanksgiving Has Been Reinvented Many Times
From colonial times to the nineteenth century, Thanksgiving was very different from the holiday we know now.
Halloween Stories
Why are Victorians the default haunted house, what do ghosts have to do with the imagination, and why do we like to be scared?
The Evolution of Memorial Day
What started as a solemn commemoration of dead Civil War soldiers has become a celebration of summer. Here's why that makes total sense.
Colleges’ Reluctant Embrace of MLK Day
The push for a national Martin Luther King holiday prompted a fierce political tug-of-war, on campus and off.
From Samhain to Halloween
Exploring the Celtic origins of everyone's favorite harvest holiday celebrating thresholds between life and death.
Celebrating Immigration on the Fourth of July
For many immigrants to the U.S. in the late 19th century, July 4th was deeply significant: Their own home countries were fighting for independence.