The summer of 1787 in Philadelphia was one to be remembered. In fact, it was in May that year that over 50 delegates from across the freshly independent United States descended on the city — ready to forge a path forward for the new nation. By the time summer was over, the U.S. Constitution was born.
Read MoreThis week marks the 177th anniversary of the first ever telegraph message being sent. This message, sent between Washington D.C. and Baltimore, opened the door for the inventions of instantaneous communication we enjoy today. In order to celebrate, we dive into the history of Samuel Morse’s invention and how revolutionary it truly was.
Read MoreOn this day in 1932, Amelia Earhart flew into the halls of history as she took off from North America and became the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean. While Earhart is know for this accomplishment as well as the mysterious circumstances in which she vanished, her impact on American aviation as a whole should not be forgotten.
Read MoreBefore becoming the first Black justice to sit on the Supreme Court, Thurgood Marshall stood in front of the highest court to argue against racial segregation in American schools. His involvement with this landmark legal case, Brown v. Board of Education, was critical to establishing a legal precedent against the practice of segregation.
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Read MoreOn this day in 1804, Meriwether Lewis and William Clark’s Corps of Discovery departed from St. Louis into the unknowns of the newly acquired Louisiana Purchase territory. After a year of preparation and planning which had been prompted by President Thomas Jefferson himself, the most famous expedition in American history began.
Read MoreThis week marks the birthday of Martha Graham, the most influential American dancer of the 20th century and mother of modern dance. Graham’s pioneering career had a monumental impact on American dance and performance that is still felt today and her legacy reminds us of how critical art is to the human experience.
Read MoreIn today’s Journal entry, we spotlight another fascinating stop on our new Millionaires, Mansions & Moonshine tour. At the iconic Heurich House, we tell stories about a dynamic immigrant turned business tycoon, the art of brewing, massive fires, World War I and spontaneous fermentation. OH MY!
Read MoreOn this day just over a hundred years ago, the British passenger steam ship RMS Lusitania sank after being torpedoed by a German U-Boat killing 1,195 of those aboard — 128 of the whom were Americans. The incident forever changed the trajectory of American neutrality during WWI, a fact made evident by the intense coverage it received in the American press.
Read MoreOn Historic America’s Millionaires, Mansions and Moonshine tour one of our favorite stops-along-the-way is all about big money, big corruption and bootlegged liquor.
Read MoreWe have a new YouTube series here at Historic America! Our Virtual Tour episodes began last week with the FDR Memorial and continue this week with a look at perhaps the most famous DC landmark of all - the Lincoln Memorial.
Read MoreToday, we bring you a conversation between Historic America’s Sonali Prillman and Micheal Idriss, who is currently the African American Interpretive Fellow at Philadelphia’s Museum of the American Revolution. Micheal, with his wealth of knowledge on Philadelphia history, takes us back to the mass outbreak of a disease long before the days of COVID19: the Philadelphia Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1793.
Read MoreOn Historic America’s new Millionaires, Mansions & Moonshine tour, we talk about the presidency of Warren G. Harding and how scandal plagued it was. Wanna know how bad things got when Warren was in the White House? Today’s article paints the picture.
Read MoreDespite being born into a wealthy, slave owning family in Charleston, sisters Sarah and Angelina Grimké would go onto to become some of the first female abolitionists in American history. After converting to Quakerism and moving to Philadelphia, the Grimké sisters became prominent anti-slavery and women’s rights advocates against several odds.
Read MoreWe’re pleased to announce the publication of our first tour in Charleston, South Carolina! As a GPS activated guided audio tour, Charleston 101 focuses on “must see” attractions and offers a glimpse into the rich history and storied past of this remarkable city.
Read MoreBehind every successful museum is someone dedicated and passionate about history who runs the museum with every piece of their soul. At the Betsy Ross House, that woman is Lisa Acker Moulder, the current director. Lisa has dedicated 21 years of her professional career to the Betsy Ross House. Today, we get to talk to her about the museum, her career, and her favorite parts of Betsy Ross’s story.
Read MoreToday is the 246th anniversary of, “The Shot Heard Round the World” - otherwise known as the beginning of the American Revolution at the battles of Lexington & Concord on April 19th, 1775. Over sixty years later the event would be immortalized in verse by American poet Ralph Waldo Emerson with a poem entitled Concord Hymn. It goes a little something like this …
Read MoreOn this day 159 years ago, more than three thousand Black individuals were freed in the United States capital. Washington, D.C. passed the DC Compensated Emancipation Act on April 16, 1862, freeing thousands of enslaved people in the capital and paving the way for nationwide emancipation.
Read MoreOn the early morning of April 15, 1865 — Lincoln died across the street from Ford’s Theatre where he had been shot the following evening. While every American knows the tragic story of Lincoln’s demise, not many know what he had in his pockets at the time. But thanks to the Library of Congress, we are able to see Lincoln in a strikingly more humanizing way through the items he had on his person that fateful night.
Read MoreOn this day in 1775, a group of Philadelphia Quakers met at a tavern in the city and founded the first abolitionist society in the United States. This organization, which eventually became known as the Pennsylvania Abolition Society, marked the start of the American abolitionist movement in addition to paving the way for Philadelphia to become a powerhouse of abolitionist activity.
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