136 Material Culture and the Making of America

The American Revolution was more than just a series of events that unfolded between 1763 and 1783, the American Revolution is our national origin story–one we’ve passed down, shaped, and reshaped for ...

8 Apr 20251h 4min

This month, we commemorate the 250th anniversary of the Battles of Lexington and Concord, the “shot heard round the world” that ignited the Revolutionary War. But before those battles, and before t...

1 Apr 20251h 2min

Patrick Henry is one of the most famous voices of the American Revolution. He was known in his own time for his powerful speeches and his unwavering commitment to liberty. But did you know that lat...

25 Mar 20251h 7min

What precisely is the work that mothers do to raise children? Has the nature of mothers, motherhood, and the work mothers do changed over time? Nora Doyle, an Associate Professor of History at West...

18 Mar 202553min

Historians use a lot of different sources when they research the past. Many rely on primary source documents, documents that were written by official government bodies or those written by the people w...

11 Mar 202556min

In 1738, a cooper named Benedict Arnold petitioned the Rhode Island General Assembly for a divorce from his wife Mary Ward Arnold. Benedict claimed that Mary had taken a lover and together they had at...

4 Mar 202548min

When we think of slavery in Early America, we often think about the plantations and economies of the South. But did you know that slavery was also deeply entrenched in New York City? Did you know t...

25 Feb 20251h 1min

What does freedom mean when the deck is stacked against you? In commemoration of Black History Month, we’re revisiting a story that is too often overlooked, but critical to our understanding of Ear...

18 Feb 20251h 5min