History Shorts

In the mid-1960s, America faced a growing labor crisis in its agricultural fields. For decades, farms across the country had depended heavily on migrant labor—much of it organized through the Bracero ...

19 Mar 10min

For much of American history, the nation's military was not overseen by a single unified department. Instead, it was divided between separate branches like the United States Department of War and the ...

18 Mar 11min

In the chaos of civil war, one man rose from relative obscurity to rule England without a crown. Oliver Cromwell, a Puritan soldier and fierce opponent of royal authority, emerged as one of the most p...

17 Mar 11min

Long before Hollywood dramatized it, New York City in the mid-19th century was a battleground of rival gangs, political machines, and neighborhoods fighting for control of the streets. In crowded dist...

16 Mar 10min

In the late 19th century, one naval officer reshaped how the world understood power itself—not through speeches or battlefield heroics, but through a book. Alfred Thayer Mahan, a U.S. Navy captain and...

15 Mar 9min

It's small. Portable. Affordable. Easy to slip into a coat pocket or toss into a suitcase. But the paperback book didn't just change how we read—it changed who could read. Before the 20th century, boo...

14 Mar 10min

In this gripping Conversation Series episode, historian and investigative author Sara Vladic joins History Shorts to discuss her explosive new book, The Dangerous Shore: How a Motley Crew of Scientist...

13 Mar 29min

The war was over—but for thousands of American soldiers stationed overseas, the fight felt far from finished. In late 1945 and early 1946, frustration boiled over among U.S. troops waiting to be broug...

12 Mar 9min