Transcontinental Railroad: Reports from the End of the Track

Harper's Weekly reported on the progress of the transcontinental railroad throughout its construction. 

Transcontinental Railroad: Mark Twain on the Railroad

Mark Twain chronicled his experiences living and working out West in his book Roughing It, published in 1872.

Geology of the Grand Canyon

"The canyon is a Book of Revelations in the rock-leaved Bible of geology." — John Wesley Powell

America and the Holocaust: Suggestions for the Classroom

Complex social and political factors shaped America's response to the Holocaust, from Kristallnacht in 1938 through the liberation of the death camps in 1945.

Edison's Miracle of Light: Edison's Technology

By the time Thomas Edison was 23, his passion to experiment and develop new inventions had earned him a number of patents.

Earth Day Across America

On April 22, 1970, more than 20 million Americans gathered on college campuses and in city squares to celebrate the first Earth Day.

Letters from The Great War

During World War I, letters were the main method of communication between soldiers and the homefront. This gallery of war letters from the Center for American War Letters offers a glimpse into the lives of the men and women who lived through World War I, in their own words.

Letters from The Great War

Letters from The Great War

The Cancer Detectives: Trailer

The untold story of the people who fought tirelessly to save women from cervical cancer.