American History

More than 400 years ago this month, a group of English protestants—separatists from the Church of England—landed in the New World in search of religious freedom. But what did freedom really mean to these pilgrims?

More than 400 years ago this month, a group of English protestants—separatists from the Church of England—landed in the New World in search of religious freedom. But what did freedom really mean to these pilgrims?

If you want to get to the roots of horror in America, you have to go way back. Back to slavery, back to Salem, back to the colonization of the New World.

If you want to get to the roots of horror in America, you have to go way back. Back to slavery, back to Salem, back to the colonization of the New World.

On July 12, 1776, James Cook set sail aboard the HMS Resolution. It was Cook’s third voyage, and this time, he wouldn’t come home again.

The role that Samuel Adams played in fomenting the American Revolution once made him the most wanted man in the country.

The role that Samuel Adams played in fomenting the American Revolution once made him the most wanted man in the country.

The Salem witch trials haunt the American imagination as a time of extreme injustice. The story is most often told from the perspective of the accused and…

On the 4th of July, we're broadcasting our conversation with writer Nathaniel Philbrick about George Washington and Benedict Arnold. Arnold has long been…