Historians/History

History Found Dixie Kiefer, one of the Greatest Heroes of World War II in the Pacific

by Don Keith with David Rocco

Dixie Kiefer, dubbed "The Indestructible Man" by Secretary of the Navy James Forrestal, was at the center of crucial events in the Pacific in World War II. 

The Real Patriots Invaded the Nation’s Capital Fifty Years Ago

by Elise Lemire

On this Patriots’ Day, fifty years after a battalion of Vietnam veterans brought their anguish and their outrage to the Capitol Building, we are reminded of the idealistic threads connecting the militiamen of Lexington and Concord and the Vietnam Veterans Against the War. 

Don't Erase Women's Leadership in the Berkeley Free Speech Movement

by Robert Cohen

Historians have yet to fully examine the role of women in leadership and at the grass roots of the Berkeley Free Speech Movement. Even some of the best and most insightful accounts of the FSM treat it as a movement of men and ignore the key roles of Jackie Goldberg, Bettina Aptheker and others. 

Gordon Liddy and the Greek Connection to Watergate

by James H. Barron

The recent death of Watergate conspirator G. Gordon Liddy has sparked renewed interest in the intricacies of the affair. The author argues that the material the "Plumbers" sought in the burglary related to a Greek journalist's efforts to expose illegal contributions by the Greek dictatorship to the 1968 election campaign of Richard Nixon. 

60 Years Later: The Enduring Legacy of the Bay of Pigs Fiasco

by Stephen F. Knott

The failed invasion of Cuba by CIA-trained operatives at the Bay of Pigs set the Kennedy administration on a path of increasingly abusive covert operations against the communist regime, with consequences for US-Cuban relations and American foreign policy that still reverberate. 

Richard Minear Reflects on Teaching History, Including Teaching Vietnamese History during the Vietnam War

by Erik Moshe

"We should teach a habit of mind, not a list of facts. This may have changed since my student days, but I'm not sure. Students can take our courses without really getting a sense of what it means to think historically."

Hidden Stories of Jewish Resistance in Poland

by Judy Batalion

I was fascinated by the widespread resistance efforts of Polish Jews, but equally by their absence from current understandings of the war. Of all the legions of Holocaust tales, what had happened to this one?

America Does Have an "Original Sin": A Response to James Goodman

by Joshua Ward Jeffery

"Original Sin" is a fit metaphor for longstanding inequities in American society, but it's important to understand that the original sin is settler colonialism and the seizure of indigenous land, which American civic religion has been all too willing to accommodate. 

Historians for Peace and Democracy Present Free Resources for History Educators

by Margaret Power and Kevin Young

Historians for Peace and Democracy invite readers and particularly history educators to explore the group's free resources for teaching about issues of peace, democracy, and human rights. 

"What the Black Man Wants": Frederick Douglass's Answers Still Resonate

by Ashley Cruseturner

WHAT SHALL WE DO WITH THE NEGRO? "Do nothing with us," Douglass suggested. The author argues that an inclusive conservatism can and must support individual liberty while recognizing that American society falls short of Douglass's expectation of full and free participation in the economic and political life of the nation.

Power to Rule the Skies: A Forgotten Innovator of the Strategic Air Command

by Brent D. Ziarnick

General Thomas S. Power should emerge from the shadow of his mentor Curtis LeMay as a leader of the United States Strategic Air Command at the critical moment in the dawn of the Cold War. 

Remembering the Father of Vaccination

by Richard Gunderman

"Whether or not Jenner truly saved more lives than any other person, there is no doubt that his pioneering work on immunization laid the groundwork for today’s most effective tool against COVID-19, the vaccine."

The Long History of Women Warriors

by Fred Zilian

Archaeological discoveries dating to the 5th century BCE show that the Amazons of Greek lore were based on the nomadic Scythians of Eurasia, part of a body of evidence that confounds the idea that rigidly demarcated gender roles are universal or inevitable.

FDR and the Need for Truth

by Stephen Dando-Collins

Franklin Roosevelt took a novel approach to handling bad domestic and military news in 1943, amid stiff political opposition: showing the public the hard truth about the Pacific War. 

Peace, Waiting to Be Picked Up: The Secret Diplomacy Failure of 1916 that Changed the World

by Philip Zelikow

In 1916, the major warring powers of Europe secretly pursued an American-brokered, face-saving peace. Confined to the shadows, the negotiations came close, but failed, with grave consequences for the world. 

The Birth, and Life, of a Word

by Ralph Keyes

One of the most widely-used terms in discussions of American racism has its roots in a campaign by two pro-slavery writers to troll abolitionists through a fake tract promoting "miscegenation."

The Big Ideas History Syllabus

by Andrew Joseph Pegoda

Good teachers consider their method, communication, and sources carefully. What about our subject, as teachers of history? How do we communicate what history is as a "big idea"? 

Was Madison Mistaken?

by Carl Pletsch

The divisive Trump years have called the wisdom of the Framers into question, but the author contends that James Madison in particular anticipated how a republic would be challenged by partisanship and designed one that could withstand that challenge (he just never claimed it would be easy). 

The History Behind Demands for "Trial by Combat"

by Eric Jager

A call for "trial by combat" may seem desperate or insane, but may also hint at a desire for a clear, definitive verdict when truth proves elusive. A medievalist reconstructs the world that allowed the last legal, judicial duel. 

History and Film: Reflections on Konchalovsky’s “Dear Comrades!”

by Walter G. Moss

Andrei Konchalovsky's film "Dear Comrades" examines the struggles of ordinary people in the Soviet Union to find truth amid ideology and fear.