America First History

During the presidential campaign in 1864, the outcome of the Civil War was still very much in doubt, and while the Republicans renominated Lincoln for the presidency, they made an unprecedented move by nominating a Democrat, Andrew Johnson, for vice president. Senator Johnson was notable for being the only senator to remain loyal to the Union even when his state, Tennessee, had seceded. At the time, nominating Johnson seemed to be a mere token of goodwill - little did Republicans know what would happen the following April.

The Transcontinental Railroad, laid across the United States during the 1860s, remains the very epitome of contradiction. On the one hand, it was a triumph of engineering skills over thousands of miles of rough terrain, but on the other hand, it drained the natural resources in those places nearly dry.

One of the most celebrated milestones in Springfield's history is the invention of basketball. It was within the hallowed halls of Springfield College that this iconic sport was born. Springfield College, one of the oldest colleges in the United States, became the birthplace of a game that would capture the hearts and minds of millions worldwide. The spirit of competition, teamwork, and athleticism found its roots here, giving rise to the phenomenon we know as basketball.

Deadwood, 1876: a notorious little mining town in modern-day South Dakota that was a hive of criminal activity. Thieves, drunkards, prostitutes, and murderers ran rampant among its booming streets. There were over 300 murders in this town during the first year of its existence. When Wild Bill Hickok was brutally shot and killed at point-blank range in the back of the head, it was obvious that someone had to rise up and save the town of Deadwood from itself.

Jamestown is fondly remembered today for being the first permanent English settlement in the colonies, but it was not fondly remembered by those who lived and died there. The English quickly learned it would be difficult to establish a permanent settlement because of the poor weather, the swampy terrain, the hostile natives living nearby, and the general inexperience and ineptitude of the English settlers.

Today the Space Race is widely viewed poignantly and fondly as a race to the Moon that culminated with Apollo 11 “winning” the Race for the United States. In fact, it encompassed a much broader range of competition between the Soviet Union and the United States that affected everything from military technology to successfully launching satellites that could land on Mars or orbit other planets in the Solar System.

Al interior de majestuosas y vibrantes ciudades como Teotihuacan —una megalópolis con características únicas, algo así como el Nueva York de aquellos tiempos—, Monte Albán o Tikal, el poder económico, político y religioso se concentró en las élites gobernantes, que experimentaron una abundancia sin precedentes.

Despite her distinction and other more notable accomplishments, many people today are not familiar with the groundbreaking actress Dorothy Dandridge, even though she was among the most charismatic and beautiful actresses of the era. Her alluring nightclub acts set pulses pounding across the globe, and she was Hollywood’s first black leading actress. Sadly, all of it came at a high price.

The first of the Founding Documents Trilogy featuring the Declaration of Independence. The listener is swept into a chapter of history ripped from the headlines of the late 1700s, where the future of the Colonies hung in the balance. Would the founding fathers be executed for high treason, or would they sign the document that would mean...Independence Now!

George Washington, the first president of the United States makes his inaugural address. Narrated by Mike Vendetti.

Feared by settlers and natives alike, the Shawnee tribe have been misunderstood by people throughout history. Who were these conservative people? What was their daily life like? How were their villages organized? This informative book will answer these questions and more in the first volume of the We are Shawnee series.

While the Lincoln Administration and most Northerners were preoccupied with trying to capture Richmond in the summer of 1861, it would be the little known Ulysses S. Grant who delivered the Union's first major victories, over a thousand miles away from Washington. Grant's new commission led to his command of the District of Southeast Missouri, headquartered at Cairo, after he was appointed by "The Pathfinder", John C. Fremont, a national celebrity who had run for President in 1856.

George Washington was an American soldier, statesman, and Founding Father who worked as the nation's first president from 1789 to 1797. Washington was called leader of the Continental Army by the Continental Congress, and he led the Patriot forces to triumph in the American Revolutionary War.

The topic of the first Thanksgiving is exciting to read about and learn because it offers a captivating and adventurous tale of courage, resilience, and cultural encounters. The daring journey of the Mayflower in 1620 sets the stage for an epic narrative as the Pilgrims face numerous challenges and overcome obstacles in their pursuit of religious freedom. The story of survival and cooperation between the Pilgrims and the Wampanoag tribe, led by Chief Massasoit, adds a heartwarming dimension to the historical account, capturing the spirit of unity and gratitude.

Relish in the savory, tangy, and sometimes spicy dishes of Cecilia Chiang, a revolutionary who changed the way Americans viewed Chinese food. From an early age, Cecilia Chiang could be found delighting in the sounds and smells from her favorite room in her home—the kitchen. Little did Cecilia...

La gesta emancipadora de Simón Bolívar en Venezuela motivó la inmediata reacción de sus vecinos colombianos quienes buscaban hace mucho la libertad. Sin embargo, la recuperación del trono español por parte de Fernando VII en el año 1806 pondría a prueba las aspiraciones independentistas. Sólo la fe inquebrantable de los patriotas lograría cambiar el destino de las cosas.

Women didn’t always have the rights and the possibilities that they do today. In the past, the basic human rights such as the right to vote, the right to reproduce, the right to work, to hold public office, to enter into legal contracts, to have equal rights in family law, the right to education, the right to be free from sexual violence, the right to own property, and so on were not available to women.

Discover the moving, true story of the Native American named Squanto, who is captured from his beloved Pawtuxet tribe, taken to Spain, and sold into slavery. Years later, Squanto regains his freedom and embarks on a miraculous journey back to his homeland where he teaches the Pilgrims how to survive the difficult early years in the Plymouth colony - culminating in the first Thanksgiving celebration.

50 Things to Know About the First Ladies by author Margaret Strolle offers a approach to learning about the first ladies that is simple yet informative. Most books on first ladies tell you anecdotes about all the first ladies individually. Although there's nothing wrong with that, this audiobook streamlines the information for the casual first-ladies scholar, teaching you the highlights in easily digestible paragraphs. Based on knowledge from the world's leading experts, this audiobook will help you sound like an expert on the first ladies.

This work by James Williams is one of very few autobiographical texts by Caribbean slaves or former slaves. It became one of the most powerful abolitionist tools for ending the system of apprenticeship which had replaced slavery. Williams argues that apprenticeship worsened the conditions of Jamaican ex-slaves as former owners used the legal system against them.