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In 1790, Moses Seixas of the Touro Synagogue wrote a letter to President Washington. Representing a people who had been escaping persecution for generations, he wanted confirmation that Jews would be given full freedom in the United States. Washington assured Seixas, and those of all religions. This letter provides insight into two founding principles of America: freedom of religion and separation of church and state.

George Washington gained a reputation for military excellence for his service in the French and Indian War. This experience, combined with his unique situation as a relative outsider, made him an obvious choice to lead the Continental Army. Washington managed to get a ragtag army into fighting form, leading them to victory against all odds. Yet he remained humble; in this acceptance speech, he said, “I am truly sensible of the high Honor done me in this Appointment.... I do not think myself equal to the Command I am honored with.”

Poe’s characters often take turns for the worse, and this is the literal case in this shipwreck story by the author. Aboard a ship taking off from Indonesia, the narrator’s ship and crew is struck by a storm that kills everyone but the narrator and one other crewmember. As the ship sales on under the enchantment of the storm, it collides with another seemingly enchanted object - a large black galleon crewed by blind men. The narrator keeps a ship’s log while aboard and is forced to abandon it over the side of the ship with the hopes of someone reading it someday.

On the brink of death, the friend of a notable mesmerist commits to an experiment of hypnosis prior to imminent death. As the tale progresses, the mesmerist describes keeping his friend in a fully mesmerized state without a pulse or breath. When Valdemar asks from his trancelike state to either be awakened or let go, the narrator tries to wake him from the grips of death - with dire consequences.

One of Edgar Allen Poe’s more lighthearted stories, this details the investigation of a mummy named Allamistakeo. After finding the body of the mummy in good condition, the mummy researchers use electricity to bring him back to life. Allamistakeo then proceeds to have a conversation with the crew - from what ancient Egypt was like to what religion was like. The conversation ends abruptly when the researchers ask him a question about the beginning of the universe, calling to play the reigning religion at the time.

Poe brings the reality of life and death to the forefront as he weaves a story within a story. When the narrator runs into an old man, the man begins to tell the tale of how he aged so rapidly. Only a day before, he was young - but lost his shipmates into a vicious maelstrom and the powers of the sea. After the initial terror of the event has subsided, he is able to examine the beauty and the power of the forces that can both provide life and take it away without note.

In this story, the narrator showcases his friend, Toby Dammit, who is a man of low morals and often makes bets against the devil. One day, while on a bridge, Dammit sees a turnstile and bets the devil his head he can make it that far. An old man goads Dammit into making the leap - and the cost is about what you might expect.

Pauite leader Wovoka founded the Ghost Dance movement in the late 1880s as conditions for Native Americans became increasingly hopeless. Wovoka declared himself the messiah and spread the news that Indians were to prepare themselves for salvation through this spiritual practice. In this message, also called “The Messiah Letter”, Wovoka provides instructions for the Ghost Dance. He promises, “When the time comes there will be no more sickness and everyone will be young again.”

Many consider Theodore Roosevelt to be America’s most conservation-minded president. Throughout his presidency, he worked to preserve endangered animals and their habitats. In this 1907 speech to Congress, he states, “The conservation of our natural resources and their proper use constitute the fundamental problem which underlies almost every other problem of our national life.” Hear this speech to experience Roosevelt’s conservationist fervor firsthand.

On December 29, 1890, the US military entered the Lakota Pine Ridge Indian Reservation with the intention of disarming the natives. When met with resistance, the cavalry opened fire on the Lakota in a massacre that killed several hundred men, women, and children. A few months later, some of the Lakota survivors met with the Commissioner of Indian Affairs in Washington to state their side of the story. These powerful testimonies present this horrific event from the perspective of those most hurt by it.

Greta Garbo, a Swedish-born American actress, holds her own as one of the top five female stars of the Hollywood Golden Years. The renowned silent film star remained mysteriously silent off-screen, too. This earned her the moniker of “Swedish sphinx,” an aura of mystique she cultivated despite her international stardom. After 20 years in film, she retired and spent the next 50 years as a recluse in New York; she made few public appearances, declining even to attend the 1954 Academy Awards to accept her special Academy Honorary Award.

It may seem odd that Mark Twain delivered a 4th of July speech in London in 1907. Aside from poking fun at the American obsession with fireworks and drunken revelry, however, the brilliant Twain knew just how to tie the topic of American independence with his British audience. He recounts how the Revolutionary War was fought between Brits over a Declaration of Independence written by Brits before the United States officially formed as a nation.

At his 70th birthday party, Mark Twain delivered this delightful retrospective of his life. He dished out sarcastic advice on how he’d made it so far, discussing diet, sleep, cigars, alcohol, and exercise, among other topics. In the end, he said, “I am seventy; seventy, and would nestle in the chimney-corner, and smoke my pipe, and read my book, and take my rest, wishing you well in all affection.” He died three years later.

When prompted to give a speech at his 67th birthday party, Mark Twain was at no loss for wit. Several notable individuals proceeded him, heaping compliments upon him, so Twain began his speech by saying, “You cannot talk on compliments; that is not a text. No modest person, and I was born one, can talk on compliments.” So instead, he proceeded to give compliments back to his notable friends who were in attendance.

As humans, we often wonder about our heroes’ (and, perhaps, our enemies’) opinions on the most assorted of topics. Mark Twain’s speech “Cigars and Tobacco” serves to satiate such curiosities. In it, he details his storied history with those two substances and his search for the “worst cigar in the New York Market.” It’s a brief treat for anyone who’s ever wondered about Twain’s tobacco consumption, or simply wants to read some miscellaneous wit from this literary master.

Mark Twain delivered this humorous speech on taxation and morality at the Tuskegee Institute to commemorate its 25th anniversary. With his signature ironic wit, he told the audience woefully of the public vs. private morals of Christians. He says the Christian maintains the nation’s integrity 363 days a year, but the "other two days of the year he leaves his Christian private morals at home and carries his Christian public morals to the tax office and the polls, and does the best he can to damage and undo his whole year's faithful and righteous work."

A master of wit and wry humor on the page, Mark Twain also gained acclaim as a speaker throughout his literary career. Twain delivered this address on theoretical morality vs. practical morality to the New Vagabonds Club of London. With his signature tongue-in-cheek humor, he tells the audience that the only way to learn practical morality is by committing immoral acts in order to “vaccinate” oneself against committing them in the future. Presented with anecdotes from his childhood, this Twain speech masterfully walks the line between light-hearted humor and biting truth.

Sitting Bull lives on in legacy as a Native American chief who fought against white oppression. When the US government broke land treaties to seek gold in the Black Hills, Sitting Bull took a stand against the desecration of this sacred land. He led his people, the Hunkpapa Lakota, through a period of resistance amidst crisis. He persisted through the end of the Great Sioux Wars, famously facing off against George Armstrong Custer in the 1876 Battle of the Little Bighorn. Though shot and killed in 1890, Sitting Bull's immortal spirit of resistance continues to inspire.

With a name like Ivan the Terrible, it comes as no surprise that historians consider this Russian Tsar a psychopath. Yet Ivan’s personality consisted of many dualities. He channeled the Medieval era as he committed mass murder, but he also reformed Russia, centralizing it and bringing it into the Renaissance. He liked to torture animals, but he could also be found in church, banging his head in repentance until it bled. This introduction to his life explores the legacy he was born into and deftly contextualizes his cruelty within the era and culture of his rule.

Grace Kelly only graced American film screens from 1950-1956. She came from a line of successful individuals, and her short career was no exception; she starred in numerous films, worked with legendary director Alfred Hitchcock, and won an Academy Award. She also won the heart of the Prince of Monaco, whom she wed in 1956. She reigned as a philanthropic princess until her dramatic death on a winding Monaco street in 1982. This biography serves as an introduction to her life and legacy as a film princess.