Over the course of his long life, Benjamin Franklin lived in London during two different occasions. The first time he went as a teenager. The second as a man and colonial agent. All told he spent nearly 18 years living in the heart of the British...
What do historians do with historical sources when they find them? How do they read them for information about the past? Today, Zara Anishanslin, an Assistant Professor of History at CUNY’s College of Staten Island, leads us on an exploration of how...
Colonial Bostonians practiced slavery. But slavery in Boston looked very different than slavery in the American south or in the Caribbean. Today, Jared Hardesty, an Assistant Professor of History at Western Washington University and author of...
When did the fighting of the American War for Independence end? In school we learn that the war came to an end at Yorktown. But, this lesson omits all of the fighting that took place after Charles, Earl Cornwallis’ surrender in October 1781. Today...
Did George Washington really start the French and Indian War? Why should we remember a battle that took place over 260 years ago? Today, we investigate the answers to those questions as we explore the Battle of the Monongahela with David Preston...
Between 1754 and 1763, North Americans participated in the French and Indian War; a world war Europeans call the Seven Years’ War. As this world war raged, many South Carolinians, Virginians, Britons, and Cherokee people also fought a war for land...
What caused the American Revolution? Can we use the term “American Revolution” to describe both the revolution and the War for Independence? What was the greatest challenge that George Washington and his Continental Army faced during the War for...
Did Canada almost join the American Revolution? In September 1775, Major-General Philip Schuyler launched the Patriot’s invasion into Canada. The Patriots hoped to end the threat of a British invasion from the north by occupying Canada and bringing...
Are you ready to time travel? 2015 marks the 800th anniversary of Magna Carta, a document created to limit the powers of King John of England and his successors in 1215. Today, Magna Carta and its four key principles continue to influence and...
How and where did the North American and Caribbean colonies fit within the British Empire? The answer to this question depends on whether you explore the views of a British imperial officer, such as the King of England, or a colonist who lived in...