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SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 2009
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NEWS ABOUT: American history

American history stories: 8 news summaries

 Washington Was Good 
 With a Buck, Accounts Show 

Long-ignored financial records a 'treasure trove,' historians say

Oct 12, 09 9:53 AM CDT
(Newser) - Fitting enough for the guy who ended up on the dollar bill, George Washington seems to have tracked every buck that crossed his path. The first president not only left scores of diaries and letters reflecting his views, but also assiduously documented his financial transactions. The result? A treasure trove... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Mount Vernon • George Washington • founding fathers • historic preservation • American history

Stone Takes on 'Secret History of America'

Director will look at
'under-reported' events in Showtime series

Aug 19, 09 2:30 PM CDT
(Newser) - Oliver Stone is nothing if not ambitious. According to the Hollywood Reporter, the director is prepping a 10-part documentary series entitled Secret History of America, which promises to examine important but under-reported events from the past 60 years. Stone, who will provide the narration himself, calls the Showtime project “... More »

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entertainment • cable TV • Showtime • Cold War • Vietnam War • Oliver Stone • JFK assassination • conspiracy theory • American history

OPINION

 Right-Wing Crazy 
 Is All-American 

Birthers, tea parties—it's nothing new

Aug 16, 09 8:23 AM CDT
(Newser) - With the left back in power, we’re seeing right-wing "crazies"—the “birthers, tea-partiers, town hall hecklers”—getting louder. But that’s nothing new, writes Rick Perlstein in the Washington Post. In America, “the crazy tree blooms in every moment of liberal ascendancy, and elites... More »

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media • American media • town hall meeting • conservatism • right-wing attacks • tea parties • right-wing extremism • American history • birther • death panel

Decades of US Immigration History Comes to Light

National Archives receives documents of 21 million

Jun 4, 09 12:55 PM CDT
(Newser) - The US is sending the files on some 21 million immigrants to the National Archives, revealing volumes of early 20th-century history, USA Today reports. The documents tell the stories of celebrities like Salvador Dali as well as the successes and tribulations of ordinary people, from refugees to “enemy aliens.... More »

MORE ABOUT:
immigration • history • immigrant • National Archives • American history • Salvador Dali

Lost-and-Found Letter Shows Lincoln's Terse Side

Embattled prez had more to deal with than Civil War

May 29, 09 10:59 AM CDT
(Newser) - A handwritten note dated just a few days before Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address has finally made its way back to the National Archives, the Washington Post reports. The terse communication from the president to Treasury Secretary Salmon P. Chase addressed corruption charges against a Lincoln appointee. "Even though this... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Abraham Lincoln • Civil War • National Archives • letter • American history • Salmon P. Chase

 Woman Won 'Male Rights' 
 Fighting in Civil War 

Soldier remained in her disguise for better jobs, voting rights

May 24, 09 6:50 PM CDT
(Newser) - A veteran of 40 Civil War skirmishes and battles kept one secret under wraps: her breasts. Union Army soldier Albert Cashier was really Jennie Hodgers, one of hundreds of women who fought in the war. "The country needed men, and I wanted excitement," Hodgers said. She also benefited... More »

MORE ABOUT:
military • Civil War • 19th century • American history • Union soldier • Albert Cashier • women in the military

memorial day weekend

 10 Odd Facts 
 About World War II 


May 23, 09 4:35 PM CDT
(Newser) - With Memorial Day and the 65th anniversary of Normandy coming up, it's time for a World War II history review. The Chicago Tribune has dug up ten strange facts:
  • Elsie Mitchell and five children died in Gearhart Mountain, Ore., in May 1945, by touching a Japanese "balloon bomb"
... More »

MORE ABOUT:
history • World War II • Memorial Day • American history

(Newser) - The first authorized biopic of Martin Luther King Jr. will be a Steven Spielberg production. The filmmaker's DreamWorks studio has obtained the rights from King's family, NPR reports. No word yet on whether Spielberg himself will direct or who will play the main role (Denzel? Jamie Foxx?). King’s children... More »

MORE ABOUT:
entertainment • Steven Spielberg • film • DreamWorks • Martin Luther King Jr. • civil rights movement • biopic • Dexter King • American history

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