Richard Kurin
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English
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Explore the struggle for an inclusive role for women in American society. Chart the history of the women's suffrage movement, witness Helen Keller's miraculous story, follow Amelia Earhart's heartbreaking career in the air. and get a glimpse into Julia Child's life as a television pioneer and cultural icon.
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Hear the tale told by a tiny gold flake, smaller than a fingernail, which launched the California Gold Rush in the late 1840s. Encounter another artifact that had a profound impact on the West: the Colt revolver. And view the West through the eyes of both settlers and natives in the art of Albert Bierstadt and the sketches from Sitting Bull's drawing book.
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Survey selected Smithsonian artifacts that capture the trajectory of the Cold War, from a 1930s patriotic union badge worn by labor leader John L. Lewis, to the Enola Gay bomber that ended World War II, to a 1950s fallout shelter and a piece of the shattered Berlin Wall.
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Peer into powerful faces from the past, including those of Pocahontas, Frederick Douglass, and the female factory worker apocryphally known as Rosie the Riveter, who appears on an iconic poster from World War II. Also inspect another icon: the signature stovepipe hat worn by Abraham Lincoln.
9) Experiencing America: A Smithsonian Tour through American History: Emancipation and the Civil War
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Study relics and documents related to the emancipation of slaves during the Civil War era, culminating with General Lee's surrender at Appomattox. Also hear poignant stories told by a selection of artifacts from the Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History and Culture.
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Americans have always blended politics and song. Trace the rise of three great voices in this tradition: Marian Anderson, Woody Guthrie, and Bob Dylan. Among other touchstones of their era, see the mink coat that Anderson wore at a celebrated concert on the National Mall in 1939.
12) Experiencing America: A Smithsonian Tour through American History: The Growth and Spread of Slavery
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Starting with a set of slave shackles, chart the history of slavery in the Americas. Discover how the invention of the cotton gin helped expand slave labor. Then follow the story of African-American abolitionist Harriet Tubman, as told through some of her treasured personal belongings.
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Begin your tour of national treasures from the Smithsonian with the artifact that inspired our national anthem: the flag that flew over Fort McHenry when Francis Scott Key penned "The Star-Spangled Banner." Hear about the battle for the fort and the later history of the flag, including how it was almost "loved to death."
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Focus on inventions that radically transformed how people communicate, beginning with Samuel Morse's telegraph. Then look at a historic telephone used by Alexander Graham Bell, and listen to one of his early recording disks. Finally, witness the birth of mass media through the inventions of radio and television.
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Learn how some of the country's greatest leaders have seen themselves and been seen by the nation. Inspect Washington's uniform, swords, and portraits. Also look at notable photographs of Lincoln, and trace the history of Eisenhower's distinctive army jacket and his presidential "look."
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The Singer sewing machine, the Kodak Brownie camera, and the Apple Macintosh computer each exemplify the transformative effects of functionality and good design. View early models of these pioneering inventions, and explore the social revolutions they set in motion.
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Close the course by returning to the Declaration of Independence and its pledge that "all men are created equal." Trace the struggle to realize this promise from the turmoil of Reconstruction to a lunch counter in Greensboro, N.C., site of sit-ins during the Civil Rights era, and now on display at (where else?) the Smithsonian.
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English
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View Smithsonian artifacts that tell the story of the quest for religious freedom in America, from a rare religious portrait from the colonial Southwest, to a chunk of Plymouth Rock, to Thomas Jefferson's unique compilation of the Gospels, to the symbolic sunstone on the original Mormon Temple in Nauvoo, Illinois.
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Investigate objects linked to the experiences of America's immigrants: an original model of the Statue of Liberty, a painting highlighting the injustice of internment for Japanese Americans during World War II, and two artifacts connected to Caesar Chavez and his battle for the rights of Mexican-American farm workers.