Pennies and nickels add up to success: Maggie Lena Walker
Maggie Lena Walker was one of the most important Black businesswomen in the nation, and today too few people have heard of her.Maggie Lena...
In 1868, black suffrage was on the ballot
Every election season in the United States revolves around a set of issues—health care, foreign affairs, the economy. In 1868, at the...
How black Philadelphians fought for soldiers during World War I
Suffering from "shell shock and a general breakdown," Charles Mackall and James Randall arrived in Philadelphia in September 1918 from...

Blog Posts in "America Participates"

Fur the war effort
“The world infrequently notes the passing of a squirrel," announced an Arizona radio station on August 10, 1949. But when it comes to the...
A Scout By Any Other Name
In May 2018, the Boy Scouts of America changed the name of its program for older children to Scouts BSA and opened membership to girls for...
Sheets wearing the Special Olympics oath on his shirt with Eunice Kennedy Shriver. Courtesy of Dave Sheets.
Special Olympics at 50
"Let me win. But if I cannot win, let me be brave in the attempt."Eunice Kennedy Shriver, founder of Special Olympics, recited this oath at...
Collage of images taken from various blog posts, from photos of gowns to a portrait of a soldier in World War 1
The 10 most-read posts of 2017
2017 was another incredible year on the museum’s blog. More than a few of our most-read posts focused on how the museum continues to grow...
Commemorative ribbon decorated with a golden eagle, the U.S. flag, and a circular seal depicting Columbus’s arrival in the New World, complete with the text “Landing of Columbus.” At the bottom of the ribon is the following text: National Public School
I Pledge Allegiance
Since October 1892, countless schoolchildren across the nation have begun their school day by reciting the Pledge of Allegiance as a daily...
A grainy, black and white photograph of a shirtless man with dark hair being led down a hallway by two uniformed police officers
Primary sources provide perspectives on the 50th anniversary of the March on the Pentagon
A note to our readers: This blog post contains imagery that some may find disturbing. Reader discretion is advised.Between 50,000 and 150,...
Photograph of Ernie Martinez's re-stitched baseball glove and repair tools.
Innovative solutions to baseball problems: Latina/o style
After hitting a double, the runner goes for glory and tries to stretch the hit into a triple. A throw, a slide, a cloud of dust, and...
White button features a drawing of two students sitting next to each, one turns to the other and says "May 17th!." Around the button's border the text reads: "Keep the Buses Rolling...March on Boston."
Rethinking "busing" in Boston
On September 9, 1974, over 4,000 white demonstrators rallied at Boston Common to protest the start of court-ordered school desegregation in...
Portrait of Marjorie Stewart Joyner
Making waves: Beauty salons and the black freedom struggle
Born in 1896 in the tiny Appalachian hamlet of Monterey, Virginia, Marjorie Stewart grew up in extreme poverty. Of her 12 brothers and...
Wizard of Oz, 1900
Populism and the World of Oz
Update: Thanks to you, our Kickstarter campaign to "Keep Them Ruby" was a success and we have the support we need to conserve and display...
Photo of the Ruby Slippers on a yellow background
VHS killed "The Wizard of Oz" for me
 Update: Thanks to you, our Kickstarter campaign to "Keep Them Ruby" was a success and we have the support we need to conserve and...
Picture of Harold Cotton, Hat Blocker by Harvey Wang. Harold Cotton cleans a fedora with a brush. A group of hat blocks sit in the foreground, and Cotton's diploma hangs on the wall behind him.
Freedom's tally: An African American business in the Jim Crow South
At 15 years old, Harold Cotton tucked his shoe shine box under his arm and walked to Jefferson Square in downtown Greensboro, North...
One of the Ruby Slippers, with a small heel and a beaded bow, covered in sequins, sits under a microscope.
You can help conserve Dorothy's Ruby Slippers
Update: Thanks to you, our Kickstarter campaign to "Keep Them Ruby" was a success and we have the support we need to conserve and display...
A group of young women in white, button up, short sleeved shirts stands and kneels for the photograph. In the middle of the back row there is a man with a serious expression. The young woman kneeling in the center is holding a baseball bat.
Collecting, preserving, and sharing our history: The Latinos and Baseball: In the Barrios and Big Leagues Project
On February 20, 2016, former Smithsonian fellow Mark Ocegueda, currently a Ph.D. candidate in history at the University of California,...
Cover of Mining Journal, 1897
Help the museum dig into mining history!
Update: The project to transcribe our 1897 mining journal is now complete! Over 50 digital volunteers from 15 different countries...
White hat with blue ribbon and black and white photo of John F. Kennedy smiling
Curators collect history as it happens at the 2016 national political conventions
Scrolling through social media or watching on TV, you can't miss the pageantry accompanying national political conventions. The bright...
Two black-and-white photos of anniversary celebrations
Every picture is a winner
We had a remarkable response to our contest to help the museum select photos for its display celebrating the opening of the National Museum...
(Detail) Indoor black and white photo of children gathered around a rectangular table, wearing party hats and waiting to eat cake. The birthday boy, in suit and tie, grins, standing with his hands behind his back with his two-tiered cake in front of him. Behind him, a patterned curtain. Wood-paneled room.
Part 2: Pick which photos of celebrations in African American life should go on our walls
We're thrilled that our new neighbor, the National Museum of African American History and Culture, will open its doors in September....
(Detail) Many people in formal outfits sit at a long table with a white tablecloth. A couple smiles, wearing silly hats, about to cut a cake. Behind them, 15 or 16 people stand on a raised platform or stage, smiling for the photo. Streamers and other decorations are visible on the ceiling. There are tall candles in candle holders on some of the tables.
Pick which photos of celebrations in African American life should go on our walls
We're thrilled that our new neighbor, the National Museum of African American History and Culture, will open its doors in September....
Broadside announcing mass meeting in Haymarket Square, 1886
May Day: America's traditional, radical, complicated holiday, Part 2
This post is part two in a series. Part one traced how the holiday of May Day was revived in the United States by wealthy reformers who...
Miss Anna Jackson's May Day, 1942
May Day: America's traditional, radical, complicated holiday, Part 1
May Day is a holiday that many Americans have celebrated, but relatively few can explain. Depending on your age, you might associate May 1...
Patent with black and white illustration
Inventing for the public good
New posters around the museum remind us as we come to work each morning that our theme this year is "America Participates." This...
Museum case containing woman's gown, marble bust, nurse's cap, and small painting. Each item has a label.
Participating in America means constantly striving for a more perfect union
America Participates is the museum's 2016 theme: But what does "participation" actually look like? We interviewed David Allison, director...
5 things I learned about farming from a 1970s board game
Earlier this month, we sat down with curator Peter Liebhold, chair of the museum's Division of Work and Industry, to take a look at a...
Color print with image of a group of many men posing in a room with older gentlemen in middle along with a few women in six or seven children. The room has high ceilings and four windows along with a portrait. They are all wearing sashes and aprons that match.
The bonds of benevolence and focused charitable organizations
How do you come to truly know someone? How do you know if they are who they claim to be?These questions were at the heart of a major shift...
Photograph of Wonderlier Tupperware set, 1954
Parties for plastic: How women used Tupperware to participate in business
For Women's History Month, we're taking a look at some of the ways that American women have made their place in the marketplace by...
Color illustration showing many tall, white tents, a stage with a speaker, an audience of men and women. In the left side of the image, a woman tends a kettle on a fire.
A society for everything: Remaking America's charitable landscape during the Second Great Awakening
For many, "the Second Great Awakening" is one of those historical terms from a dusty textbook that sounds vaguely familiar, but the details...
Black and white photo of seven men. Each carries a lander with a circular handle and wears a matching hat and cape-like uniform in shiny fabric. They face the camera.
They marched with torches: Getting out the vote, 1840–1900
During the 19th century, politics were central to social life, to the point where affiliation with a political party included actual ...
Kids pitched in to defeat disease and advance medical research
Giving blood, getting a flu shot, raising money for a cure—plenty of Americans participate every day to help secure the health...
Poster with white background. "Free Clinic - Dec. 6, 1969" "Let your child be a rubella hero." Image of defeated dragon.
Standing up against disease together—or not
Eliminating or lowering rates of communicable disease often requires that we participate together in the battle against infectious disease...
From carousels to buses, Glen Echo Amusement Park and the training of an activist
Freedom School Scholar Harry Clarke reflects on the story of Glen Echo Amusement Park as part of his preparation to host the National Youth...