Historians in the News

The Photographer Who Captured 20th-Century Queer Life

by Hannah Giorgis

Joan E. Biren’s images from the ’70s and ’80s—which appear in the new exhibit “Art After Stonewall”—reflect an effort to document and encourage lesbian love.

Historian and Civil Rights Activist Paul Gaston Dies at 91

Renowned Southern historian Paul Gaston, who grew to appreciate wine, “was wonderful and wonderfully complicated,” said UVA associate professor of history John Edwin Mason.

History-themed Facebook groups have become a magnet for racist content

Billed as a place to look at historic photographs, a clutch of history-themed Facebook groups are hosting offensive posts and conversations.

Alan Brinkley, Leading Historian of 20th-Century America, Dies at 70

Mr. Brinkley’s work spanned the full spectrum of the last century’s seminal events and influential characters, including the Great Depression and World War II, Franklin D. Roosevelt and John F. Kennedy.

Anthony Price, British author of thrillers with deep links to history, dies at 90

For years, Mr. Price wrote reviews of crime fiction and military history before combining the two interests in his novels.

Students and Parents Push for Better Textbooks to Help Fight Hate and Stereotypes

Students, parents and educators are calling for material that reflects a diversity of experiences, saying it’s a matter of providing a fuller telling of history.

CSIS destroyed secret file on Pierre Trudeau, stunning historians

Documents fell short of the legal threshold for retention

Atlanta History Center acquires rare battle flag of Civil War’s black troops

The flag is the only surviving example of 11 similar flags painted by David Bustill Bowser, a Philadelphia sign-painter, portraitist and anti-slavery activist.

How Hamilton's Production Designer Brought the Founding Father's World to Life in the New Exhibition

There's a wealth of information left for fans of the award-winning musical to explore.

A Documentary History of Stonewall: An Interview with Marc Stein

Today on the blog, we talk to Marc Stein about his new book, The Stonewall Riots: A Documentary History. In it, he compiles 200 documents that shed light on the years immediately preceding and after the events at Stonewall. 

Truman Library Announces $25 Million Transformation

Over $23 million has been raised to date in support of new exhibits, programs, and education.

Historian Alison Weir's New Novel Raises Controversial Theory: Henry VIII Divorced Anne of Cleves Because She’d Already Given Birth

Weir acknowledges the claim, which pulls on previously unexplored evidence, is “inconclusive and speculative” but says it might make readers think.

How Accurate is HBO's Chernobyl? Experts Weigh In

Chernobyl has been a critical success on HBO, we spoke to experts in the nuclear industry about how accurate the show actually was.

Researchers Uncover Ancient Grape DNA That Tells the Prolific History of Wine

Grape seeds dating back to medieval and Roman periods share many similarities with the wine grapes we enjoy today.

Biographer Jon Meacham, Tim McGraw explore American history in song

Especially in times of deep political divide, music has reflected the nation’s conflicts.

New exhibit at museum in Nuremberg gives insight to how Germans remember the Holocaust

The display at the Documentation Center of the Nazi Party Rally Grounds, a museum in Nuremberg, give an indication of the ways in which the German people choose to remember the Holocaust and the era of Nazi rule.

Tim Bouverie's new book provides insight on Neville Chamberlain and the road to World War II

Appeasement: Chamberlain, Hitler, Churchill, and the Road to War finds Chamberlain to be a failed leader in a time of crisis.

Historians in Iraq Museum Continue Work Despite 2003 Looting

The museum still houses things ‘that are nowhere else in the world.’

Eric Rauchway tracks the progress from The New Deal to The Green New Deal

His latest book, “Winter War: Hoover, Roosevelt And The First Clash Over The New Deal” ― is an engaging, character-driven tour through the philosophical debates and political knife-fighting at the nadir of the Great Depression.

Historians at South Carolina museum expand its telling of area’s African American history

The museum contracted with historian Dr. Edwin Breeden to research on the area’s African American residents.