November 2022

The Most Misunderstood Americans

jfk indians
In the introduction to The American Heritage Book of Indians, JFK wrote that "America has much to learn about the heritage of our American Indians." JFK Library

“These Are No Ordinary Times”

iww demonstration
One of the most active labor-rights organizations between 1917 and 1920 was the Industrial Workers of the World, whose members were known as Wobblies. Library of Congress

The Quiet Monkee

Michael Nesmith (bottom right) was photographed with the other four Monkees in 1966. NBC Television.
Michael Nesmith (bottom right) was photographed with the other three Monkees in 1966. NBC Television

“Here we come, walkin’
  Down the street.
  We get the funniest looks from
  Ev’ry one we meet.
  Hey, hey, we’re the Monkees
  And people say we monkey around.
  But we’re too busy singing
  To put anybody down.”
     – By Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart for The Monkees

The older I get, it seems the more often I choke up. And the recent passing of Michael Nesmith, songwriter, producer, and the quiet member of the musical group The Monkees, definitely filled me with emotion.

First Shots in the Pacific War

Silent witness to war, an ancient coconut palm survived the attack with numerous bullet holes.
A silent witness to war, this old coconut palm survived the attack, with a few bullet holes as mementos. “When this tree is gone, there will be no more relics of the invasion,” a local guide told the author. Malaysian authorities have little appetite for preservation or commemoration of the war.

Editor's Note: Photographs are by the author, unless otherwise credited.

Zafrani brings bullets.

His cousin, sitting at the desk of the Tourist Information Center, had called him up, told him to hurry over. There’s an American guy here who wants to see where World War II in Asia really began.

Biddy Sues for Freedom

biddy mason
Born a slave in Georgia in 1818, Bridget "Biddy" Mason was one of the first African American women to journey West, where she eventually sued for her freedom and became a prominent landowner and community leader. Los Angeles Public Library

Editor’s Note: “The true-life story of women's experiences in the Wild West is more gripping, heart-rending, and stirring than all the movies, novels, folk-legends, and ballads of popular imagination,” says historian Katie Hickman, the author of nine books. So, she has compiled numerous such stories in her new title, Brave Hearted: The Women of the American West, from which this essay was adapted.

Olmsted “Paints With Lakes”

Central Park, Olmsted's crowning achievement, first opened to the public in 1858. 
Central Park, Olmsted's crowning achievement, first opened to the public in 1858. Central Park Conservancy

On March 25, 1893, a gala dinner was held in honor of Daniel Burnham, the driving force behind the Columbian Exposition, the World’s Fair about to open in Chicago. Various artists and architects who had worked on the project gathered for this lavish event.

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