These are the stories of the challenges and triumphs that have shaped the "Great Experiment" of democracy - the United States of America.

Colonial America had no freedom of religion, and the men who signed the Declaration of Independence hated each other. The reason you don’t know those facts? Thomas Jefferson.

Colonial America had no freedom of religion, the men who signed the Declaration of Independence hated each other. The reason you don’t know those facts? Thomas Jefferson.

Thomas Jefferson

Danielle Allen explores the bold minds and historical circumstances that resulted in one of the greatest political writings in history.

America's Declaration

Discovered by an unlikely team of amateur historians 45 feet beneath a Kansas cornfield, the Steamboat Arabia is one of the best-preserved shipwrecks in American history. The treasures contained within painting a vivid picture of western expansion and the treacherous frontier.

Discovered by an unlikely team of amateur historians 45 feet beneath a Kansas cornfield, the Steamboat Arabia is one of the best-preserved shipwrecks in American history.

Cornfield Shipwreck

Timing is everything, just look at what happened in 1848. How did the finding of gold in Sutter's Mill make an impact on the development of California and the history of the United States?

How did the finding of gold in Sutter's Mill make an impact on the development of California and the history of the United States?

The Gold Rush: For A Fistful Of Nuggets

NPR’s Peter Sagal takes us on an irreverent romp through American history to reveal how money makes the world go around.

HI$TORY

Television made John Kennedy the ultimate celebrity during his presidency. However, the JFK we remember is the one his wife, Jackie, created after his death. From Air Force One to the Oval Office to the Rose Garden, Jackie Kennedy designed the symbols of presidential power still used today.

Television made John Kennedy the ultimate celebrity during his presidency. However, the JFK we remember is the one his wife, Jackie, created after his death.

JFK: Fact & Fable

The 1929 Wall Street Stock Exchange crash spurs the greatest economic crisis of the 20th century: the Great Depression.

1929

It took an extraordinary set of circumstances to bring Abraham Lincoln to the White House. Violence in the streets... and in the U.S. capital. Dueling Newspapers. An unpredictable election with four main candidates, and an obscure frontier lawyer destined for greatness.

An in depth look at the events surrounding Lincoln's election. An unpredictable election with four main candidates, and an obscure frontier lawyer destined for greatness.

The Rise of Lincoln

4-part series revealing the real history of the Wild West. Beyond gunslingers and lawmen, we meet the diverse pioneers who shaped a country.