Newspaper Ads Show Freed Slaves’ Desperate Search for Lost Relatives
After emancipation, some African American families that were torn apart by slavery turned to newspaper ads in hopes of finding lost loved ones. These “information wanted” advertisements primarily appeared in black-oriented newspapers, which sprang up after the end of the U.S. Civil War. A series of “Lost Friends” ads that appeared in a New Orleans […]
Which US States Have Produced the Most Presidents?
Virginia and Ohio top the list when it comes to the number of U.S. presidents each state has produced. Virginia has produced eight presidents, including some of the nation’s earliest leaders such as George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison and James Monroe. The seven presidents who hailed from Ohio include Ulysses S. Grant, Rutherford B. […]
Americans No Longer One Nation Under God?
American students begin their day with a patriotic pledge vowing allegiance to “one nation, under God”, while U.S. presidents and politicians regularly end speeches with the words, “May God bless America”. Indeed, since our nation’s founding by pilgrims escaping religious persecution, and seeking the freedom to freely practice their religion, faith has played an integral […]
Mixed Marriages Causing US Hispanics, Asians to Integrate Faster
U.S. immigrants appear to be integrating faster than expected, according to a new report, which finds that the grandchildren of Hispanics and Asians are less likely to identify themselves by these ethnicities on government surveys than their parents and grandparents are. This is especially true of children of mixed marriages. “Most of this ethnic attrition, […]
Once Scorned, Many Americans Now Happily Claim This Ancestry
The Irish were among the United States’s first great wave of immigrants in the late 1800s and early 1900s. These newcomers lived in extreme poverty at the lowest rungs of American society, often enduring fervent anti-immigrant and anti-Catholic discrimination. Today, more than 33 million Americans proudly claim to have at least some Irish ancestry. People […]
Rare 1903 Video Captures Busy Boston Streets
Rare video posted by the New England Historical Society shows the busy streets of Boston in 1903. A cameraman boarded a city streetcar and filmed as he rode around the city. The silent black-and-white footage records sidewalks jammed with pedestrians while horses and buggies share the road with electric streetcars. Seeing Boston By Streetcar was one of the […]
Americans Can’t Always Name That President
Americans celebrate Presidents Day, a federal holiday commemorating George Washington’s birthday, on the third Monday in February. The occasion used to be celebrated every February 22 — the actual date the first U.S. president was born — until 1971, when it was moved to create more three-day weekends for the country’s workers. These days many […]
How Diversity Has Changed America
Over the past four decades, the level of diversity in the United States has increased most in California, Nevada, New Mexico and Texas. In 1970, California — currently the most diverse state in the nation — had a population of about 20 million and the overwhelming majority of its residents — 17.8 million — identified […]
Americans Think About Strange Stuff at Thanksgiving
Millions of Americans are getting ready for Thanksgiving, but a new Google Maps project shows they’re not necessarily thinking about turkey and stuffing. Google Maps looked at the most popular Thanksgiving Day searches over the past few years and found that many Americans are likely to skip cooking up a large feast on the big day. […]
From Ireland to Mexico, Maps Show Changing Face of US Immigrants
From Ireland and Germany to Italy and Mexico, a new series of maps illustrates changing trends in immigration to the United States from 1850 until 2013. The Pew Research Center graphics show the dominant immigrant groups in each state for every decade during that period. The country’s first great wave of immigrants arrived from Ireland and […]