US Military

An artist's rendering of the Capitol dome as seen through Harvey Pratt's proposed "Warriors' Circle of Honor"

This Innovative Memorial Will Soon Honor Native American Veterans

The National Museum of the American Indian has reached a final decision on which design to implement

Members of the 369th [African American] Infantry

One Hundred Years Ago, the Harlem Hellfighters Bravely Led the U.S. Into WWI

Their courage made headlines across the country, hailing the African-American regiment as heroes even as they faced discrimination at home

Using the encyclopedia as a guide, a group of Islay villagers worked through the night stitching together a Stars and Stripes.

A Hundred-Year-Old Handmade American Flag Flies Home. . . to Scotland

When WWI soldiers died off the coast of Islay Island, a group of villagers brought honor to their memory with this flag

Ulysses Simpson Grant, Oil on canvas by Thomas Le Clear

Ulysses S. Grant's 1849 Home in Detroit May Be Restored

The house he rented as a young officer is now boarded up and full of trash on the site of the former Michigan state fairgrounds

Johnson pressed his ear to this humble cup to hear the tap code messages of his friend Bob Shumaker in the next cell over.

The Indomitable Spirit of American POWs Lives On in These Vietnam Prison Keepsakes

For seven years an internee at the infamous "Hanoi Hilton," Congressman Sam Johnson entrusts his story to the Smithsonian

Inaugural Parade for President John F. Kennedy

The History of Military Parades in the U.S.

Displays of military might aren't common in modern America outside of wartime

An oyster-dominated anti-erosion structure in Texas

As Storms Get Bigger, Oyster Reefs Can Help Protect Shorelines

Municipalities and military bases are using the bivalve to defend against flooding and damage from climate change-driven storms

Locals cross a small wooden foot bridge in Quang Ngai Province in central Vietnam, just downriver from the My Lai Massacre in 1968.

The Ghosts of My Lai

In the hamlet where U.S. troops killed hundreds of men, women and children, survivors are ready to forgive the most infamous American soldier of the war

A CARE package intended for West Germany in 1948.

How WWII Created the Care Package

Technically, the innovation was originally trademarked

A demonstration at the Red Cross Emergency Ambulance Station in Washington, D.C., during the influenza pandemic of 1918

Why Did the 1918 Flu Kill So Many Otherwise Healthy Young Adults?

Uncovering a World War I veteran's story provided a genealogist and pharmacologist with some clues

TKTK

The Sweet Story of the Berlin Candy Bomber

Gail Halvorsen's efforts made children happy but they also provided the U.S. military with an opportunity

Photo of the world's first atomic explosion at the Trinity Site in New Mexico.

Trinity Site Offers a Rare Chance to Visit Ground Zero of the World’s First Atomic Bomb Explosion

The detonation site is only open to civilians twice a year

Thousands of women tirelessly worked in close quarters throughout the war breaking codes for the Army and Navy. Vowed to secrecy, they have long gone unrecognized for their wartime achievements.

How the American Women Codebreakers of WWII Helped Win the War

A new book documents the triumphs and challenges of more than 10,000 women who worked behind the scenes of wartime intelligence

The Moment Lincoln Realized the Military Power of Railroads

Following victory for the South in the battle of Bull Run, President Lincoln reached an inescapable conclusion

Chick Parsons (center and top) was the toast of prewar Manila, a convivial, polo-playing expat businessman with an eagle tattooed across his chest.

Without Chick Parsons, General MacArthur May Never Have Made His Famed Return to the Philippines

The full story of the American ex-pat's daring feats has not been told—until now

Alcatraz Island as it looks today.

Alcatraz Wasn't Always 'Uncle Sam's Devil's Island'

Though it was a prison for more than a century, it didn't become the famous maximum-security penitentiary until 1934

The hilt of Robert Gould Shaw's sword

Civil War Hero's Long-Lost Sword Was Hiding in an Attic

Union Colonel Robert Gould Shaw led the legendary 54th Massachusetts Regiment, one of the first official black military units in the United States

In his journal, Earl Shaffer, who walked in 16-mile stages, documented his 124-day odyssey.

The Army Veteran Who Became the First to Hike the Entire Appalachian Trail

His journal and hiking boots are in the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History

In this June 13, 1917 file photo, U.S. Army General John J. Pershing, center, inspects French troops at Boulogne, France

“I Hope It Is Not Too Late”: How the U.S. Decided to Send Millions of Troops Into World War I

The Allies were desperate for reinforcements, but the U.S. wasn’t quite ready to provide them

How a Downed U.S. Plane Almost Caused a Nuclear War

When the Cubans accidentally shoot down a U.S. U-2 aircraft, the threat of nuclear war becomes a serious possibility

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