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Innovation

The Man Who Created a Written Language for the Cherokee Did It So Efficiently and Elegantly, His Peers Thought It Was Magic

Sequoyah’s syllabary faced suspicion initially, but after a demonstration, his version of “talking leaves” was widely embraced. And then the word spread

Andrew Lawler
Photographs by Mer Young

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History

Woodrow Wilson’s Legacy Is Loaded With Good and Bad, but His Work to Even the Economic Playing Field Is Often Overlooked

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Smithsonian magazine April/May 2026 issue cover
The adult female fox, Shadow, was around 5 months old when Stuart first documented and named her in 2022.
Science The Fox Family of Mount Rainier
Even the scientists who study the animals rarely see them except on camera. But Gretchen Kay Stuart spent a season documenting them up close
Opener
History Plunder at the Pink Temple
Clara and André Malraux conspired to loot the pink temple of Banteay Srei, but their failure started a battle of reclamation
OPENER - Two U.S. Navy officers stroll past the sunlit Georgian splendor of Middleton Tavern in Annapolis, Maryland. Horatio Middleton established the tavern here in 1750. Today, visitors can order classic Chesapeake seafood, including oysters and rockfis
Travel Drafting the Revolution
Taverns, public houses and inns served as meeting places before the war and unofficial headquarters during it. Some still stand—including these nine, where you can raise a glass in memory of the founders

Photo of the Day

Every time I’m in Africa, I hold no expectations about what wildlife I’d like to see. I always figure nature will give me what I’m meant to see.  But it seems nature is always holding out on African Wild Dogs. These ferocious, wildly mobile, piranha-like animals are an enigma – difficult to find, much less to photograph. Recently though, I had the opportunity to observe a pack of dogs. The adults relaxed, all the while keeping alert, while the puppies played, rested, and behaved like piranhas when it was feeding time. It was amazing to see the pack being the social animals they are known to be.

Puppy Tug-of-War

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