America has experienced many historic landmarks throughout its long and eventful past, from the home of our first president to the site of 1848 First Women’s Rights Convention, there are plenty of places where one can learn about our country’s past.
Learn American history at the Bunker Hill Monument in Boston and understand why the British victory at Bunker Hill marked a turning point during the Revolutionary War. Or visit Memphis’ National Civil Rights Museum as a tribute to Martin Luther King Jr.
Mount Rushmore
No matter where your travels take you, Mount Rushmore in South Dakota cannot be missed. The national memorial honors four presidents whose contributions to our country have left an indelible imprint on history.
State historian Doane Robinson first suggested carving Western heroes such as Oglala Lakota leader Red Cloud, Lewis and Clark explorers, Buffalo Bill Cody, and Gutzon Borglum’s Confederate Monument at Stone Mountain into rock pinnacles known as The Needles in 1923. Borglum then agreed to work his magic.
Borglum saw in Mount Rushmore an unparalleled opportunity. A broad wall of exposed granite that received direct sunlight all day long, its surface allowed for abundant natural lighting throughout the day. He imagined four United States presidents with an entablature bearing an inscribed history of America and behind their figures an impressive Hall of Records that could preserve documents and artifacts of national importance. He decided on George Washington representing America’s birth, Thomas Jefferson its growth through Louisiana Territory purchase, and Abraham Lincoln standing for preservation during Civil War conflicts as his figures.
Colonial Williamsburg
Colonial Williamsburg, the world’s largest American history museum, provides visitors with an understanding of America’s founding ideas and how they remain relevant today. This historic site features 89 original buildings and 500 precise re-creations as well as two world-class art museums – not forgetting tours led by historical interpreters who can provide insights into various social, economic, and political aspects of colonial life through tours led by historical interpreters who help visitors experience what life was like during colonial America.
Williamsburg’s programming in the 1960s and 1970s did not reflect an understanding of its diverse residents: men, women, Black people, white people, Indian people free and enslaved alike. Some officials expressed fear that greater attention be given to slavery would discourage visitors; yet academics had long published relevant studies.
Visitors to this living history site can explore its period shops, restaurants and houses while attending events like reenactments or plays that bring many of its founding principles back to life. Furthermore, there are modern amenities on site, such as a hotel and spa.
Ellis Island
Political instability, economic distress and religious persecution led to one of the world’s greatest mass migrations during the 1800s – one which saw millions pass through Ellis Island between 1892 and 1954 in hopes of starting new lives here in America.
This historic site houses an expansive museum that documents both positive and negative immigration experiences. There’s also a film that brings it all to life, and an on-site cafe offering food inspired by different cultures present on Ellis Island.
Ellis Island comprises 33 buildings for visitors to explore as part of their education on American immigration history, such as the Main Arrivals Building – also known as “Island of Hope.” Here famous names like Irving Berlin, Israel Beilin (better known by bodybuilder Charles Atlas), Lily Chaucoin who later went on to become Hollywood star Claudette Colbert came through and entered this country.
Women’s Rights National Historic Park
Women’s Rights National Historic Park in upstate New York features four historic properties including Elizabeth Cady Stanton’s home, Wesleyan Chapel in Seneca Falls and Mary Ann M’Clintock’s house. It also tells the tale of five women who changed history through attending the First Women’s Rights Convention held there between July 19-20th 1848.
At the time of the convention, upper middle-class white women weren’t permitted to vote or own property. Stanton and her fellow suffragists had a vision of equality they thought all Americans deserved.
A 2022 National Park Foundation grant has enabled the park to develop programming that honors women’s history while acknowledging how it ties in to civil and human rights for all Americans. They are currently also creating a monument that features bronze figures of Sojourner Truth, Susan B. Anthony, and Elizabeth Cady Stanton–the first in Park Service to depict actual women–which will be unveiled in 2020.
