Site News & Featured Content (RSS FEED)

(Apr 15) New ORIGINS article! '(Fore)closing on the American Dream'
In light of the current mortgage crisis, the American Dream of homeownership for some people has become an unreachable goal, and for others, a nightmare. Ph.D. candidate at Ohio State University, Lawrence Bowdish, will illustrate the history of the mortgage market and its problems, and why the consequences of that history makes so many homeowners vulnerable today.

(Mar 12) Online Book: Ridpath's History of the World
eHistory is pleased to re-launch our newly revised and improved Ridpath's History of the World, complete with images and the entire text of all 9 volumes

(Jan 25) (New MultiMedia History): Un Povero Uomo
Twenty year old Bartolomeo Vanzetti arrived in New York City on a sultry summer day in 1908. As he passed through Ellis Island, he joined the vast army of immigrants - 20 million people - who came to the US in the early days of the twentieth century.

(Jan 15) New ORIGINS Article: The Second Amendment Goes to Court
Few issues divide Americans as thoroughly and angrily as gun control and the Second Amendment. With the Supreme Court agreeing to hear a Second Amendment case for the first time in almost seventy years, Saul Cornell takes a look at the issues at stake and the history of American interpretations of this Amendment, and offers some thoughts on the outcomes.

(Dec 27) "Capture of Jefferson Davis" (online book) has been fixed
"The Capture of Jefferson Davis" (personal recollections of the 1st Wisconsin Cavalry capture of Davis) has been restored on the archived site

(Dec 17) New ORIGINS Article: The Politics of International Adoption by Peter Conn
Read the January issue of Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective. While the phenomenon of adoption has existed for thousands of years, international adoption is relatively new. The Census Bureau has described in great statistical detail how the shape of the American family has changed dramatically over the last fifty years. This month, Peter Conn, Professor of English at the University of Pennsylvania discusses the history and controversy of international adoption.

(Dec 11) Site Search Back Up and Running
Our search tools have been fixed and are up and running again.

Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective (RSS FEED)

(May 2008) (Fore)Closing on the American Dream (Lawrence Bowdish)
In light of the current mortgage crisis, the American Dream of homeownership for some people has become an unreachable goal, and for others, a nightmare. Ph.D. candidate at Ohio State University, Lawrence Bowdish, will illustrate the history of the mortgage market and its problems, and why the consequences of that history makes so many homeowners vulnerable today.

(April 2008) Beyond “Tribes”: Violence and Politics in Kenya (Claire Robertson)
The violence and turmoil that overtook Kenya in the wake of the disputed December 2007 Presidential elections came as a surprise to many in the world, as Kenya has long been viewed as a source of stability on the African continent. Claire Robertson, a historian of Kenya and an active fund raiser for Kenyan development projects, explores the historical roots of the contemporary strife and the problem of using 'tribes' to explain the conflict.

(March 2008) After Putin? Russia's Presidential Elections (Marlene Laruelle)
Under the leadership of Vladimir Putin since 2000, Russia has become ever richer, ever stronger on the world stage, and increasingly restrictive at home. Now that Putin's term as President is up, Marlene Laruelle offers insight into the upcoming March Presidential elections and what the future holds for Russia at home and around the world.

(February 2008) The Second Amendment Goes to Court (Saul Cornell)
Few issues divide Americans as thoroughly and angrily as gun control and the Second Amendment. With the Supreme Court agreeing to hear a Second Amendment case for the first time in almost seventy years, Saul Cornell takes a look at the issues at stake and the history of American interpretations of this Amendment, and offers some thoughts on the outcomes.

(January 2008) The Politics of International Adoption (Peter Conn)
While the phenomenon of adoption has existed for thousands of years, international adoption is relatively new. The Census Bureau has described in great statistical detail how the shape of the American family has changed dramatically over the last fifty years. This month, Peter Conn, Professor of English at the University of Pennsylvania discusses the history and controversy of international adoption.

(December 2007) Conflict Termination: How to End—and Not to End—Insurgencies (John Guilmartin)
A vast majority of Americans, according to recent polling, want an end to the Iraq war. The question, however, is how to end it. In this issue Professor Joe Guilmartin examines the 'endgame' of several 20th century conflicts to see what lessons we might learn.

(November 2007) Tradition vs Charisma: The Sunni Shi'i Divide in the Muslim World (Stephen Dale)
During the course of the war in Iraq, most Americans have become familiar with the terms 'Sunni' and 'Shia.' Few, however, have much sense of the historical origins of these two Islamic groups. In our second issue Professor Stephen Dale provides us with a primer.

Origins Podcasts (RSS FEED)

(May 2008: Lawrence Bowdish)
(Fore)Closing on the American Dream

(April 2008: Claire Robertson)
Beyond “Tribes”: Violence and Politics in Kenya

(March 2008: Marlene Laruelle)
After Putin? Russia's Presidential Elections

(February 2008: Saul Cornell)
The Second Amendment Goes to Court

(January 2008: Peter Conn)
The Politics of International Adoption

(December 2007: John Guilmartin)
Conflict Termination: How to End—and Not to End—Insurgencies

(November 2007: Stephen Dale)
Tradition vs Charisma: The Sunni Shi'i Divide in the Muslim World

(October 2007: Justin Lance)
Populism and Anti-Americanism in Modern Latin America

Book Reviews (RSS FEED)

(May 2008) School Lunch Politics: The Surprising History of America's Favorite Welfare Program
Susan Levine ((Princeton University Press, 2008))

(April 2008) Byzantium
Judith Herrin ((Princeton University Press, Princeton, 2008))

(March 2008) “What Hath God Wrought?”: The Transformation of America, 1815-1848.
Daniel Walker Howe ((Oxford University Press, 2007))

(February 2008) American Jewish Loss after the Holocaust
Laura Levitt ((New York: New York University Press, 2007))

(January 2008) In the Beginning: Fundamentalism, The Scopes Trial, and the Making of the Antievolution Movement
Michael Lienesch ((Chapel Hill, University of North Carolina Press, 2007))

(December 2007) A Failed Empire: The Soviet Union in the Cold War from Stalin to Gorbachev (The New Cold War History)
Vladislav Zubok ((2007, University of North Carolina Press))

(November 2007) Dr. Livingstone, I Presume?: Missionaries, Journalists, Explorers, and Empire
Clare Pettitt ((Cambridge, Harvard University Press, 2007))

(October 2007) Children at Play: An American History
Howard Chudacoff ((New York: New York University Press, 2007).)

(September 2007) Weimar Germany: Promise and Tragedy
Eric D. Weitz ((Princeton University Press, Princeton, 2007))

(August 2007) The Jamestown Project
Karen Ordahl Kupperman ((Cambridge, MA: The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 2007))