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Book Review: The Life and Times of Frederick Douglass
Frederick Douglass was a man of many parts. Born into slavery, he rose from bondage and forced labor, to become a self-educated man, a...
Apr 105 min read
An American Story
The first time Arshay Cooper laid his eyes on one of the "long, thin, snazzy white boats" of crew racing was in the gym at Manley Career...
Apr 47 min read
Five Days in New York City, August 2005
DAY ONE -- My wife Cindy has her office in Lower Manhattan, or in Downtown (as the locals have it). It's where the financial district is...
Apr 37 min read
"Eyes on the Prize" revisited
An interview with Phillip Agnew, a civil rights activist, on what "Eyes on the Prize" means at this moment. Phillip Agnew is familiar...
Mar 284 min read
An Intimate Portrait of our 16th President
It seems every Lincoln biography is intrinsically linked to the Civil War. Not so, with Jon Meacham's intimate portrait of our 16th ...
Oct 26, 20244 min read
The First Wall Street
Driving down Chestnut Street in Philadelphia's "Old Town", you'd never guess that this cobbelstone street once had been the center of...
Oct 6, 20242 min read
"The Promised Land"--Obama's first four years as President
Book Review: "The Promised Land" by Barak Obama Reading "The Promised Land" by Barak Obamana is tantamount to taking a semester of...
Aug 29, 202410 min read
GRANT'S MASTERPIECE
I have read several books about the Civil War, but "Vicksburg" by Donald L. Miller, is the absolute best. In fact, if you want to...
Aug 17, 202414 min read
John Adams v. Thomas Jefferson on the Fourth of July
THEY WERE THE ODD COUPLE of the American Revolution: John Adams, short, stout, emotional, impatient, vain, highly opinionated, and...
Jun 27, 202412 min read
book review--Reading the Constitution: Why I Chose Pragmatism Not Textualism, by Stephen Breyer
Stephen Breyer, served as a Justice on the Supreme Court for 28 years (1994-2022). He has written nine books about the law; this is his...
Jun 7, 20249 min read
GEORGE WASHINGTON, HEDGEHOG EXTRAORDINAIRE
George Washington, a hedgehog? You bet. You've heard the old adage, "The fox knows many little things, but the hedgehog knows One Big...
May 30, 20242 min read
The Search for Truth
The most quoted book at the 1789 Constitutional Convention was the King James Bible. Indeed, the very ideals that exalted the Declaration...
May 18, 20246 min read
THE SURVIVORS OF CLOTILDA SLAVE SHIP
The Clotilda was the last known U.S. slave ship to bring captives from Africa to the United States, arriving in Mobile Bay, July 9, 1860...
May 17, 20245 min read
Washington in New York -- chs 27, 28 & Epilogue
CHAPTER 27: TRANSITION TO PHILADELPIA The Masters-Penn-Morris House at 190 Market Street in Philadelphia seemed palatial to George...
Apr 26, 202421 min read
Washington in New York -- chs 24 - 26
CHAPTER 24: WASHINGTON D.C., THE ANTI-CITY Thomas Jefferson hated cities. Oh, he loved what they had to offer--fine food and drink, fine...
Apr 25, 202424 min read
Washington in New York -- chs 21, 22 & 23
CHAPTER 21: “THE MOST BITTER AND ANGRY CONTEST" Thomas Jefferson arrived quietly in New York City on Sunday, February 21, and booked...
Apr 23, 202424 min read
Washington in New York -- chs 19 & 20
CHAPTER 19: FRANKLIN'S LAST PUBLIC ACT On his 58th birthday, George Washington supervised the move across town to his new residence, at...
Apr 20, 202425 min read
Washington in New York -- chs 17 & 18
CHAPTER 17: THE PRICE OF LIBERTY The day after George Washington delivered the State of the Union Address, Alexander Hamilton informed...
Apr 16, 202425 min read
Washington in New York -- Chs 13-16
CHAPTER 13: GEORGE WASHINGTON SLEPT HERE If you’re staying at a bed-and-breakfast in New England and the sign over the door reads,...
Apr 14, 202435 min read
Washington in New York -- chs 10, 11 & 12
CHAPTER 10: THE PEOPLE'S CHAMPION “A Complete Revolution In France.” That was the headline of the New York Daily Gazette, of September...
Apr 13, 202425 min read
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