Joshua Ortiz Baco is a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Spanish and Portuguese, University of Texas at Austin. His work combines cultural studies and digital methodologies in the study of 19th-century abolitionist and racial discourses in U.S. newspapers of Cuban, Puerto Rican and Brazilian immigrants. His research is funded by the Andrew Mellon Foundation grant-in-aid program …
Maria Mitchell (1818-1889) is an astronomer, educator, librarian, activist, and the first nationally recognized woman scientist in the United States. She discovers a new comet, which bears her name, and calculates its orbit, and adds several new nebulae to sky maps. She also teaches at a prominent women’s college and fights to advance the cause of …
Solving puzzles didn’t just pass the time in the early 1900s, solving puzzles could sometimes even win you a prize! Puzzle contests abounded, sometimes run by the newspapers and sometimes run by local companies hoping to get readers’ business. One of the favorites for contests of the era was the rebus. What is a rebus? …
There are some cases that capture the public's imagination and cause a media frenzy. There's the political trials, which cover treason, spying, dissidents, and radicals. Celebrity trials that involve high-profile people, whether victims or defendants. And the "whodunit" trials that are surrounded in mystery. Whatever the case, 19th century America has its share of legendary trials that captivate the public interest and newspapers deliver all the sensational details.
On July 5, 1852, eminent African American abolitionist Frederick Douglass delivered a brilliant speech that was a powerful indictment of American slavery and racism. Read the speech as printed within days in his own newspaper.
Bored sitting at home? Let Headlines and Heroes come to your rescue with free puzzles from Chronicling America! This week we bring you an amazing assortment of mazes!
In honor of Juneteenth, we highlight our Headlines and Heroes blogs focusing on African American history and culture, ranging from a look at fugitive slave ads to our acquisition of a rare comic book series, Negro Romance.
Harriet Tubman escaped slavery on Maryland's Eastern Shore in 1849. She then returned there multiple times, risking her life to bring others to freedom as a renowned conductor on the Underground Railroad.
