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The Future of America's Past

The Future of America's Past

The Future of America's Past

Join Ed Ayers, award-winning historian and co-host of the hit podcast BackStory, as he travels to places that define the most misunderstood parts of America’s past. Visit sites Americans struggle to discuss and learn from National Park Service interpreters, museum educators, and cutting-edge guides how they engage a diverse public with the fullness of our nation’s history.

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The Future of America's Past Season 2
27:02
Young people staged a strike in 1951 to protest segregated public schools.
Transcontinental
27:02
In 1869, a golden spike marked the completion of the first transcontinental railroad.
Red Chicago
27:01
Long-simmering tensions between white and black residents in Chicago erupted in violence.
The Revolutions
27:02
What did “freedom” mean during the American Revolution?
A Grave Injustice
27:02
After the attack on Pearl Harbor, 110,000 Japanese-American citizens were arrested.
Lines in the Sand
27:02
Texas has long been a place of cross-cultural exchange. How did Texas become Texas?
The Fire of a Movement
27:02
In 1911, a factory in New York City burst into flames and 146 workers perished.
Freedom's Fortress
27:02
At Virginia’s Fort Monroe, we discover the spot where where slavery began.
Polio on Trial
5:00
A new vaccine to prevent polio persuaded parents to join a nationwide trial.
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