When Confederate forces besieged Fort Sumter  in April 1861, there was a miraculous sparing of human life. However, one key intangible perished amidst the destruction: the prospect of peaceful reconciliation. The impetus of war stimulated militarization efforts throughout the North and South. In Georgia, Confederate volunteers rushed to defend the state’s vulnerable coastline, with the port city of Savannah receiving particular attention. A strong fortification network was ne

The imposing outcrop of San Francisco Bay, Alcatraz Island is synonymous with inescapable fear and unforgiving intimidation—its notoriety inextricably linked to its 29-year tenure as a maximum-security federal penitentiary. While this era of infamy has captured the public imagination, it represents only a single chapter of the island’s complex historical narrative. While surveying San Francisco Bay in August 1775, Spanish explorer Juan Manuel de Ayala chartered a prominent ro

Located within the historic urban landscape of Savannah, Georgia, Old Fort Jackson stands with subtle significance as one of the nation’s...

Located within Minnewaska State Park Preserve, Gertrude's Nose is a prominent rock formation on the Shawangunk Ridge that has long...

Located within Charleston’s Ashley River Historic District, Middleton Place once served as the main residence for South Carolina’s...

Muir Woods National Monument preserves one of the last remaining old-growth redwood forests in the United States. While redwoods once...

“American history forged in fire” – a fitting epitaph for the Saugus Iron Works, the first fully-integrated iron production and...

Historically referenced as “Gibraltar of the West Coast,” the once-formidable Fort Point now resides in relative obscurity beneath the...

Despite achieving national sovereignty through the Revolutionary War, the United States experienced limited economic independence during...

The White Mountains of New Hampshire possess some of the most spectacular scenery in the eastern United States—their natural splendor the...