American History Videos

[close] I am currently working on a novel about the Reno Court of Inquiry/ The Battle of the Little Bighorn. I've been researching and writing this for a few years now, and along the way have met many outstanding people and visited many outstanding places (Little Bighorn Battlefield, Montana; Monroe, Michigan, birthplace and home of Libbie Custer, and also where she met and married Custer; East Cavalry Field, Gettysburg, one of Custer's best known fights of the Civil War; Fort Lincoln, Bismarck, North Dakota, which was Custer and Libbie's final frontier post as well as the departure point for Custer and the 7th Cavalry when they set out for their last fight against the Sioux and Cheyenne). ... This discussion is with one of my Little Bighorn groups, via Zoom, and I volunteered to present on the RCOI. ... This was the first PowerPoint presentation I ever created/attempted so please forgive any author awkwardness!

[close] Some have accused Benteen of disobeying George Armstrong Custer’s final command of “Come on. Big Village. Be Quick,” while others have credited him with being the "Savior of the Seventh" who kept the remaining Seventh Cavalry alive on June 25, 1876. No one knew him better than his wife, Kate. The letters, photos, poems, pictures, scrapbook and newspaper articles that she kept help paint a full picture of the man, the details in his life that shaped him, as well as illuminate the ins-and-outs of life on the miltary frontier. There is family drama, military infighting, children who die too young, and career successes that go unnoticed. And this is all before Fred Benteen even gets joins the Seventh Cavalry!

[close] I'm working on my third book and it has led me to do an ungodly amount of research on the Battle of the Little Bighorn, George and Elizabeth Custer, and the United States military on the frontier. This series will focus on the many tangents swirling around the Seventh Cavalry-- officers and soldiers, Army spouses and families, enemies and allies, newspapers and books, artists and writers and lifestyle, events leading up to the 1876 Little Bighorn fight and the repercussions that followed. I will try to find all the best anecdotes, personalities, and little known backstories to share with you! For more about my current work-in-progress or my other published books (The Confusion of Languages and You Know When the Men Are Gone, both with Putnam/Penguin), please see my author website www.siobhanfallon.com or follow me on Instagram and Facebook at siobhanfallonwriter THANK YOU!

[close] The history of Cuba lends itself to monumental and epic tellings, and its relationship with the United States is complicated. As a Cuban-American, Ada Ferrer has a unique perspective on this sometimes tense history, and in CUBA: AN AMERICAN HISTORY, she gives us a front-row seat as we witness the evolution of the modern nation, with its dramatic record of conquest and colonization, of slavery and freedom, of independence and revolutions made and unmade: http://spr.ly/6007JztOv

[close] A sweeping history of Cuba and its complex ties to the United States—from before the arrival of Columbus to the present day—written by one of the world’s leading historians of Cuba, Ada Ferrer. Spanning more than five centuries, Cuba: An American History is an ambitious and moving chronicle of the country's history and its relationship with the United States. Drawing on more than thirty years of research—as well as her own extensive travel to the island over the same period—Ferrer examines and reveals the evolution of modern Cuba, documenting not only the influence of the United States on the island but also the many ways Cuba has been a recurring presence in US affairs. Filled with rousing stories and characters, this is a book that will give American readers unexpected insights into the history of their own country and, in so doing, offer a way to imagine a new relationship with Cuba. Ada Ferrer researched and wrote Cuba: An American History during her 2018–2019 Fellowship at the Library’s

[close] I discuss this story in depth in my book Strange Tales From Virginia's Foothills to the Coast: https://amzn.to/3upJ9vc Make sure you order your copy!

[close] Here are a few books (and authors) that influenced how we see George Custer today. All of these books made a splash when they first came out, and they continue to inspire debate and controversy today. A Life of Major General George A. Custer, by Frederick Whittaker, published in December, 1876 (less than 6 months after the Little Bighorn fight!!). Whittaker glorified Custer, while heaping blame on Custer's second and third in command, Major Marcus Reno and Captain Frederick Benteen. Boots and Saddles, by Elizabeth Bacon Custer, published in 1885. Custer’s adoring widow writes the first of three memoirs that idolizes her husband, and will spend the 57 years of her widowhood defending his name. Glory-Hunter, by Frederic Van de Water, published in 1934, just one year after Elizabeth Custer’s death. Van de Water's book is the absolute opposite of Whittaker's and aggressively attempts to debunk Custer's heroic status. Troopers with Custer, by E.A. Brininstool, was published in 1952. While B

[close] A TIME-TRAVELING VILLAIN. A DANGEROUS MISSION. A DEADLY SECRET. For 13-year-old Kep Westguard, time travel isn’t fun and games. It’s a dangerous mission to stop his crackpot grandfather from tampering with history to reverse the outcome of the American Revolution. Kep arrives in 1777 just days before the crucial Battle of Saratoga, a stunning American victory that turned the war in their favor. He infiltrates the British camp as a rebel spy and discovers his grandfather and British General Burgoyne have cooked up a secret plot to tip the balance in the Brit’s favor. To unlock the mystery, Kep needs to steal a letter from Burgoyne’s courier and deliver it to the American camp. If he's caught as a spy, the punishment is hanging. How much will one teenager risk to ensure American Democracy succeeds?

[close] On the early morning of November 27th, 1868, the Seventh Cavalry, led by Lieutenant Colonel George Armstrong Custer, attacked Southern Cheyenne Chief Black Kettle’s village on the Washita River. . But there was much more to this fight than one deadly day. . This is a discussion of both leaders and of the many paths that led to the Battle of the Washita.

[close] Michael T of Book Party Podcast interviews Cynthia Neale about her latest novel, Catharine, Queen of the Tumbling Waters.

[close] On June 11, 1864, at the battle of Trevilian Station, what started as a big win for George Armstrong Custer and his Michigan Brigade, became the biggest and deadliest all-cavalry fight of the Civil War. One casualty was the Headquarter's wagon, captured by the Confederates, which contained Custer's personal items and the private letters from his wife, Libbie. These love letters would be printed in Richmond newspapers and read in Southern drawing rooms. One brave young Union officer would attempt a night-time “raid” to reclaim them…