On the 200th anniversary of the ratification of the US Constitution, Thurgood Marshall, the first African American to sit on the Supreme Court, said that the Constitution was "defective from the start." Read more about the Constitution and slavery in this article by Steven Mintz.

The United States has the oldest written national framework of government in the world. At the end of the twentieth century, there were about 159 other national constitutions in the world, and 101 had been adopted since 1970. Read more in this article written by Steven Mintz.

This lesson on the Electoral College is part of Gilder Lehrman’s series of Common Core State Standards–based teaching resources. These resources were written to enable students to understand, summarize, and analyze original texts and secondary sources of historical significance. Students will demonstrate this knowledge by answering questions that seek to measure their conceptual understanding of the topic as well as engaging them in thoughtful discussions. Students are required to express themselves in writing. Students are asked to not only explain, but make fact-based arguments based on textual evidence.

This lesson on the Electoral College is part of Gilder Lehrman’s series of Common Core State Standards–based teaching resources. These resources were written to enable students to understand, summarize, and analyze original texts and secondary sources of historical significance. Students will demonstrate this knowledge by answering questions that seek to measure their conceptual understanding of the topic as well as engaging them in thoughtful discussions. Students are required to express themselves in writing. Students are asked to not only explain, but make fact-based arguments based on textual evidence.

David Armitage, Lloyd C. Blankfein Professor of History at Harvard University, briefly explores some less obvious aspects of the Declaration of Independence, while also pointing to some of the later declarations heavily influenced by the American document.

On February 2, 2023, our curators discussed Benjamin Franklin’s copy of the US Constitution and Jean-Antoine Houdon’s bust of Franklin. They were joined by Liz Covart (Founding Director, Colonial Williamsburg Innovation Studios) and Sara Charles (Education Program Manager, Gilder Lehrman Institute). This program was generously sponsored by The Fund for the Endowment of the Diplomatic Reception Rooms.

Originally broadcast on September 17, 2020, this session of Inside the Vault: Highlights from the Gilder Lehrman Collection celebrated Constitution Day with rare materials from the Gilder Lehrman Collection: The US Constitution! Gilder Lehrman's curators were joined by Conroe Brookes from Hamilton, and Kevin Cline, 2016 National History Teacher of the Year, to explore these rare documents, learn about their creation, take a close look at how the preamble changed between the first draft and the final copy, and what the Constitution says about voting.

On May 4, 2023, our curators were joined by Dr. Andrew Robertson (The Graduate Center and Lehman College, CUNY) to discuss materials related to eighteenth- and nineteenth-century voting rights. Dr. Robertson explained how voting rights were expanded and contracted, from the Revolutionary era through the Civil War and Reconstruction.

This resource is a 3-activity lesson guide that has students learn about Post-Pearl Harbor America, life in Japanese Internment Camps, and the Legality of Internment Camps. Students will read a few primary sources included excerpts from Korematsu v. US and Endo v. US.

Thomas Jefferson Foundation Professor of History at the University of Virginia, Peter S. Onuf has written extensively on sectionalism, federalism, and political economy, with a particular emphasis on the political thought of Thomas Jefferson. In this lecture, he looks at Jefferson’s opinions about federal government.

This unit is one of the Gilder Lehrman Institute’s Teaching Literacy through History™ resources, designed to align with the Common Core State Standards. These units were developed to enable students to understand, summarize, and evaluate original sources of historical significance. Through a step-by-step process, students will acquire the skills to analyze, assess, synthesize, and develop knowledgeable and well-reasoned viewpoints on primary source materials.

The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History and the American Studies Program and History Department of Columbia University have joined together to observe the bicentennial of Lincoln’s birth in 1809 and to mark the publication of Our Lincoln: New Perspectives on Lincoln and His World, edited by Eric Foner, DeWitt Clinton Professor of History, Columbia University (W.W. Norton & Company).

When Abraham Lincoln was elected President of the United States in 1860, his experience in politics and government included serving in the Illinois legislature and the US House of Representatives. He had also studied law and was licensed to practice law in Illinois at age twenty-seven. This seems like scant experience for a man who would lead a country through its greatest internal challenge. However, Lincoln found a way to draw on his life experience and his professional knowledge to lead the nation with an astuteness and skill that might have escaped a more seasoned politician.

What was James Madison's background? How did he feel about the idea of democracy? What ideas did he contribute to the drafting of the Constitution? Larry Kramer, Dean at Stanford Law School, discusses Madison's legacy.

Jack Rakove, William Robertson Coe Professor of History and American Studies at Stanford University, briefly discusses James Madison's role in the framing and ratification of the Constitution, as well as the legal approach of Originalism.

Jack Rakove, William Robertson Coe Professor of History and American Studies at Stanford University, briefly discusses James Madison's role in the framing and ratification of the Constitution, as well as the legal approach of Originalism.

This lesson explores the question: Why did the Founders find it necessary to provide protections for slavery in the US Constitution?

Noted Lincoln historians discuss Lincoln's legacy at the Gilder Lehrman-sponsored Global Lincoln Symposium held at Oxford University.

Interactive Map of the US for Women's Suffrage. Information about each state is provided when clicking on a state.

This unit is one of the Gilder Lehrman Institute’s Teaching Literacy through History resources, designed
to align with the Common Core State Standards. These units were developed to enable students to
understand, summarize, and evaluate original materials of historical significance. Through a step-by-step
process, students will acquire the skills to analyze, assess, and develop knowledgeable and well-reasoned
viewpoints on primary sources and literary texts.
Over the course of three lessons the students will compare and contrast two different versions of one of the
most iconic events in American history: the midnight ride of Paul Revere. The comparison will be made
between the poem “Paul Revere’s Ride” by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and a description of the event
written by Paul Revere himself. Students will use textual evidence from these two sources to draw their
conclusions and write an argumentative essay.