American Artifacts visited the Library of Congress to learn about a new exhibit, "The Last Full Measure: Civil War Photographs from the Liljenquist Family." We spoke with Tom Liljenquist, who explains how – fifteen years ago – his family started collecting photographs of ordinary Union and Confederate soldiers. In 2010, the family donated more than 700 of these ambrotypes and tintypes to the Library of Congress.

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The Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery is commemorating the 75th anniversary of Amelia Earhart’s disappearance on an around-the-world flight. She was called “Lady Lindy” after pioneering aviator Charles Lindbergh, and the mystery surrounding her loss continues to fascinate Americans. We visited the exhibit “One Life: Amelia Earhart,” which chronicles her much-photographed life and exploits. (Amelia Earhart image courtesy of Seligman Family Foundation.)

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Using works of art, mechanical inventions, and scientific discoveries, “The Great American Hall of Wonders” exhibit examines innovation in 19th Century America. American History TV attended a press preview and toured the Smithsonian American Art Museum show with guest curator Claire Perry.

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The Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery in Washington, DC includes a permanent exhibit of Presidential Portraits. Former gallery director Marc Pachter gave American History TV a tour of a portion of the exhibit to discuss the art and politics of presidential portraits. The second half of this two-part program will air next weekend.

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The Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery in Washington, DC includes a permanent exhibit of Presidential Portraits. Former gallery director Marc Pachter gave American History TV a tour showcasing the art and politics of these portraits – with a focus on presidents Lincoln, Hoover, Kennedy, Reagan, Clinton,  Franklin Roosevelt, Lyndon Johnson and both George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush. This is the second half of a two-part program.

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American History TV visited the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery for a look at an unprecedented gathering of portraits and objects representing the major personalities of this little-known war. Curators Sidney Hart and Rachael Penman take us on a guided tour through the collection assembled from the United States, Canada and Great Britain. The War of 1812 technically ended in a draw, but it buoyed American nationalism, birthed the national anthem and Uncle Sam, and anointed a future president in General Andrew Jackson. The exhibit, “1812: A Nation Emerges,” is open at the National Portrait Gallery until January 27, 2013.

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This June marks the 50th Anniversary of two of President John F. Kennedy’s most memorable speeches. On June 10th 1963, JFK delivered the commencement address at American University known as his “Peace Speech.” He called for high-level negotiations with the Soviet Union, a nuclear test ban treaty and an end to the Cold War.  On June 26th 1963, President Kennedy took a harder line in West Berlin, famously stating that as a free man he took pride in the words “Ich bin ein Berliner.” This is a discussion from the Kennedy Presidential Library about the significance and lasting influence of these two addresses.

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The Battle of Gettysburg took place July 1-3, 1863, in Pennsylvania, as Union forces turned back an invasion of the North by Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee. The Union victory inspired President Abraham Lincoln to call for “a new birth of freedom” in his address a few months later dedicating the Soldiers’ National Cemetery at Gettysburg. C-SPAN's American History TV was LIVE on June 30 from Gettysburg National Military Park covering events commemorating the 150th anniversary of the battle, including remarks by scholars such as Harold Holzer, Allen Guelzo, and Doris Kearns Goodwin, as well as your calls and tweets for Civil War Institute Director Peter Carmichael and novelist Jeff Shaara.

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American History TV joined historian Carol Reardon and Col. Tom Vossler to learn the story of the three-day Battle of Gettysburg through a selection of their favorite monuments.

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Virginia Commonwealth University professor Deirdre Condit teaches a class on the history of reproductive law in the U.S. Professor Condit touches on the 1965 U.S. Supreme Court case Griswold v. Connecticut, about the prohibited use of contraceptives and the right to marital privacy. The class also examines rights and access to abortion, looking at the 1962 story of actress Sherri Finkbine, who had taken medication she later discovered causes birth defects, prompting her to fly to Sweden for an abortion. Also discussed is the historic 1973 Roe v. Wade abortion case.

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