In this program from our 1999 "American Presidents: Life Portraits" series we focused on Andrew Jackson's life and career. Author Robert Remini discussed Jackson's childhood, his military career, and his presidency. Marsha Mullin, curator at Jackson's home, The Hermitage, talked about its history and architecture. And Larry McKee, director of Archaeology at the site, explored the slave quarters and reflected on how Jackson's slaves were treated.

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In this program from our 1999 "American Presidents: Life Portraits" series we focused on James Monroe's life and career. Editor of the James Monroe papers Daniel Preston and Monroe Museum director John Pearce joined us at the James Monroe Memorial Museum in Fredericksburg, Virginia to talk about President Monroe, his administration, his home and family.

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In this third program in our 1999 "American Presidents: Life Portraits" series we focused on Thomas Jefferson's life and career. Guests including authors Andrew Burstein and Annette Gordon-Reed as well as Monticello Director Dan Jordan joined us from Jefferson's home in Charlottesville, Virginia. 

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In this second program in our 1999 "American Presidents: Life Portraits" series we focused on John Adams' life and career. Historian David McCullough joined us at the Adams National Historic Park in Quincy, Massachusetts to talk about President Adams, his administration, his home and family.

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In the first of a series of programs on the American presidents, historian Richard Norton Smith and Mount Vernon Resident Director James Rees discussed the life and career of George Washington. They also talked about the history of Washington’s home, Mount Vernon, and responded to telephone calls from viewers. This is the first installment of C-SPAN's 1999 "American Presidents: Life Portraits" series.

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50 years ago, on April 16, 1963, Martin Luther King Jr. wrote his “Letter from Birmingham Jail” while being held in prison for his involvement in a city-wide civil rights protest called the Birmingham Campaign. King’s daughter, Bernice King, CEO of the King Center in Atlanta, joins Alabama’s governor, Birmingham’s Mayor and others for the unveiling of a historical marker aside the Birmingham Jail.

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This year marks the 50th anniversary of the Birmingham civil rights campaign. Martin Luther King Jr. wrote his famed “Letter from Birmingham Jail” after being arrested for taking part in the protests. The campaign gained national attention after local officials used dogs and water cannons on kids after they took to the streets in what was known as the “Children’s Crusade.” A panel of authors and historians recall the turmoil of the time, as well as how Birmingham has chosen to remember its past. This event was part of the Alabama Historical Association’s annual conference.

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At the direction of Congress, the voices and experiences from the Civil Rights Movement of the mid-20^th century are being documented in an oral history project. This effort is a collaboration of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History & Culture, the Library of Congress and the Southern Oral History Program at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.

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This year marks the 50th anniversary of the Birmingham Civil Rights Campaign in Alabama. The protests gained national attention after local officials used dogs and water cannons on kids after they took to the streets in what was known as the “Children’s Crusade.” This event features first-person accounts of the events in Birmingham that spring, including remarks by those who took part in the children’s protest, as well as student leaders of a boycott of segregated businesses. The discussion took place at the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham. 

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