Videos

Historian Ted Widmer traced Abraham Lincoln’s trip to Washington through a divided country before his first inauguration in 1861. The Virginia Center for Civil War Studies at Virginia Tech U…

Historians discussed the transitions of presidential administrations from George Washington to Joe Biden. This program was part of an American Political History Conference hosted by Purdue U…

Abraham Lincoln won the 1860 presidential election over three challengers with less than 40 percent of the popular vote and without a single electoral vote from a slave state. His transition…

A panel of historians discussed several of the most contested presidential elections in American history: 1800, 1824, 1860, and 1876. They compared the elections to each other and to the 202…

Historians Harold Holzer, The Presidency vs. the Press, and Ted Widmer, Lincoln on the Verge discussed their books on presidential history. This program was part of the 20th annual National …

Edward Widmer, director of the John W. Kluge Center, hosted a panel on the history of religion in America. Panelists discussed the disestablishment of the Anglican church in Virginia during …

Historian Ted Widmer looked at the days leading up to Abraham Lincoln’s first inauguration, which included a precarious trip to Washington and an assassination attempt. This was a virtual au…

Ted Widmer, former adviser to President Clinton and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, talked about his biography of President Martin Van Buren.

Ted Widmer talked about the book he edited, Listening In: The Secret White House Recordings of John F. Kennedy. The book contains audio CDs with 150 minutes of recorded conversations from th…

Edward Widmer and Fredrik Logevall reflected on President Kennedy’s legacy as the nation marked the centennial of his 1917 birth. John F. Kennedy Library Foundation Executive Director Steven…

In March 1964, Jacqueline Kennedy sat with historian Arthur Schlesinger, Jr., to record seven interviews totaling over eight hours of the first lady’s remembrances of her husband’s personal …

Caroline Kennedy, daughter of former President John F. Kennedy and historian Ted Widmer talk about their multimedia book, Listening In: The Secret White House Recordings of John F. Kennedy, …

Ted Widmer moderated a discussion among historians about President John F. Kennedy and his place in the nation’s history. The panelists also responded to questions submitted by members of th…

Historian Arthur Schlesinger, editor of Times Books' American Presidents Series, moderated a discussion of the lives of some lesser-known American presidents. The panelists were authors of s…

Ted Widmer talked about his book Martin Van Buren, which is part of The American Presidents series published by Times Books. Mr. Widmer talked about Van Buren’s presidency, his reaction to t…

Ted Widmer talked about Ark of the Liberties: America and the World (Hill and Wang; June 24, 2008). The book recounts a history of American foreign policy. Mr. Widmer contends that America h…

Ted Widmer talked about the book he edited American Speeches: Political Oratory from Abraham Lincoln to Bill Clinton, published by Library of America. The book is a two-volume compilation of…

Panelists talked about the implications of the war on terrorism on America’s standing in the world and the credibility of the exportation of American ideals. They talked about the origin and…

Presidential speechwriters discussed the art of capturing the president’s voice, communicating his ideas, and inspiring the public. They shared memories of the presidents with whom they work…

Former Senator Birch Bayh spoke about the First Amendment, specifically the separation of church and state. Topics included the first Constitutional Convention, the development of the Bill o…