Peter Zablocki

1 week ago | thecollector.com | Peter Zablocki

The American nation under the US Constitution began with a compromise that, among other things, quelled the founding fathers’ anxieties over slavery and racial equality before the law. As the United States grew in size and influence, the very same issue would bring future leaders of America back to the compromising table—and even the end of slavery could not stop the nation’s further need for concessions.

1 month ago | thecollector.com | Peter Zablocki

Perched atop a hill at Arlington National Cemetery, the American Tomb of the Unknown Soldier stands quietly, remembering those heroes lost to the annals of history. Guarded by the elite soldiers of the 3rd U.S. Infantry Regiment, known as the Old Guard, this sacred memorial represents a poignant symbol of honor, with each step taken by the silent sentinels echoing with reverence and embodying the gratitude of a nation for those whose identities remain forever shrouded in anonymity.

1 month ago | warfarehistorynetwork.com | Peter Zablocki

By Peter ZablockiThe fog that descended over the Westerplatte peninsula in the Bay of the Free City of Danzig, Poland, on August 31, 1939, refused to lift as if trying to stop the night from making way for a new day. At the small officers’ quarters building, Capt. Franciszek Dabrowski woke up from a nightmare, his body in a cold sweat; it was now September 1, 3:57 a.m. The 35-year-old officer had spent the past two years as the deputy commander of the Polish Military Depot at Westerplatte.

2 months ago | smithsonianmag.com | Peter Zablocki

Women Who Shaped History A Smithsonian magazine special report History | Appointed in 1910, Alice Stebbins Wells patrolled dance halls, skating rinks, penny arcades and movie theaters, keeping these public spaces free of vice and immorality Alice Stebbins Wells was a reserved and kindly woman, small and slight in stature. Dressed in everyday street attire, she stepped onto the Los Angeles trolley one day in late 1910.

2 months ago | thecollector.com | Peter Zablocki

Although the term “swing state” was not used in early American history, the seeds of modern electoral competition, where even the smallest of states could decide the outcome of a national election, were soon sown across the national timeline. It would not be long before states with diverse electorates could grant their electoral votes to either of the major parties, dictating the campaigns of those ambitious enough to reach for the nation’s highest office.