American Heritage

American Heritage, recently reintroduced, holds the title of the oldest and most recognized magazine dedicated to U.S. history. Its primary goal is to present high-quality scholarship in a way that is engaging and accessible to a broad audience, demonstrating that history can be vibrant and captivating. For more than 65 years, this magazine has narrated the American experience with enthusiasm, wit, precision, empathy, and, most importantly, credibility. While remaining apolitical and unbiased, American Heritage shares the tales of our nation and its founders with deep respect and admiration.

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Spring 2025 | AMERICAN HERITAGE

3 weeks ago | americanheritage.com | Edwin Grosvenor |Rick Atkinson |Michael Ruderman

This special issue looks at the dramatic and momentous events that occurred 250 years ago this month. What began as a civil war within the British Empire continued until it became a wider conflict affecting peoples and countries across Europe and North America. Drama at the Old North Bridge “Now the war has begun and no one knows when it will end,” said one minuteman after the fight.
Revisiting Concord and Lexingt..(Spr 25,Vol:70 Issue:2)

3 weeks ago | americanheritage.com | Edwin Grosvenor |Rick Atkinson |Michael Ruderman

Given the importance of April 19, 1775 in our nation’s history, the editors of American Heritage have produced a special issue dedicated to the events of that day. The conflicts in Concord and Lexington were much more dramatic and complex than most people realize. Following up on orders from Lord North's government, British commander-in-chief Thomas Gage ordered 700 of his fittest grenadiers and marines to make a lightning strike against the growing resistance to his Majesty's government.
The Shots Heard Round the World

3 weeks ago | americanheritage.com | Edwin Grosvenor |Rick Atkinson |Michael Ruderman

Editor’s Note: One of the leading historians of the American Revolution and Founding era, John Ferling is a professor emeritus at the University of West Georgia and the author of two dozen books. His most recent is a major, global reappraisal of the Revolutionary War on its 250th Anniversary, Shots Heard Round the World: America, Britain, and Europe in the Revolutionary War, from which portions of this essay were adapted.
First Maps of the American Revol..(Spr 25,Vol:70 Issue:2)

3 weeks ago | americanheritage.com | Edwin Grosvenor |Rick Atkinson |Michael Ruderman

The Percy map is the first record of the first battle of the American Revolution, sketched within hours of the deadly return from Lexington. I could scarcely believe what I was seeing. Despite generations of research and hundreds of books on the American Revolution, here was a critically important, yet previously undocumented treasure – a detailed map of the retreat of British troops from Lexington drawn by Lord Hugh Percy himself, the general who commanded those regiments.
Drama at the Old North Bridge

3 weeks ago | americanheritage.com | Edwin Grosvenor |Rick Atkinson |Michael Ruderman

Editor's Note: Rick Atkinson is a Pulitzer Prize-winning historian and winner of the prestigious George Washington Book Prize for The British Are Coming: The War for America, Lexington to Princeton, 1775-1777, in which portions of this essay appeared. Mr. Atkinson's most recent book, published this month, is The Fate of the Day The War for America, Fort Ticonderoga to Charleston, 1777-1780, the second book of his trilogy on the Revolution.
The Forgotten Battle of Menotomy

3 weeks ago | americanheritage.com | Edwin Grosvenor |Michael Ruderman |Rick Atkinson

Editor's Note: Michael Ruderman is an author who frequently lectures on New England history to community groups and historical societies. He earned a degree in history at Harvard College.
A Graceful Exit

1 month ago | americanheritage.com | Joseph Connor |Edwin Grosvenor |Elizabeth R. Varon |Fergus Bordewich

As April 1865 neared, an exhausted Abraham Lincoln met with his two top generals, Ulysses S. Grant and William Tecumseh Sherman, to discuss the end of the Civil War, which finally seemed to be within reach. Nevertheless, the president—“having seen enough of the horrors of war”—remained deeply conflicted.
Oklahoma City and the Cost of Violence

2 months ago | americanheritage.com | Edwin Grosvenor |Calvin Warner

Editor's Note: Calvin Warner grew up in Edmond, Oklahoma. He is now a practicing attorney in Austin, Texas and an adjunct professor at St. Edward’s University. I remember the windows rattling. As a child in the suburb of Edmond, about 15 miles north of downtown, our house shook with the blast. The story would draw international headlines: the most deadly terrorist attack on American soil, a title it would hold for six years. Terror had come to Oklahoma City.
Carter's Energy Crisis

2 months ago | americanheritage.com | Edwin Grosvenor |Daniel Yergin |Kai Bird |Jonathan Alter

Editor's Note: Daniel Yergin, vice chairman of S&P Global, won a Pulitzer Prize in 1992 for The Prize: The Epic Quest for Oil, Money, and Power, described by Business Week as hailed as “the best history of oil ever written.” More recently, he published The New Map: Energy, Climate, and the Clash of Nations. The presidency of Jimmy Carter was both shaped and bracketed by energy. Even before he took office, Carter made clear that he intended “energy” to be a linchpin of his administration.
Renewing America’s Civic Education

2 months ago | americanheritage.com | Edwin Grosvenor |Brook Manville |Josiah Ober |Richard N. Haass

Editor’s Note: After a distinguished career in academia (Northwestern University) and business (McKinsey & C.), Brook Manville researches and writes about the history of democracy and the future of free societies. He and Stanford Political Science professor Josiah Ober recently published a thoughtful book of ideas on how to renew our democracy, The Civic Bargain: How Democracy Survives. Like many observers, they have grown concerned about the state of civic education, but also offer solutions.