The Culture That Shaped American Life

Long before it became synonymous with theater, Broadway was a 13-mile trail used by Indigenous tribes for hunting, trade and travel.

In the 1960s, Danny Thomas was a household name. His family sitcom, The Danny Thomas Show, was a smash hit, running for over 10 years. Thomas—who struggled for years before his big break—always attributed his success to St. Jude.

While Cinco de Mayo is celebrated as a day of Mexican pride, the event it commemorates also played a major role in U.S. history.

Dorothea Lange captured the reality of the Great Depression in the faces of those who struggled most.

Hummus is a Middle Eastern dish with roots in regions like Syria and Egypt, with the earliest known recipe appearing in a 13th-century cookbook. The 1960s movement in the US introduced many people to Middle Eastern cuisine, including hummus.

Before 2000, many feared the internet would crash at midnight on New Year’s Day and disrupt the world—but how real was the panic?

New Year's celebrations in China are thousands of years old, but across the Pacific, the holiday took on a life of its own.

Kwanzaa didn't just appear spontaneously—it was specifically designed to heal a struggling community after the infamous Watts' Rebellion.

In 1951, PM Ben-Gurion chose a menorah—suggested by the Jewish Museum—as a birthday gift for U.S. President Harry S. Truman.

The U.S. Air Force tracks Santa each year—a tradition born from a child’s misdialed call to the Continental Air Defense Command.

We all watch the ball drop on New Year's Eve, but the ball has its own history that began well before Times Square and out on the high seas.

Before the term "snowboarding" existed—and at least 80 years before it was an Olympic phenomenon—people were surfing down snowy hills.

After Spain’s conquest, the Church tied Aztec death rituals to All Saints Day—until Chicanos reclaimed Día de los Muertos’ roots.

Undeterred by his childhood disability, Henry Viscardi became one of the most effective advocates for disabled Americans in U.S. history.

Trick or treating is now innocent Halloween fun, but before kids went door to door, the holiday was all about mischief and mayhem.

The iconic music festival on August 15th, 1969, brought huge crowds and groundbreaking performances. But it almost never happened.

Ellis Island is known in history as a place that welcomed America's immigrants, but for a time, it also pushed them away.

As America’s first federal public works project, the Old Cape Henry Lighthouse guided ships through one of Virginia’s key trade gateways.

Paul Boyton founded Sea Lion Park at Coney Island, which created the business model of the first Coney Island Amusement Park.

Yellowstone became the world's first national park on March 1, 1872, when the Yellowstone National Park Protection Act was signed into law.

The invention of charcoal briquets came about thanks to a camping trip by Thomas Edison and Henry Ford.

When John Muir and Teddy Roosevelt spent three nights in Yosemite, it would soon pave the way for a National Park Service.

Colonel Charles Young overcame racism to rise through the ranks and create his legacy in the great outdoors.

The Easter Egg Roll is an annual White House tradition dating back over a century, but how did presidents start hosting this egg racing ritual?