History Presentations For Summer Holidays

2025 Lecture List

First on this list are “seasonal” talks, which in some way go with the calendar. Following the seasonal talks are “any time” talks.

February: Black History Month

The Problem With Tom: Jefferson and Slavery

The problem with Tom is that no other Founder wrote so much about slavery, or said so confidently that the slaves would one day be free, as Jefferson did – and yet, he himself never freed more than a handful of his own slaves. This talk explores why it was that Jefferson did not “walk the talk,” and explores his stated reasons for not emancipating. This talk is not just about Jefferson; it is also about the young United States, because Jefferson’s choices illustrate the conflicts imbedded in early American society.

February: President’s Day

A Tribute to Abraham Lincoln

This talk is also good for around Memorial Day, which came out of a custom of decorating the graves of the Civil War dead. My thoughts on this talk began with the question: how much does the average person really know about Abraham Lincoln? This talk will take people beyond the log cabin and emancipation, and onto his other qualities: his excellent leadership style, his sly humor, the way he addressed his stormy family life, and more. Lincoln is worth getting to know well, and it seems there is always more to know.

February: Valentine’s Day

John and Abigail Adams: A Love Story

Boy meets girl. Boy becomes a revolutionary and then president. Girl reminds him to not neglect the rights of women. John and Abigail Adams were at the center of the American experiment for decades and devoted themselves to its success, though at great cost to their marriage and family. They were apart for years at a time because of John’s service to the United States. This talk was drawn out of the hundreds of letters that passed between them to tell a very personal story of love, commitment, and devotion to each other and to the United States.

March: Women’s History Month

Bursting the Corset: 19th-century Illinois Women Who Defied the Stereotypes

A corset illustrates the lives of many Victorian-era women: constrained and forced into an unnatural shape. But not all women lived in such a constricted way. This talk is about three remarkable women, each of whom have an Illinois connection: Civil War nurse Mary Ann Bickerdyke, reformer Ida Wells, and unionist and hell-raiser Mary Harris “Mother” Jones.

Jane Addams: Immigration in Chicago

Illinois can be proud of Illinoisan Jane Addams: reformer, philosopher, founder of Hull House, and Nobel Prize winner. This talk traces her unique story: her unhappy years as a young woman, her banding together with friends to move into a Chicago slum, their opening of a “settlement house” there with a primary mission of being a good neighbor -- and on a personal note, why she could be so irritating to her friends.

Founding Mothers: Colonial-Era Moms With Clout

Also goes with Mother’s Day. Our nation’s story is full of moms who influenced history. Yet because they were not the ones holding office or leading battles, their names often slip by us. This talk explores the lives of five of them from our nation’s earliest years, some of whose names most people do not know. They include early feminists, political writers, an entrepreneur and a first lady, all of who challenged their times, enriched their nation, and along the way, raised some pretty great kids.

June: Juneteenth

From Civil War to Civil Rights: The 13th, 14th and 15th Amendments

This talk is on the ratification progress of the Civil War amendments as well as their impact on American life – an impact that went beyond even the abolition of slavery and the expansion of voting rights. Getting these amendments passed was a great struggle, especially after Lincoln’s assassination, and it showcases (among other things) the guts and commitment of the recently freed slaves. When the Confederate states instituted a sort of “second slavery,” northern Americans had to decide just what the war really had been all about. This talk showcases big dreams, political realities, and ultimately, the enduring power of racism in both the north and the south.

July: Independence Day

Risking it all: The Signers of the Declaration of Independence

In 1776, signing the Declaration of Independence was not an act of patriotism. It was an act of treason against Great Britain. Who were these fifty-six men who risked it all to make the strike for independence? Some of their names are familiar, like Benjamin Franklin and John Adams. Others — like Button Gwinnett — are not. There are some good stories of lesser-known Americans in this talk: who they were, what role they played in independence, and what consequences they suffered after they signed the Declaration.

Debating Independence: The American Revolution in 1776

In 1775 most Americans agreed they should remain part of Great Britain; despite turmoil and bloodshed, it seemed impossible that the 13 weak and far-flung colonies could become a nation. But less than a year later, those same people were ready to form a nation, and rejoiced at the signing of the Declaration of Independence. This talk is about exactly how this immense change took place in the hearts and minds of average Americans, how defeat, victory and intrigue all played their roles.

October:

The Salem Witch Trials and the Power of Fear

I often do this in October, though I’ve given this talk in other months as well. In 1692, a group of teenage girls began having bizarre and disturbing fits and claimed that witches in the community were persecuting them. By the end of the year, twenty women and men had been executed for witchcraft. Though witchcraft trials had happened before in New England, these spiraled out of control; legal safeguards went out the window and fear gained the upper hand. Our images of Salem are often sensational and historically inaccurate. This lecture lays out the true story of one of the strangest and most painful episodes in American history.

November: Thanksgiving and Native American Heritage Month

Puritans, Indians, and the First Thanksgiving

It is now over 400 years since the Pilgrims and Indians feasted together on the rough shores of Plymouth. In the centuries since, misconceptions have arisen about both the Indians and the Puritans, and parts of the story have been obscured. This is a telling of the rich story of the events of 1620 and 1621. The focus is on the political calculations of the Native Americans: why it made sense to them to welcome and aid the English settlers. It has lots of surprises, especially the presence of Native men who had been to England already, who had been kidnapped and had made their way home and were on the scene advising Massasoit on what to do about the newcomers. There were veiled agendas on both sides of the feasting table!

Thanksgiving: Anatomy of a Holiday

(This one is a bit more light-hearted than the above talk.) When did Thanksgiving become a national holiday? 1621? 1863? 1944? The answer is complicated. This talk delves into the long history of thanksgivings before 1621, the confusing connection of the holiday with the Pilgrims, the festival’s changing traditions and, of course, its changing menu. This is a good talk to take in with a pumpkin-spice beverage near at hand -- an enjoyable look at the holiday you thought you knew.

The Cherokee and the Politics of Indian Removal

This talk is on the events leading to the Trail of Tears. In 1828, President Andrew Jackson changed United States' policy toward the Native Americans, and Congress evicted all eastern tribes from their native lands. This talk focuses on the Cherokee experience. They are especially interesting because they had taken on white ways more than any other tribe, yet they were still evicted along with Indians living in more traditional ways. They also put up the best fight, suing for recognition of their nationhood in the Supreme Court. The end of the talk describes “the Trail of Tears” -- the journey to Oklahoma.

December: Christmas

Keeping Christmas: Looking in the Windows of the Past

This talk is one that I think makes history especially accessible – a look at how Americans celebrated Christmas in the past. I take six stories drawn from the 1700s and 1800s about Christmases celebrated in different places and different way, sometimes during the most trying times of our history, on the farm, on the frontier, and on the battlefield.

“Anytime” talks

Camp Douglas: the Civil War in Chicago

Chicago had an active role in the Civil War, and of those roles was hosting one of the largest prisoner-of-war camps. Thousands of Confederate soldiers suffered and died there. But their stories are not only stories of hardship: they also schemed for their freedom, made complicated and grandiose escapes, and found creative and touching ways to make the hardship and boredom of prisoner life bearable. This talk is a personal look at the lives of the men who were imprisoned there.

Myths in American History: The Fictions We Learned and The Truth Behind Them

All countries tweak their national stories to make the past easier to explain. But the reality is often far more interesting than the simple stories we have for the children. This talk explores many not-quite-true stories, like what Patrick Henry never said, the “quilt code” that never was, whether or not Lincoln owned slaves, and something else that should be remembered about the Alamo. I also explore why we believe certain things, why certain kinds of stories catch on and why we tend to accept them uncritically.

Aaron Burr: American Intrigue

Wherever Aaron Burr pops up in our history, there is a good story. He was a scoundrel and a smooth talker, and he seemed to have a knack for talking people out of their money. This talk is about Burr’s attempt to reinvent himself right after the duel. He engaged in intrigue, international double-dealing, and perhaps even insurrection and treason. Or maybe it wasn’t treason; I give Burr’s side of the story as well. This talk illuminates the shifting loyalties on the American frontier in our country’s earliest years and has some real surprises.

“But why a duel?” Hamilton, Burr and Dueling in American History

Probably quite a few of your residents saw the “Hamilton” musical in its two runs downtown. This talk is about the “why” behind the Hamilton-Burr affair. Dueling was part of our national culture for decades. It was a way that members of the ruling class proved that they had the character to be good leaders. This talk will explore the reasons why men in the young United States felt compelled to duel, and, in that context, will tell the tale of the fateful encounter between Hamilton and Burr.

Freedom for the Speech We Hate: A History

Words are powerful, and the United States’ founding generation knew this. Historian Joyce Haworth will trace the convoluted history of freedom of expression in the United States: our Revolution that both widened and narrowed speech, a constitutional amendment that did not quite mean what it said, and a variety of political movements, court cases and sedition laws that brought into focus what American freedom would look like.

April 1865: America in the Crucible

160 years ago, the Civil War teetered to its final brink. Generals Lee and Grant broke their long stalemate in Virginia for an epic final conflict. But just as peace seemed guaranteed, the President was assassinated. Belief that the Confederacy was responsible threatened to send the nation into more war. Join Joyce Haworth as she recounts one of the most influential months in American history.

The Biggest Little War in America: The War of 1812

The war that brought us Old Hickory, Old Ironsides and Uncle Sam may be the least-understood American conflict. But this three-front war matured the American military, gave the US international security, and vaulted Andrew Jackson from obscurity to national admiration. Commemorating the war’s end, 210 years ago this year, historian Joyce Haworth explains its causes, progress, tragedies and victories.

America Dreamin’: 19th-Century Utopias
I think we have an unfortunate image of the 19th century -- one of starched uprightness. Actually, the early part of that century was pretty crazy and experimental in many ways. One of those ways was in a flowering of utopian communities -- something like the communes of the 1970s. They were scattered across the north and west, from Maine to Illinois. Thousands of men and women left their homes and moved to these remote areas to try out a new and radical way to live, or to find a perfected society. This talk focuses on a few of them, including the "free love" community of Oneida, the experiment of racial equality of Nashoba, and zealous religion of the Shakers.

The First Impeachment: President Johnson’s Battle Against American Rights

The Civil War was over, the Confederacy had surrendered, and America was at last free of slavery. But Andrew Johnson, Lincoln’s former Vice President, opposed the idea of giving rights to the formerly enslaved people. Congress dug in for a battle, the Confederate states instituted a sort of “second slavery,” and northern Americans had to decide what the war had been all about. This is the story of a lock-in, a showdown, and the first impeachment of a president.