Professor Jonathan Chu looks at the development of U.S. trade with China following the Revolutionary War, in which the U.S. became China's second largest western trading partner and imported great quantities of tea, silk, and ceramics. His presentation includes slides.
Historian Anthony Sammarcora follows the history of molasses in the 18th-century United States, looking at its importance to the world economy, its connection with the slave trade, and the Boston molasses flood.
Video (with or without captions) and audio options are available.
Author Iris Chang follows the history of Chinese immigration in the U.S., the alternating acceptance and tension between Chinese Americans and "mainstream" U.S. society, and Chinese-American experiences in the U.S. Her presentation includes a question-and-answer session.
Professor Gerald L. Early discusses cultural observations on Curt Flood, the first player in Major League Baseball to challenge the infamous "reserve clause" which opened the doors to free agency. Early focuses on the significance of sports as a public arena.
Julie Winch discusses the highly successful African-American Remond family and their business of catering lavish parties in Boston and Newport in the 1800s. Winch focuses on the Remonds as free African Americans and supporters of abolitionism during the era of slavery.
Tom Crouch, Chairman of Aeronautics at the National Air and Space Museum, discusses the Wright brothers' invention of the airplane, placing it in the context of the centuries-long study of flight and of the enormous impact airplanes have had on human life.
Professor Robert J. Allison reviews the political and economic context surrounding the Boston Tea Party and the details of the event itself. The lecture occurs in the Old South Meeting House, where the meeting preceding the Tea Party took place.
Audio and video options are available. The video can be viewed with or without captions.
Donald Cann of the Boston Harbor Islands and John Galluzzo of the Massachusetts Audubon Society show the multiple uses of Boston Harbor by displaying a series of historical postcard images, from the Boston docks and shipyards to the amusement parks and summer playgrounds of the early 20th century.
The lecture audio is available independently as an mp3 file.
Joseph Garver, reference librarian of the Harvard Map Collection, displays maps of coastal Massachusetts from the 1600s to the 1930s and shows how cartographers have drawn the shoreline to suit their political and commercial goals. His presentation includes slides.
An audio version can be downloaded.
Professor and author Michael Oren looks at the history of relations between the U.S. and the Middle East, beginning in 1785 with the Barbary Wars and continuing to the present day.
The lecture audio is also available as a mp3 file.