American history

“H” is for Highway 301. The highway’s many nicknames are an indication that it was popular among tourists: “Tobacco Trail,” “Highway of Southern Hospitality,” “Tourist Highway,” “Shortest Route from Maine to Florida,” and “The Washington-Florida Short Route.”

“H” is for Highway 301. The highway’s many nicknames are an indication that it was popular among tourists: “Tobacco Trail,” “Highway of Southern Hospitality,” “Tourist Highway,” “Shortest Route from Maine to Florida,” and “The Washington-Florida Short Route.”

“D” is for Doolittle Raiders. On April 18, 1942, eighty Americans and sixteen B-25 bombers carried out the first attack on the Japanese Islands following Pearl Harbor. The participants began training for the mission in Columbia.

“D” is for Doolittle Raiders. On April 18, 1942, eighty Americans and sixteen B-25 bombers carried out the first attack on the Japanese Islands following Pearl Harbor. The participants began training for the mission in Columbia.

On the Journal this week we will be talking with Robert James Fichter about his book, Tea: Consumption, Politics, and Revolution, 1773–1776.Fitcher says that despite the so-called Boston Tea Party in 1773, two large shipments of tea from the East India Company survived and were ultimately drunk in North America. Their survival shaped the politics of the years ahead, impeded efforts to reimburse the company for the tea lost in Boston Harbor, and hinted at the enduring potency of consumerism in revolutionary politics.

This week we talk with Claudia Smith Brinson about her new book, Injustice in Focus: The Civil Rights Photography of Cecil Williams (2023, USC Press). Claudia's rich research, interviews, and prose, offer a firsthand account of South Carolina's fight for civil rights and tells the story of Cecil Williams's life behind the camera. The book also features eighty of William’s photographs.Cecil Williams is one of the few Southern Black photojournalists of the civil rights movement. Born and raised in Orangeburg, South Carolina, Williams worked at the center of emerging twentieth-century civil rights activism in the state, and his assignments often exposed him to violence perpetrated by White law officials and ordinary citizens. Williams's story is the story of the civil rights era.

“P” is for Pickens, Andrew (1739-1817). Soldier, legislator, congressman. During the Revolutionary War Pickens became one of the most significant leaders of patriot forces in the backcountry.

“P” is for Pickens, Andrew (1739-1817). Soldier, legislator, congressman. During the Revolutionary War Pickens became one of the most significant leaders of patriot forces in the backcountry.

This week we'll be talking with Kathryn Smith, author of Methodists & Moonshiners: Another Prohibition Expedition Through the South…with Cocktail Recipes (2023, Evening Post Books). In her follow-up to 2021's Baptists and Bootleggers, Kathryn once again hit the road - this time following George Washington 1791 trail through the South to Augusta. She digs into the history of the towns along the way, especially during Prohibition. We’ll also talk about some of that history, and about Washington’s Mount Vernon distillery - one of the country’s biggest - which he operated after his presidency. Kathryn will also share some of the colorful stories and tasty cocktails that she discovered in her travels.

Greenville, South Carolina, has become an attractive destination, frequently included in lists of the "Best Small Cities" in America. But, the city's growth and renewal started over 100 years ago, during a remarkable period of progress during which World War I acted as a powerful catalyst.In her book, “Our Country First, Then Greenville" - A New South City during the Progressive Era and World War I (2023, USC Press) Courtney Tollison Hartness explores Greenville's home-front experience of race relations, dramatic population growth (the number of Greenville residents nearly tripled between 1900 and 1930s), the women's suffrage movement, and the contributions of African Americans and women to Greenville's history.In this episode of the Journal, we'll talk with Courtney about how Greenville's experience during this progressive period served to generate massive development in the city and the region. It was this moment that catalyzed Greenville's development into a modern city, setting the stage for the continued growth that persists into the present-day.