History

Two Harbors: Split Rock Lighthouse
Split Rock Lighthouse is easing into its century status. It began operating in 1910 and was celebrated throughout 2010 to mark its 100th anniversary.
Midday presents more speeches featured in the new book by Stephen Smith and Kate Ellis, "Say it Loud: Great Speeches on Civil Rights and African American Identity." Speeches in this hour include ones from Shirley Chisholm, James Cone, Colin Powell, and Henry Louis Gates, Jr.
John and Abigail Adams in letters
John Adams has had his share of publicity in the past few years. Historian Joseph Ellis's new book takes a look at the enduring relationship between Adams and his wife, Abigail, as revealed through their letters to one another. Originally broadcast on January 3, 2011.
The queen of the Nile: a new perspective
She was called Queen of Kings, and in her lifetime Cleopatra was romantically linked with both Julius Caesar and Mark Antony. Biographer Stacy Schiff considered her a shrewd political strategist and powerful ruler. Originally broadcast on January 5, 2011.
Novelist Paul Auster writes about home
Paul Auster's new novel about abandoned homes and broken families speaks to Americans' experience with the recession. He revisits themes of existential crisis and the search for identity.
Presidents in the digital age
George Washington is on Twitter, JFK's archives are now digital, and Barack Obama is the first "social media President." Hear how Presidential history is alive on the Internet.
150-year-old letters give voice to Dakota prisoners
For nearly 150 years, the voices of Dakota men imprisoned after the Dakota Conflict of 1862 went unheard. But the details of their imprisonment are starting to emerge, in dozens of letters written by those men and now being studied by historians in Fargo.
In Lee's and others' stories, exhibit shows power of unexpected events
Koua Fong Lee, who spent more than 2 1/2 years in prison before being released, is part of a new exhibit at the Minnesota History Center that spotlights how unexpected events have the power to forever alter the course of a person's life.