Michael Burgan

On and off the field, Jackie Robinson never backed down from a challenge. The baseball legend broke Major League Baseball's color barrier in 1947, changing the sport forever. It was eight years later that a photo of him stealing home during the 1955 World Series became one of the most famous images from his historic career. The iconic photo of his daring base running seemed to sum up the way Robinson lived his life. He acted on his own, doing what

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It's one of the most famous sports images of all time. Former heavyweight boxing champion Sonny Liston is sprawled on his back in the boxing rim. Muhammad Ali stands over Liston, holding his right hand as if ready to throw another punch. The reigning world champion had just thrown a short, right-handed punch to the side of Liston's head. In a flash, Liston had gone down. The photo of the angry Ali standing over the fallen challenger was taken in an...

Connecticut. How did Connecticut get its name? The word Connecticut comes from an Algonquian word that means "long tidal river." Inside, you'll find: what people do for fun in Connecticut; A timeline, photos-and what role Connecticut has played in U.S. history; Surprising TRUE facts that will shock and amaze you!.

Jesse Owens' gold-medal winning feats at the 1936 Olympics in Berlin struck a mighty propaganda blow against Adolf Hitler. The Nazi leader had planned to use the German games as a showcase of supposed Aryan superiority. Instead, there was American black athlete Owens on the podium being photographed by Hitler's personal photographer, Heinrich Hoffmann. In addition, Owens would figure prominently in the groundbreaking film Olympia by Hitler's favorite...

It didn't seem possible. Four college students shot dead May 4, 1970, by Ohio National Guardsmen during a protest against the Vietnam War. The shootings at Kent State University would shock the nation and spark a mass student strike across the country, the only one in U.S. history. A photojournalism student's photograph of a teen girl crying in anguish over a victim's dead body would win the Pulitzer Prize and become a symbol of the antiwar movement....

Describes the history, geography, ecology, people, economy, cities, and sights of the state of Illinois, and includes ideas for classroom assignments.

Introduction to one of the United States' original colonies, Connecticut. Describes its origins, its leaders, and the colony's role in America's independence from Great Britain. Help children discover America's thrilling early history with Our Thirteen Colonies. Each book begins with the prehistory of one colony, describing the Native Americans who inhabited that area, and then honestly portrays the arrival of European settlers and the growth of a...

People from Great Britain came to North America to start new lives in the 13 American colonies. In the beginning colonists accepted British rule without question. But by the mid-1700s, things were changing. Many colonists wanted the right to govern themselves. The British government felt as if the colonists were being ungrateful. By 1775 war between the two sides was inevitable.

The inspiring story of the black soldiers who fought in the Revolutionary War is important and unforgettable, yet it's unfamiliar to many people. These soldiers served heroically to win the freedom of a nation where "all men are created equal." However, many of those who fought would not get to experience the freedom for which they risked their lives.

On the night of April 14, 1912, as it made its first voyage, the luxury steamship Titanic struck an iceberg. Then, a few hours after midnight on April 15, the ship sank thousands of feet before settling on the ocean floor. And that's where it stayed, whereabouts unknown, for the next 73 years until it was discovered by oceanographer Robert Ballard and his crew. The pictures and video Ballard brought back from the 1985 discovery helped stir new interest...