Asian American History
Japanese American Artists Recall the Trauma of Wartime Incarceration
Smithsonian podcasts explore the legacy of Executive Order 9066 and the camera that almost didn’t make it to the Juno spacecraft launch
The First-Ever List of Japanese Americans Forced Into Incarceration Camps Is 1,000 Pages Long
The Ireichō contains 125,284 names—and a new exhibition invites the public to honor them
Cache of 19th-Century Blue Jeans Discovered in Abandoned Arizona Mineshaft
The seven pairs of pants open a portal into life in the Castle Dome mining district
Meet Anna May Wong, the First Asian American on U.S. Currency
The trailblazing actress overcame discrimination to become a global star
Denver Removes Plaque Inaccurately Describing Anti-Chinese Riot of 1880
The historical marker contained a number of falsehoods about the Mile High City's first race riot
Untold Stories of American History
Untold Stories of American History
Explore the lives of little-known changemakers who left their mark on the country
How Disney Propaganda Shaped Life on the Home Front During WWII
A traveling exhibition traces how the animation studio mobilized to support the Allied war effort
The Gay Asian Activist Whose Theories on Sexuality Were Decades Ahead of Their Time
In the 1930s, Li Shiu Tong's boyfriend, Magnus Hirschfeld, was a prominent defender of gay people. But Li's own research has long been overlooked
Grace Young, Who Documented the Toll of Anti-Asian Hate on NYC's Chinatown, Receives Julia Child Award
A $50,000 grant is awarded to the culinary historian for her advocacy of Chinese-American culture and cuisine
Denver Apologizes for Anti-Chinese Riot of 1880
A white mob terrorized residents and murdered a man, but the city never punished the perpetrators
Betty Reid Soskin, Oldest National Park Service Ranger, Retires at 100
As an NPS employee, she promoted the stories of African American people and women of color who contributed to the home front effort during WWII
Japanese American Incarceration Camp in Colorado Receives Federal Protection
The Granada Relocation Center, also known as Amache, grew to become the state's tenth largest city at its peak during World War II
Untold Stories of American History
What Archaeologists Are Learning About the Lives of the Chinese Immigrants Who Built the Transcontinental Railroad
In the sparse Utah desert, the vital contributions of these 19th-century laborers are finally coming to light
Fish Bones Found in Razed California Chinatown Reveal Complex 19th-Century Trade Network
DNA analysis suggests the Chinese immigrants' supply chain stretched to Southeast Asia
The Fascinating—and Harrowing—Tale of the First Japanese American to Publish a Book of Fiction
After his incarceration during WWII, Toshio Mori released a collection of short stories based on his experiences as a second generation Asian immigrant
Germany, Austria Repatriate Dozens of Human Skulls to Hawaii
Earlier this month, a Hawaiian delegation retrieved 58 sets of ancestral remains from five European museums
Eighty Years After the U.S. Incarcerated 120,000 Japanese Americans, Trauma and Scars Still Remain
Families were stripped of their rights and freedoms in February 1942, when FDR signed Executive Order 9066
The Quest to Protect California's Transcontinental Railroad Tunnels
Built by Chinese immigrants in the 1860s, the caverns cutting through Donner Summit helped unite the country
The Ten Best History Books of 2021
Our favorite titles of the year resurrect forgotten histories and help explain how the U.S. got to where it is today
Why Museums Are Primed to Address Racism, Inequality in the U.S.
Smithsonian leaders discuss how the Institution can be a powerful place for investigating and addressing society’s most difficult issues