Civics

After the World Trade Center attacks, all bridges and tunnels were closed, and civilian ships helped evacuate roughly half a million people from Manhattan.

9/11 permanently changed air travel security in the US with the creation of the Transportation Security Administration.

US intelligence warned in multiple reports of al-Qaida's plans to strike before 9/11.

9/11 reshaped US foreign and military policy for decades, shifting focus to non-state actors and the Middle East.

343 members of the Fire Department of New York died on 9/11 trying to rescue people from the World Trade Center.

The 2001 Authorization for Use of Military Force has been used by four administrations to justify military operations in 22 countries.

Take a virtual tour of Gloria Steinem's Manhattan apartment, a hub for feminist activism in the 1960s and '70s.

The reservation system gives tribes limited self-governance while keeping them under federal control.

The US has 575 federally recognized tribal nations, each a sovereign government.

Hear the reasoning behind Trump's resurrection of the Monroe Doctrine in 2025.

See state-level data on juries.

Eleanor Roosevelt transformed the role of the first lady of the United States.

In 45 states, governors are allowed to appoint a senator in the event of a vacancy.

Explore over a century of US-Canadian relations.

Visually explore the federal government's evolving role in education.

King George III drafted a letter of abdication during the American Revolutionary War.

NATO consists of 32 countries across North America and Europe.

The US exported $426.3B in goods to Canada and imported $453.6B in goods from Canada in 2025.

At age 22, Washington inadvertently started the French and Indian War.

The American Revolution split the Iroquois Confederacy, as members allied with different sides.

The Royal Governor of Virginia offered slaves their freedom if they escaped and fought for the British in the American Revolutionary War.

A section condemning slavery, originally written by Thomas Jefferson, was cut from the Declaration of Independence.

A fire in NYC that burned a fifth of the city in 1776 may have been started under orders from George Washington.

Weeks before the Battle of Lexington, colonists resisted a British raid in Salem, MA, that nearly escalated into the first battle of the Revolution.

Colonists protested the Stamp Act by staging satirical "funerals for liberty," complete with real coffins and mourners.

The US Board on Geographic Names is responsible for ensuring uniform usage of geographic names within the government.

In 2025, the US national debt per person was $113k.

Voting by mail is safe and secure, and used by voters of both political parties.

See Pierre L'Enfant's original plan and vision for DC and the National Mall

Take an architectural walking tour of the National Mall.

Faithless electors have never changed the outcome of a US presidential election.

A majority of Americans support replacing the Electoral College with a popular vote.

Unconditional birthright citizenship is rare outside the Americas.

Early American citizenship was defined inconsistently by individual states.

While studies have shown that voter fraud in the US is extremely rare, its elections are considered the 35th fairest in the world according to the 2025 Free and Fair Elections Index—a list topped by Belgium and Norway.

Hear a narrative account of Justice John Marshall's 'simple' upbringing and his major impact on the American republic.

Hear about the 1962 Supreme Court case so divisive that it caused a justice's breakdown.

The federal government's decision to pay off the states' Revolutionary War debts required a new tax, sparking an armed rebellion.

See the origins of the foreign-born population of the United States from 1850 to 2020.

Explore the Opportunity Atlas and see which places in America offer the highest social mobility.

See which states contribute the most and least to the federal government.

Explore how 10,000 different American cities got their name. (Paywall may apply.)

Both Abigail and John Adams had complicated relationships with Thomas Jefferson.

Learn about how highways are designed and the geometry behind what makes them safe and efficient.

Explore a visual history of Air Force One.

Emanuel Leutze's painting 'Washington Crossing the Delaware' is one of the defining images of the Revolutionary War.

Ratified in 1868, the 14th Amendment guaranteed citizenship to all people born in the United States and required states to provide equal legal protection to all.

Future President Dwight D. Eisenhower's terrible experience on a cross-country road trip in 1919 helped inspire him to create the interstate highway system.

See where your state ranked in an analysis of the best public school systems in the US.