History

It makes sense that Americans would set aside a day to celebrate iced tea, if only unofficially: We popularized this summertime favorite.

As American As Iced Tea: A Brief, Sometimes Boozy History

3:31pm June 11, 2015

by Tove Danovich

At least as early as Colonial times, Americans were drinking iced tea, though early alcohol-laden recipes had more in common with the cocktail from Long Island than the stuff sold by Lipton.

National

Dirty Dancing In The Early 1900s

12:38pm June 11, 2015

by Linton Weeks

Scandalous swirls like the Bunny Hug, Turkey Trot and Grizzly Bear may have even rattled President-elect Woodrow Wilson.

World News

Magna Carta Copy Offered As Incentive For U.S. To Get Into World War II

11:30am June 11, 2015

Monday is the 800th anniversary of the Magna Carta. Ari Shapiro talks to Julian Harrison of the British Library in London about how Britain tried to use the document to get the U.S. into the war.

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A gourd of yerba mate. Legend has it that the moon gifted this infusion to the Guaraní people of South America.

Tea Tuesdays: Gift Of The Moon, Bane Of The Spanish — The Story Of Yerba Mate

11:06am June 10, 2015

by Jasmine Garsd

Legend has it the moon gifted this drink to the Guaraní people of South America. It was banned by the colonial government. The Jesuits made it their most profitable crop. Oh, and the pope drinks it.

Robert Fortune was a 19th-century Scottish botanist who helped the East India Trading Company swipe the secrets of tea production from China.

Tea Tuesdays: The Scottish Spy Who Stole China's Tea Empire

11:05am June 10, 2015

by NPR Staff

In the mid-1800s, Britain was a global superpower with a big weakness for tea, all of which came from China. But a botanist with a talent for espionage helped Britain swipe the secrets of tea.

J.R. Hardman, dressed for Civil War re-enactment.

National

The Battles Of A Civil War Re-Enactress

1:01pm June 09, 2015

by Linton Weeks

Refused at first as a re-enactor, J.R. Hardman turned to historic, real-life pioneers for inspiration.

A Chinese basketball team from the YMCA in San Francisco, 1919.

Chinese Basketballers Of Yesteryear

2:50pm June 04, 2015

by Linton Weeks

In the early 20th century, Chinese athletes in the U.S. sometimes found social liberation on the basketball courts.

Boarded-up homes on Osage Avenue in Philadelphia. Thirty years ago this street was bombed in a standoff between MOVE and the Philadelphia police.

I'm From Philly. 30 Years Later, I'm Still Trying To Make Sense Of The MOVE Bombing

10:43am June 04, 2015

by Gene Demby

Philadelphia native Gene Demby was 4 years old when city police dropped a bomb on a house of black activists in his hometown. Thirty years later, he's still trying to make sense of it all.

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Arts

Slavery, Famine And The Politics Of Pie: What Civil War Recipes Reveal

7:02am June 03, 2015

by Nina Martyris

From recipes for apple pie without apples to advice on how to treat servants, the era's cookbooks hint at the turbulence outside the kitchen window. Indeed, food helped decide the war's outcome.

(Left) Sgt. William Shemin distinguished himself with bravery under fire during World War I. (Right) Sgt. Henry Johnson of the 369th Infantry Regiment was awarded the French Croix de Guerre for bravery while outnumbered during a battle with German soldier

National

Harlem Hellfighter And Jewish Soldier Get Long-Overdue Medals Of Honor

4:59pm June 02, 2015

by Bill Chappell

Historians say Sgts. Henry Johnson and William Shemin hadn't been properly recognized for their bravery under fire.

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