Articles by Kelli Ballard

You may know Benjamin Franklin as the face on the one-hundred-dollar bill, or perhaps as one of our Founding Fathers. Or maybe you recognize his name because of his kite experiment, which proved we can get electricity from lightning. But… Read More

The French and Indian War, as it was called in the Colonies, was also known as the Seven Years’ War as well as the Second Hundred Years’ War in Europe. Later, Winston Churchill termed it the first world war since… Read More

Dwight David Eisenhower (1890 – 1969) was the 34th president of the United States. Eisenhower had been a general during World War II and was one of the few who opposed using the atomic bomb at Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Early… Read More

Flag Day is here – the day Americans celebrate one of our nation’s most iconic symbols. The banner we have today has gone through many changes. The Earliest American Flags During the Revolutionary War, the colonists used several different banners…. Read More

Who was the “Poppy Lady,” and why is she such an important figure today? Moina Belle Michael devoted much of her adult life to supporting wounded soldiers, and she is responsible for beginning the tradition of wearing red poppies on… Read More

Harry S. Truman was the 33rd president of the United States. Working to put himself through college, he became the commander in chief during a difficult time in our nation’s history. Truman had been vice president to Franklin Roosevelt only… Read More

Did you know Mother’s Day was originally intended to celebrate just one person – hence the apostrophe after the “r”? In 1905, Anna Jarvis wanted to commemorate her own mother, who died that year. Mama Jarvis, or Anna Reeves Jarvis,… Read More

Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1882-1945), or FDR, was the 32nd president of the United States and the only commander in chief to be elected four consecutive terms. Have you heard the saying that the only thing to fear is fear itself?… Read More

The Bald Eagle has been a symbol of America’s freedom and liberty since 1782 when it became the national bird. But it is not the only animal to be honored by Americans. The bison, commonly called buffalo, became the national… Read More

Herbert Hoover (1874-1964), the 31st president of the United States, was not a popular president at the time. Blamed for the Great Depression, it would be years after he left office before people decided that he wasn’t at fault. The… Read More

Calvin Coolidge (1872 – 1933) became the thirtieth president of the United States after President Warren G. Harding died suddenly. He had been visiting home in Vermont when he learned of Harding’s death. Coolidge’s father was a notary public, and… Read More

“Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.” ~ Gettysburg Address / Abraham Lincoln The Battle of Gettysburg… Read More