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FDR - "Fear Itself"
In his first inaugural address, which remains one of the most famous in American history, President Franklin D. Roosevelt addressed a nation of people who were in the throes of the Great Depression.  Encouraging his fellow citizens, he made history with this part of his speech.
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Franklin K. Lane - "The Nation in Arms"
Secretary of the Interior, at the outbreak of war with Germany in 1917, Franklin Lane was outspoken in his support of the fight.  Still upset about the Lusitania, he said:"We are fighting Germany because she sought to terrorize us and then to fool us ... Germany has never asked forgiveness of t...
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Great Depression - People Ate Dandelion Greens
During the Great Depression, Americans were starving.  Some of them resorted to eating dandelion greens, as discussed in this oral history from the Library of Congress.
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Helen Keller - At School with Seeing and Hearing Girls
Still preparing for college, Helen attended the Cambridge School for Young Ladies.  It was the first time she was at a school with seeing and hearing girls.  Annie continued to interpret for Helen, but she needed periodic breaks.  And while Helen's patrons in London and Philadelphia o...
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Helen Keller - College Prep at Age 13
Until Helen was 13, Annie Sullivan worked with her student on the basics:  How to finger-spell, how to read (in Braille and raised type) and how to speak (as best she could).  Then it was time for formal lessons, to prepare for college.  Latin and math were added to the subjects Helen...
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Helen Keller - Illness in Infancy
Although her father had been married before, and Helen had two step-brothers, she was the first girl in the family and her mother's first child.  Nineteen months after her birth, Helen's parents were horrified when they realized their baby could no longer see or hear, following a still-unknown ...
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Helen Keller - Life in a Cold Climate
As a child of the South, Helen had not experienced snow before the winter of 1889.  While in the North, she played outside in the cold weather.  Her favorite winter sport was tobagonning - which she was able to do with help. Read along as you hear the story:Chapter 12After my first visit ...
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Helen Keller - Radcliffe Student
In the fall of 1900, Helen Keller became the first blind-deaf college student.  She'd romantically thought it would be a time to reflect, and think, about her subjects.  But her college life was vastly different from that of her fellow students.  She had to use her hands "to listen," ...
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Helen Keller as a Sports Woman
When she wasn't reading, Helen loved to be outside.  She especially enjoying swimming, but her favorite sport was sailing.  She felt a special kinship with trees and imagined that she could see the sunshine on their leaves. Read along as you hear the story:Chapter 22I trust that my reader...
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Helen Keller at Wright-Humason School
For two years, as Helen continued her college-prep work, she studied at the Wright-Humason School for the Deaf in New York.  Miss Sullivan attended as her interpretor.  Helen was frustrated with the way she spoke and reports that her teachers shared her concerns. Read along as you hear th...
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