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In this dynamic lecture, journey back to the Gilded Age and discover how Henry Flagler, co-founder of Standard Oil, transformed Florida’s coasts with his bold vision. His Florida East Coast Railway didn't just build tracks- it built cities, from Palm Beach to Miami and all the way to Key West. Hear how Flagler's crews overcame hurricanes, swamps, and engineering challenges to connect the Sunshine State. Learn how alliances with figures like Julia Tuttle helped turn Miami into a booming city. Flagler's grand hotels and infrastructure helped shape Florida into a winter retreat and global destination.

When most people think about the work of Albert Einstein they imagine exotic physics beyond our everyday experience. However, this is very far from the truth. We will be using the Teaching Company course by Chad Orzel of Union college to set the record straight. From toasters to Quantum Cryptography, we will learn how the work of the great sage has changed our world.

Discover the history, legends and cultures of the Emerald Isle from when the first settlers rowed their tiny, skin boats across wild seas from England. Centuries of Druid, Celt, and Viking settlements have left Ireland with a rich and permanent collection of myths and legends. Learn the true stories behind the legends of leprechauns, fairies, changelings, pookas, banshees, and the Blarney Stone.

Susanna Dickinson was one of the few survivors of the Battle of the Alamo, spared so she could carry the chilling message of the Texan defeat to General Sam Houston. Imagine hearing that brutal battle firsthand while attempting to shelter your infant daughter from the chaos. Susanna Dickenson's courage and resilience thrust her into a unique role in Texas history. Her story is both heartbreaking and heroic.  Dee Collier's 1st person portrayal of Susanna will transport you to that 1836, battle and its ramifications, “Remember the Alamo.”

Explore the political origins of John F. Kennedy in Into the Political Jungle (1946-1956), a pre-recorded documentary from The History Channel. Returning from WWII, a young JFK embarks on a bold new mission: winning a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. This episode traces his rise through Massachusetts politics as he lays the foundation for a national future.

Note: This is a recorded video (no live presenter).

Find out why Columbus was returned to Spain in chains, why the Dutch needed salt, if the native tribes were cannibals, and many other historical facts about the islands of the Caribbean.

In this compelling course, acclaimed historian and author Paul Sparrow explores the groundbreaking themes of his book, Awakening the Spirit of America: FDR's War of Words With Charles Lindbergh And the Battle to Save Democracy. Drawing on his years as director of the FDR Presidential Library, Sparrow offers a powerful, insider’s look at how Franklin Delano Roosevelt overcame deep political opposition and isolationist sentiment to lead the United States into World War II and onto the world stage.

Through storytelling and expert analysis, Sparrow tells participants about how history was made, revealing how Roosevelt’s masterful use of language, media, and persuasion reshaped the American identity and redefined global leadership. This course will shed light on the strategies, struggles, and triumphs of FDR’s presidency, offering timely lessons on resilience, vision, and the enduring power of words.

Join Paul Sparrow for an unforgettable journey into the heart of American history and discover how the "spirit of America" was awakened at one of its most critical turning points. Sparrow will be presenting remote.

The rise of a battlefield general, manager of people and philosopher was methodical and meteoric. His book "The Art of War" is still being used in war colleges around the world, senior management trainings, espionage, and for entrepreneurs who aspire to successful supervisory positions; and they are eternally applicable to all aspects of life.

In the fifty years spanning 1870 to 1920, America saw the greatest economic boom in human history, vaulting our nation to the pinnacle of prosperity. Men whose names remain familiar today, like Cornelius Vanderbilt, Henry Ford, Cyrus McCormick, John Deere and Thomas Edison all contributed to America’s ever-growing wealth and productivity.

But it was essentially the efforts of four men who took America to undreamed of heights through their genius, their drive, and their determination.  The names Rockefeller, Carnegie, Morgan and Gould are all synonymous with the traits that made America the greatest nation in history. That they accomplished great things is unquestioned. Yet the methods they employed often caused critics to refer to them collectively with the unflattering term "Robber Barons." This presentation focuses on the lives and actions of these men who essentially built the America we know today. Instructor will be presenting remotely.

This true-life PowerPoint presentation gives a brief biography of two senior military officers during the Cold War. It tells what they did, and what happened because of their actions. They risked their careers - even their very lives - to follow their consciences and convictions. We should all be grateful because they saved our countries, world, and every one of us.

Hollywood and the motion picture industry looms large in our lives. We've seen great movies, mediocre movies and flat out bad ones. Jerry Colen will be with us not to discuss any movie, but to talk with us about some of the sex, scandals and murders with which some of our famous, or is it infamous movie stars have been involved. Jerry says that this lecture will be a bitter-sweet, perhaps, funny and always entertaining look at the "other side" of the camera.

Their pictures, names and crimes filled the newspapers but what was their backstory? How did they live, who did they love and how did they die?

Join us for a virtual tour of one of the most powerful art experiences of our time- a walk through of the Imagining Freedom Gallery at the Norman Rockwell Museum, featuring the works of Norman Rockwell, one of America's most beloved and influential artists. Witness the stories of everyday Americans as Rockwell saw them: honest, hopeful, and deeply human.

Together, we'll explore themed rooms such as:
* U.S. American Life Before WWII
*FDR's Four Freedoms
*Rockwell's Four Freedoms on Tour

Note: This is not a virtual live walk through the exhibits, however an actual visual experience with commentary on great Norman Rockwell paintings, which documents the American experience.

These three spies kept authorities and security departments fooled into thinking they were loyal employees, above suspicion. They were even given awards by their governments for outstanding performance, all the while knifing their employers in the back. How and why did they do it?