As Dr. Rebecca Brenner Graham shows us in this episode, the story of the first cabinet secretary who was a woman - Frances Perkins - has been missing its most consequential chapter. Dr. Graham discovered the story of how Frances Perkins organized and prodded the Federal government to allow Holocaust victims to escape before it was too late. Graham tells the story of how Perkins wielded power in Washington, and how a rare impeachment of a cabinet secretary began to curtail that power. But, she managed to save tens of thousands of people from death camps, thanks to empathy she felt from a young age for people who desperately needed protection.

Information on her book can be found at https://www.kensingtonbooks.com/author/rebecca-brenner-graham/

Her website can be found at https://rebeccabrennergraham.com/

She on social media at https://x.com/TheOtherRBG

Axelbank Reports History and Today" can be found on social media at

https://twitter.com/axelbankhistory

https://instagram.com/axelbankhistory

https://facebook.com/axelbankhistory

Listen on: Apple Podcasts Spotify

America's fight against COVID felt like a never ending battle over who had a right to be safe, to get a vaccine, to work at their place of employment and to visit places of entertainment. Rules around vaccines, restaurants, schools and businesses provided the fuel for the question of "which way worked better?" Which areas saw more deaths, kept people employed and fostered the educational success of children? In "COVID Wars," former tech CEO Ronald Gruner dug into the data to determine which strategies worked to save lives, which worked to save jobs, and which minimized social impact? He explains how data is the key to everything, and how the war over the best ways to respond to the COVID pandemic fractured the country.
Ronald Gruner's website can be found at https://www.ronaldgruner.com/index.htm
He is on social media at https://x.com/ronaldgruner
Support our show at https://patreon.com/axelbankhistory

**A portion of every contribution is given to a charity for children's literacy**

"Axelbank Reports History and Today" can be found on social media at

https://twitter.com/axelbankhistory

https://instagram.com/axelbankhistory

https://facebook.com/axelbankhistory

Listen on: Apple Podcasts Spotify

Nearly eighty million were killed. Seventy countries were involed. Two nuclear bombs were dropped. The world was reshaped in its aftermath. World War II wasn't just an event in the lives of seven future presidents, it was the event. Steven Gillon argues seven future presidents were changed irrevocably by what they’d experienced from the moment Pearl Harbor was attacked to the moment millions of soldiers came back to the United States. They had seen death, lost friends and feared for their own lives. World War II would shape their politics and policy. He argues that even privileged men - like JFK and George HW Bush - insisted on going to combat because they could sense it would make or break their future. And they were right.

Steven Gillon's website can be found at https://www.stevenmgillon.com/

Information on his book can be found at https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/646653/presidents-at-war-by-steven-m-gillon/#:~:text=A%20nuanced%20and%20deeply%20researched,and%20future%2C%20presidents%20stand%20today.

Support our show at https://patreon.com/axelbankhistory

**A portion of every contribution is given to a charity for children's literacy**

"Axelbank Reports History and Today" can be found on social media at

https://twitter.com/axelbankhistory

https://instagram.com/axelbankhistory

https://facebook.com/axelbankhistory

Listen on: Apple Podcasts Spotify

In under a week, the United States will have a new president. On this episode, former White House staffer and academic historian William Haldeman shares his new book that shows how presidents transform from merely an elected leader to someone whose mark is left for generations. He describes how six presidents - Washington, Lincoln, TR, FDR, JFK and Reagan - developed leadership skills over the course of their lives that could then be applied not only to policy, but to their use of the bully pulpit to make bold changes to the nation. From Washington's decision to leave office after two terms to Reagan's drive to win the Cold War, Haldeman shows how great presidents not only met the moment, but won outsized victories that contributed to freedom and democracy.

William Haldeman's website can be found at https://www.williamhaldeman.com/

He is on social media at https://x.com/potushistorian

Information on his book can be found at https://sunypress.edu/Books/M/Meeting-the-Moment

Support our show at https://patreon.com/axelbankhistory

**A portion of every contribution is given to a charity for children's literacy**

"Axelbank Reports History and Today" can be found on social media at

https://twitter.com/axelbankhistory

https://instagram.com/axelbankhistory

https://facebook.com/axelbankhistory

Listen on: Apple Podcasts Spotify

From the publisher: In the nineteenth century, the complex cultural meaning of hair was not only significant, it could affect one's place in society. After the Civil War, hairdressing was a growing profession and the hair industry a mainstay of local, national, and international commerce. In Beyond Vanity, Elizabeth L. Block expands the nascent field of hair studies by restoring women's hair as a cultural site of meaning in the early United States. With a special focus on the places and spaces in which the industry operated, Block argues that the importance of hair has been overlooked due to its ephemerality as well as its misguided association with frivolity and triviality. As Block clarifies, hairdressing was anything but frivolous.

Dr. Block's website can be found at https://www.elizabethlblock.com/

Information on her book can be found at https://mitpress.mit.edu/9780262049054/beyond-vanity/

She is on social media at https://x.com/ElizabethLBlock

Support our show at https://patreon.com/axelbankhistory

**A portion of every contribution is given to a charity for children's literacy**

"Axelbank Reports History and Today" can be found on social media at

https://twitter.com/axelbankhistory

https://instagram.com/axelbankhistory

https://facebook.com/axelbankhistory

Listen on: Apple Podcasts Spotify

If you've ever gone holiday shopping, you have probably gone into a bookshop to find the perfect gift for someone you care about. In this episode, we talk with Evan Friss about his astonishing history of how American bookstores were born, how they grew, and how they've at least tried to survive in a world where almost everything is done online. From chains to indies, he shows how bookstores became a critical place where ideas are exchanged, and how books themselves are marketed and consumed. From Ben Franklin to YOU, he shows how bookstores mark American progress.

Information on his book can be found at https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/679154/the-bookshop-by-evan-friss/

His website is https://evanfriss.com/

He is on social media at https://x.com/EvanFriss

Support our show at https://patreon.com/axelbankhistory

**A portion of every contribution is given to a charity for children's literacy**

"Axelbank Reports History and Today" can be found on social media at

https://twitter.com/axelbankhistory

https://instagram.com/axelbankhistory

https://facebook.com/axelbankhistory

Listen on: Apple Podcasts Spotify

Considering the high profiles of Eleanor Roosevelt, Jackie Kennedy, Betty Ford, Hillary Clinton and Michelle Obama, little is remembered about Pat Nixon. And that, Heath Lee argues, is the way she wanted it. On this episode, biographer Heath Lee discusses her book, "The Mysterious Mrs. Nixon: The Life and Times of Washington's Most Private First Lady," explores how Thelma Catherine Ryan went from a small mining town in the Far West to the most storied home in the world to become America's First Lady. She shows how Pat Nixon influenced her husband, and her country, in ways that are only just beginning to be recognized.

Heath Hardage Lee's website can be found at https://heathleeauthor.com/

She is on social media at https://x.com/HeathLee1

Information on her book can be found at https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250274342/themysteriousmrsnixon

Support our show at https://patreon.com/axelbankhistory

**A portion of every contribution is given to a charity for children's literacy**

"Axelbank Reports History and Today" can be found on social media at

https://twitter.com/axelbankhistory

https://instagram.com/axelbankhistory

https://facebook.com/axelbankhistory

Listen on: Apple Podcasts Spotify

On this episode, we chat with David Greenberg about his epic biography of American icon John Lewis. We explore Lewis' background, early life, congressional career and of course, his march across the Edmund Pettus Bridge. Lewis was beaten, but not broken, and began a one-of-a-kind career fighting for human rights and decency among Americans. Greenberg not only explains what it was like to interview Lewis, but how he found so many new sources during years of research.

Information on his book can be found at https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/John-Lewis/David-Greenberg/9781982142995

David Greenberg's website is https://greenberg.rutgers.edu/

David Greenberg's social media feed can be found at https://x.com/republicofspin

Support our show at https://patreon.com/axelbankhistory

**A portion of every contribution is given to a charity for children's literacy**

"Axelbank Reports History and Today" can be found on social media at

https://twitter.com/axelbankhistory

https://instagram.com/axelbankhistory

https://facebook.com/axelbankhistory

Listen on: Apple Podcasts Spotify