250 to 250: 44. Frances Perkins, Narrated by Cameron Katz

Heather Cox Richardson and 250 to 250: Frances Perkins, Narrated by Cameron Katz

Cameron Katz is the Head of Content + Partnerships at Made By Us, the national network connecting young adults to history and civic life through more than 750 museums, historic sites, libraries, and archives. Katz honors Frances Perkins, the labor secretary whose response to the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire led to Social Security, the minimum wage, and the forty-hour work week.

In 1911, Frances Perkins saw the tragic Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire.

• Many workers died in the fire.
• Perkins wanted to make workplaces safer.
• She worked for shorter work hours and better pay.
• She also worked to improve factory safety.

In 1933, President Franklin D. Roosevelt appointed her as Secretary of Labor.

• She became the first woman to serve in a U.S. president's Cabinet.
• Perkins helped create the Social Security Act of 1935.
• She also helped pass the Fair Labor Standards Act in 1938.
• The law created a minimum wage, a 40-hour workweek, and banned most child labor.
• Frances Perkins believed everyone should work to improve life for others.
• Today, she is remembered as a leader who helped protect American workers.

POP Interview and Civics Quiz:

• N-400 Part 7:01. When and where have you worked, been self-employed, been unemployed, or studied?
• USCIS 100:33. / 128:43. Who signs bills to become laws?
• USCIS 100:35. / 128:47. What does the President’s Cabinet do?
• USCIS 100:36. / 128:48. What are two Cabinet-level positions?

Family Fun:

• Americans Who Tell The Truth: Frances Perkins
• Delaware: Careers Coloring and Activity Book
• Frances Perkins Center: Resources | Frances and Faith
• NPS: Frances Perkins National Monument
• Rochester Labor: Our Community of Workers coloring book | workbook and more resources
• Women's History Museum: Frances Perkins: The Woman Behind the Weekend, Minimum Wage, and Safer Working Conditions | New Deal lesson plan
• Zinn Education Project: March 4, 1933: Frances Perkins First Woman to Serve in U.S. Cabinet

250 to 250: 43. Jacob Riis, Narrated by Alex Edgar

 

Heather Cox Richardson and 250 to 250: Jacob Riis, Narrated by Alex Edgar

Alex Edgar is the Youth Engagement Manager at Made By Us, where he leads Youth250, the national effort to include youth voices in America’s past, present and future story. Edgar profiles Jacob Riis, the immigrant journalist and photographer whose unflinching images of New York's tenements pioneered the use of photography for social reform.

Jacob Riis was born in Denmark in 1849.

• He came to the United States in 1870.
• Riis became a journalist, photographer, and social reformer.
• He wrote about poor neighborhoods in New York City.
• Many people living there were immigrants.
• Riis used photographs to show difficult living conditions.
• His famous book is How the Other Half Lives.
• The book helped Americans understand the lives of poor immigrant families.
• Riis wanted better housing and safer living conditions.
• His work inspired many people to support reforms.
• Theodore Roosevelt admired Jacob Riis and his work.
• Today, Jacob Riis is remembered for helping improve the lives of many immigrants and poor families.

POP Interview and Civics Quiz:

• N-400 Part 10:01. Is your income less than or equal to 400% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines?
• USCIS 100:11. / 128.12. What is the economic system of the United States?
• USCIS 100:58. / 128.73. What is one reason colonists came to America?

Family Fun:

• American YAWP: How the Other Half Lived: Photographs of Jacob Riis
• Chromopia: Vintage Camera Mandala Lens World Photography Day Coloring Page
• History for Humans: How the Other Half Lived: Jacob Riis, Immigration & Urbanization in the Gilded Age 
• ICP: Jacob Riis photo gallery
• LOC: Jacob Riis: Revealing “How the Other Half Lives”
• MCNY: Jacob Riis album
• NPS: Jacob Riis Park | Lower East Side Tenement Museum
• Tenement Musuem: Today’s Other Half  | Lesson Plans | Digital Exhibits
• USCIS: Form N-400, Application for Naturalization Filing Fees Factsheet

250 to 250: 42. Emily Roebling’s Brooklyn Bridge, Narrated by Tracey Enerson Wood

Heather Cox Richardson and 250 to 250: Emily Roebling’s Brooklyn Bridge, Narrated by Tracey Enerson Wood

Tracey Enerson Wood is a celebrated bestselling author known for bringing the forgotten history of women to light. In her novel The Engineer's Wife, she tells the true story of Emily Warren Roebling, who completed the Brooklyn Bridge despite tremendous obstacles.

Emily Warren Roebling helped build the Brooklyn Bridge.

• In 1870, her husband, Washington Roebling, became very ill.
• Emily took over many of his responsibilities.
• She worked with engineers, workers, and government leaders.
• She helped solve problems and manage the project.
• The bridge took more than 10 years to complete.
• It became the world's first steel-wire suspension bridge.
• Emily played an important part in building the bridge.
• When the bridge opened in 1883, she was the first person to cross it.
• She carried a rooster as a symbol of good luck.
• Today, Emily Warren Roebling is remembered for her leadership and determination.

POP Reading and Writing practice:

Note: We have received several reports that USCIS are using compound/complex sentences.  

• What city and state have the most people?
• New York City and California state have the most people in the United States.
• Where do many citizens live?
• Many citizens live in California and New York City.
• What was the first U.S. capital and what is it now*?
• New York City was the first U.S. capital and now it is Washington D.C.
• * "now" is not on the Reading or Writing Vocabulary list but appears 7 times on the 100 Civics Questions and 6 times on the 128 Civic Questions

Family Fun:

• A Mighty Girl: Emily Warren Roebling: The Woman Who Saved The Brooklyn Bridge
• Brooklyn Bridge Park: Emily Warren Roebling Plaza | Brooklyn Bridge coloring page
• ASCE: Emily Warren Roebling
• Instructables: Toothpick Bridge Project
• Monday Mandala: Brooklyn Bridge coloring page
• Mrs Jenny Cox: Emily Warren Roebling and Toothpick Bridges
• NY Historical Society: Emily Warren Roebling
• The Glinda Factor: Emily Warren Roebling (and timeline)

250 to 250: 41. Obergefell v. Hodges, Narrated by Jim Obergefell

Heather Cox Richardson and 250 to 250: Obergefell v. Hodges, Narrated by Jim Obergefell

Jim Obergefell is a leading LBGTQ+ activist, speaker, producer, author, and wine entrepreneur. Here he stories the 2015 Obergefell v. Hodges Supreme Court case, which guaranteed the marriage rights of same-sex couples across the United States.

In 2015, the Obergefell v. Hodges case changed U.S. law.

• The Supreme Court of the United States ruled that same-sex couples have the right to marry.
• All states must recognize same-sex marriages.
• The Court based its decision on the 14th Amendment (due process / equal protection).

Jim Obergefell married his partner, John Arthur.  

• They got married in Maryland, but they lived in Ohio.
• Ohio did not recognize their marriage.
• John Arthur was very sick and wanted to be recognized as a married man.
• Jim Obergefell filed a lawsuit.
• The court ruled in their favor.
• John Arthur's Ohio death certificate listed him as married.

The Supreme Court later upheld the right of same-sex couples to marry.

Since 2015, hundreds of thousands of same-sex couples have married in the United States.

POP Interview and Civics Quiz:

• N-400 Part 5:01 What is your current marital status?
• USCIS 100:02. What does the Constitution do?
• USCIS 100:37. / 128:51. What does the judicial branch do?
• USCIS 128:50. What is one part of the judicial branch?

Family Fun

• ACLU: Activity Book
• GLAAD: When Was Gay Marriage Legalized in the US?
• ILRC: Family-Based Petitions for LGBTQ Couples: Considerations When Documenting a Bona Fide Marriage (2020) | 2013 factsheet
• NCC: Obergefell v. Hodges (2015) case | lesson plan
• PBS: Timeline of Same-Sex Marriage Laws | Wiki timeline
• Retro Report: How the Supreme Court Ruling in Obergefell v. Hodges Legalized Same-Sex Marriage
• Teaching American History: Obergefell v. Hodges
• USCIS Policy Manual: Spouses: Same-Sex Marriages footnote 14 | footnote 15
• VOA Learning English: US Supreme Court Rules Same-Sex Marriage Is Legal in 2015 | video
• VOX: The march of marriage equality

250 to 250: 40. Boundary Waters, Narrated by Senator Tina Smith

 

Heather Cox Richardson and 250 to 250: Boundary Waters, Narrated by Senator Tina Smith

Senator Tina Smith is a leading advocate for the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW) in northern Minnesota. Last year, Senator Smith introduced the Boundary Waters Wilderness Protection Act to put permanent protections in place for the area, the first bill of its kind since 1978.

In 1907, Theodore Roosevelt helped protect the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness.

• The Boundary Waters is on the border between Minnesota and Canada.
• It has many forests, lakes, rivers, and wildlife.
• People often travel there by canoe.
• The area is the ancestral homeland of the Anishinaabe peoples (Chippewa, Ojibwe).
• It was also used by French Canadian fur traders.

About 150,000 people visit the Boundary Waters each year.

• In 2026, a company proposed building a copper mine near the area.
• Many people worried the copper mine could pollute the water.
• Theodore Roosevelt's family spoke out with others to protect the Boundary Waters.
• They asked Congress to keep this wilderness safe.
• The Boundary Waters is one of America's most important natural places.

POP Interview and Civics Quiz:

• USCIS PM-602-0188: How do you volunteer or help your community?
• USCIS 100:92. Name one state that borders Canada.
• USCIS 100:87. / 128:117.  Name one American Indian tribe in the United States.
• USCIS 128: 69. What are two examples of civic participation in the United States?

Family Fun:

• GLIFWC: Ojibwe Treaty Rights—Connections to Land & Water
• NPS: Grand Portage Nation Monument Junior Ranger booklet
• NYTimes: Teddy Roosevelt’s Family Urges G.O.P. to Protect Public Lands
• Our Public Lands and Waters: Theodore Roosevelt's Descendants Join Boundary Waters Fight
• Public Interest Network: Boundary Waters coloring page
• Save the Boundary Waters: Kids for the Boundary Waters
• Wilderness News: Caribou Lake, Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness coloring pages
• USDA Forest Service: Boundary Waters

250 to 250: 39. Civilian Conservation Corps, Narrated by Harrison Ford

 

Heather Cox Richardson and 250 to 250: Civilian Conservation Corps, Narrated by Harrison Ford

Harrison Ford is an award-winning actor whose iconic performances across more than six decades have solidified him as a pillar of American cinema. Ford looks back at the Civilian Conservation Corps, a New Deal program that put thousands of unemployed men to work improving America’s parks and natural lands.  

Franklin D. Roosevelt created the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC).

• During the Great Depression (1929-1939), many people did not have jobs.
• The CCC gave jobs to thousands of unemployed young men.
• Workers lived in camps across the country.
• They built trails, cabins, and park buildings.
• They planted millions of trees.
• They helped protect forests, parks, and other natural areas.
• They worked to stop soil erosion and remove dead trees.
• Many workers learned new job skills.
• The CCC helped both workers and the environment.

Later, Lyndon B. Johnson praised the CCC as an important government program.

• He said: ""The CCC became a shining example of what government can do for the people."
• Today, the CCC is remembered as one of the most successful New Deal programs.

POP Interview and Civics Quiz:

• N-400 Part 7:01. Where have you worked or attended school in the last 5 years?
• 100:80. / 128.85. Who was President during the Great Depression and World War II? 
• 128:70.   What is one way Americans can serve their country?

Family Fun

• ArcGIS Story Maps: New Deal Resident Camps for Unemployed Women
• CFWVConnect: Career Exploration coloring book
• Civilian Conservation Corps: List of CCC Sites | Museums
• Corps Network: CCC History (influence on Job Corps, state initiatives, and beyond)
• Living New Deal: Reimagined CCC:Youth Programs to Combat Climate Change
• NPS: The Civilian Conservation Corps | CCC Time Machine lesson plan
• NPCA: How the CCC’s Work Lives On in National Parks
• SC State Parks: She She She camps during the Great Depression
• USDA: Forest Service: Color the Outdoors
• uscitizenpod: Civilian Conservation Corps poster coloring page

250 to 250: 38. Willa Cather, Narrated by Rebecca Solnit

 

Heather Cox Richardson and 250 to 250: Willa Cather, Narrated by Rebecca Solnit 

Rebecca Solnit is a celebrated American essayist, author, historian, and activist known for her influential works on feminism, social change, and resilience as shown through Hope in the Dark: Untold Histories, Wild Possibilities. Solnit speaks about Willa Cather, the Nebraskan novelist who captured the romance and struggle of immigrants in the Midwest.

Willa Cather was born in Virginia in 1873.

• As a child, she moved with her family to Nebraska.
• Life on the Great Plains inspired many of her stories.
• She wrote about immigrants building new lives in America.
• She showed how hard people worked to farm the land.
• Her stories described the beauty of the American prairie.
• She wrote about the hopes and challenges of pioneer families.
• One of her best-known books is My Ántonia.
• Her writing helped readers understand life in the American West.
• Willa Cather is remembered as one of America's great writers.

POP Interview and Civics Quiz:

• N-400 Part 2:07. If you are a lawful permanent resident, what date did you become a lawful permanent resident?
• USCIS 100:09. What are two rights in the Declaration of Independence?
• USCIS 128:73. The colonists came to America for many reasons. Name one.

Family Fun:

• Crayola: Nebraska
• Nebraska: marker | NYer article
• Nebraska Farm Bureau: Coloring Pages
• Nebraska Public Radio: Yours, Willa Cather
• US Mint: Nebraska Quarter coloring page
• Visit the Capitol: Willa Cather statue
• Willa Cather Center: Novels (lesson plans) | timeline
• Zinn Project: Willa Cather

250 to 250: 37. Jonas Salk, Narrated by Peter Salk

 

 

Heather Cox Richardson and 250 to 250: Jonas Salk, Narrated by Peter Salk

Dr. Peter L. Salk is an American physician, professor, and public health advocate. Peter previously served as president of the Jonas Salk Legacy Foundation, an organization dedicated to preserving and extending the contributions of his father, Dr. Jonas Salk. He shares how a team of researchers and millions of everyday Americans came together to defeat polio.

In the early 1900s, polio was a serious disease in the United States.

• Polio made many children very sick.
• Some children could not walk, and some died.
• Parents feared polio every year.

Jonas Salk and his team developed a vaccine against polio.

• In 1955, the vaccine was shown to be safe and effective.
• About 1.8 million children took part in the vaccine study.
• After the vaccine was introduced, polio cases dropped quickly.
• Today, polio is no longer a major threat in the United States because children are vaccinated.
• Millions of Americans donated money to the March of Dimes to support the research.
• Americans worked together to fight the disease.
• The polio vaccine helped save millions of lives.

POP Interview and Civics Quiz:

• N-400 Part 6:01: How many children do you have under the age of 18?
• USCIS 100:53.  What is one promise you make when you become a United States citizen?
• USCIS 128:118. Name one example of an American innovation.

Family Fun:

• Crayola: Jonas Salk coloring page
• Evanston Round Table: To ‘the children of the world’: Glenna Goodacre’s sculpture celebrates Rotary’s battle against polio
• End Polio: resources | coloring pages
• NMAH: Preventing Polio
• NPS: A Disability Christmas Carol
• PBS American Experience: The Polio Crusade full video | short lessons
• Smithsonian Channel: President Roosevelt's War on Polio
• Smithsonian Magazine: America at 250: The Revolutionary Spark: When the Fear of Polio Gripped the World, Jonas Salk’s Determination Led to a Liberating Medical Breakthrough
• TED-ed: The real reason polio is so dangerous

Naturalization Ceremony at Mount Vernon 2026

 

George Washington's Mount Vernon: Naturalization Ceremony at Mount Vernon 2026

On the 250th anniversary of American Independence we welcomed 150 of our newest citizens from 50 countries in a naturalization ceremony on the historic bowling green at George Washington’s Mount Vernon.

• Welcome and Opening Remarks: (0:00 - 5:52)
• Introduction of Guests: (6:04 - 7:35)
• National Anthem: (7:43 - 8:54)
• Roll Call of Countries: (9:15 - 11:27)
• Administration of the Oath of Allegiance: (12:16 - 14:25)
• Pledge of Allegiance: (15:03 - 16:34)
• Address by Dr. Douglas Bradburn: (16:40 - 25:05)
• Address by George Washington (Portrayal): (25:19 - 28:57)
• Closing Remarks and Instructions: (28:58 - 31:04)
• God Bless America: (31:15 - 32:04)

Also watch C-Span: Judge at Naturalization Ceremony: "Please know, you are all welcome."

Judge Elizabeth K. Dillon at Naturalization Ceremony at Monticello: 

Please know, you are all welcome. 
Some of you may have come the the United States for a better life, some for a job, some for family, some for education, some for love and some for freedom. 
Some of you may have lived here for a lifetime and others may have arrived more recently. Some may have come from free countries where you transition was one of choice and others may have risked your lives to flee a country where there is no freedom and no choice. 
Please know, you are all welcome.

More Ceremonies:

• King 5 Seattle: 250 people sworn in as American citizens at Seattle Center July 4
• Virginia Museum of History & Culture: July 4th Naturalization Ceremony | WTVR