On this episode of Our American Stories, The War of 1812 nearly broke the young United States apart. Washington and the White House burned, New England leaders talked openly of secession, and the future of the country looked uncertain at best. In the 19th episode of our ongoing Story of Us, Story of America series, historian and Land of Hope author Bill McClay shares how a forgotten war with no clear victor helped forge a new national identity and set the United States on the path toward industrial growth, westward expansion, and the rise of Andrew Jackson.

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