40 Of America's Most Enduring Icons
American Icons
America lacks no shortage of icons. People from every walk of life, every industry, and every historical era have had enormous impacts on American culture and how America is perceived in the world. Which American icons would make your list? Here are the ones that made ours.
John Dillinger
John Dillinger became a folk hero in the midst of the Great Depression. Disillusioned with banks and the government, Americans embraced the exploits of Dillinger, who carried out a series of high-profile crimes—including bank robberies and prison escapes—between 1933 and 1934.
Neil Armstrong
Neil Armstrong instantly became a global icon when he stepped onto the moon’s surface on July 20, 1969. Armstrong’s words at that moment have become almost as iconic as the man himself: "That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind”.
Meriwether Lewis and William Clark
From May 1804 to September 1806, Captain Meriwether Lewis and Second Lieutenant William Clark led a team of US Army and civilian volunteers west from Illinois to the Pacific Ocean and back again. Their journey sparked the imaginations of thousands of Americans who would later move west.
Sacagawea
Sacagawea was only about 14 years old, in a non-consensual marriage with a caucasian trapper, and pregnant with her first child when she began working with the Lewis and Clark Expedition. Instrumental in the expedition's success, she later became a symbol of women's worth and independence.
