Explore 3899 History Collections - Atlas Obscura
Places near me Random place

3899 Items Tagged

History

Share
Aldgate Pump.
London, England

Aldgate Pump

This pump on the bad side of Victorian London betrayed a horrifying revelation about the water supply.
One of two confirmed photographs of Billy the Kid (left), playing croquet in New Mexico, 1878.
museums

The Old Man Who Claimed to Be Billy the Kid

Hico, Texas, has embraced 'Brushy Bill' Roberts and his tall tales.
Eric Moreno August 16, 2022
Koganei, Japan

Edo-Tokyo Open Air Architectural Museum

Thirty architectural gems from the 19th- and early 20th-century Tokyo were restored and relocated to this space.
Lulu demonstrating the secret behind her balance test.
victorian

The Victorian Teenage Girl Who Entertained Crowds by Overpowering Men

Lulu Hurst's seemingly supernatural strength made for a compelling night out.
Tony Wolf March 30, 2017
The Peters projection, featuring accurate sizes and stretched-out shapes.
maps

Why Map Historians Are Annoyed With Boston Public Schools

The district started phasing in the Peters Projection, to much fanfare. But is it really better than the Mercator?
Cara Giaimo March 29, 2017
Washington, D.C.

Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens

A lovely aquatic park built by a one-armed Civil War veteran who made a fortune from lotuses.
Lt. Kirk Booth of the U.S. Signal Corps being lifted skyward by a man-carrying kite.
aviation

How a Wild West Showman Brought Man-Lifting Kites to the British Army

In the early 20th century, military daredevils soared high.
Andy Wright March 29, 2017
Permanently Closed
Window Panel with Saint Vincent on the Rack
Sarasota, Florida

Medieval Art Exhibit at the Ringling Museum

The collection of 80+ pieces created between the years 1100 and 1500 is intended to be seen, heard, smelled, touched, and tasted.
1829 map of former Indochina, Vietnam along the east coast of the peninsula. Inset is the 1821 seal of the Nguyen Dynasty.
linguistics

Why 40% of Vietnamese People Have the Same Last Name

Everyone knows a Nguyen, but how did that come to be?
Dan Nosowitz March 28, 2017
Ruth Hale as a university student c. 1900 (she entered college at the age of 13). Hale co-founded the Lucy Stone League to support a woman's right to use her maiden name after marriage.
women

The 1920s Women Who Fought For the Right to Travel Under Their Own Names

Being listed as "and wife" in a joint passport was just not going to fly.
Sandra Knisely March 27, 2017
The project trailer, 1941.
Schoharie, New York

Site of the First Known Free Open-Air Motion Picture Presentation

A tiny village in Upstate New York ushered in the precursor to drive-in movies.
La Habra Heights, California

The Hass Avocado Mother Tree

About 80% of all U.S. avocados are descendants of Rudolph Hass's glorious tree.
Woodlawn Manor stone barn.
Ashton-Sandy Spring, Maryland

Underground Railroad Experience Trail

Walk a trail through a historic Quaker town that outlawed slavery in 1777 and was a major waypoint on the Underground Railroad.
Marker showing the start of the Sullivan Line.
military history

One Sloppy Land Surveyor Almost Caused a War Between Missouri and Iowa

In 1839, the outcome of the "Honey War" hinged on the exact location of the Missouri-Iowa border.
Sarah Laskow March 24, 2017
Simi Valley, California

Ronald Reagan’s Situation Room

The White House Situation Room was taken apart in 2006 and shipped to the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library.
A tuberculosis hut converted into a visitor center at Rock Ledge Ranch
Colorado Springs, Colorado

Tuberculosis Huts

Small teepee-like houses built for TB patients have become sheds, studios, and bus stops around Colorado Springs.
Touro Cemetery gates.
Newport, Rhode Island

Touro Cemetery

The second oldest Jewish graveyard in the U.S. is tiny, with connections to George Washington and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.
Willard facade
Washington, D.C.

Willard Hotel

Legend has it that President Grant’s frequent drinking in the lobby gave rise to the term “lobbyist.”