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The unsanctioned Cannonball Run—an approximately 2,700-mile race from New York to California—involves driving extremely, illegally fast on public roads.
roadside attractions

6 Winding Tales of Epic Road Trips

Including the United States' first coast-to-coast car adventure, its fastest, and one of its absolute worst.
April White August 11, 2023
A tiny, whiskered archaeologist (aka a common black rat) emerges from its nest.
rats

In Colonial Williamsburg, Thieving Rats Save History

Historians owe a debt of gratitude to these furry pilferers.
Amy Crawford August 10, 2023
Arlington, Texas

Caelum Mór

Fears of Satanic worshippers swirl around five Celtic-inspired megaliths.
A bronze plaque with a rooster mounted on an upright granite stone
Little Compton, Rhode Island

Rhode Island Red Monument

A tribute to Rhode Island's state bird, a domesticated chicken breed that dominated the 19th-century poultry industry.
Permanently Closed
Lloyd Harbor, New York

Seminary of the Immaculate Conception

Now a retreat center for the faithful, it once provided training for clergy—but it began as a farm owned by a famed financier and his opera singer wife, who built a surprise in the backyard.
This vintage map, published in 1864 by H.H. Lloyd of New York, reflects anti-secession sentiment by taking secession to an extreme conclusion.
maps

A Map of the 'Disunited States' Shows the Fears of Civil War–Era America

A nation divided into not two—but four—took the idea of secession to an extreme.
Frank Jacobs August 4, 2023
Richmond, Virginia

Monumental Church

A church now sits over the site of one of the worst urban disasters of early 19th-century America.
A jumping spider in Manila, Philippines.
meteorites

Wonder Is Everywhere: Spider Wrestling, the Return of the Giant Peanut, and More from Around the Web

Get a peek into what we’re obsessed with right now.
April White August 4, 2023
The use of the letter x as a mathematical unknown is a relatively modern convention. Algebra has been around for a lot longer.
mathematics

Why Is 'X' Such a Big Deal?

From Twitter's rebranding to algebra, this single letter has an uncommon amount of...X factor. A historian of mathematics gets to the root of it.
Peter Schumer August 4, 2023
islands

Podcast: Jacko Steps

A historic hiding place used by people escaping enslavement is a testament to a struggle for freedom.
The Podcast Team August 3, 2023
skulls

Podcast: Dmanisi

An archaeological site in Georgia challenges what we think we know about the deep human past.
The Podcast Team August 2, 2023
Orca pods can develop their own cultures that result in distinctive behaviors, including cooperation with humans.
museums

The Killer Whales of Eden and the 'Law of the Tongue'

Orcas and humans once hunted together in southeastern Australia, until their millennia-old relationship broke down.
Roxanne Hoorn October 11, 2023
Burkhan Khaldun, Genghis Khan’s sacred mountain, in northeastern Mongolia, may hold his burial site.
maps

Mongolia’s 'Forbidden Zone' Is Guarding an 800-Year-Old Secret

Is the vast Khan Khentii Strictly Protected Area the final resting place of Genghis Khan?
Frank Jacobs July 28, 2023
Bessans, France

Mont Cenis

From Carthage's Hannibal to riders of the Tour de France, many have crossed this scenic route through the Alps.
Barbie cakes are a birthday classic.
dolls

Before Barbie and Barbie Cakes, There Was Dolly and Dolly Varden Cakes

These toy-filled birthday cakes have an intriguing connection to both Charles Dickens and Australia.
Cathleen Freedman July 20, 2023
A bronze fast of a female face atop a pedestal with a lighthouse in the background
New York, New York

Girl Puzzle Monument

An art installation commemorates journalist Nellie Bly's undercover reporting inside a New York asylum.
The rugged and infamous terrain of the Darién Gap as seen from the Pacific, off the coast of Panama.
roads

Podcast: Darién Gap

An infamous break in the Pan-American Highway has been in and out the news for more than 100 years.
The Podcast Team July 19, 2023
Ellsworth, Maine

Big Chicken Barn

It's a repurposed treasure trove of history, located just an hour away from Acadia National Park.