3899 Items Tagged

History

Stephen Hawking's personal <I>The Simpsons</i> figurine.

For Sale: Proof That Legendary Scientists Were Real People, Too

Letters and trinkets show off the personal sides of Einstein, Hawking, and Schrödinger.

Matthew Taub July 1, 2020

The clothing of the statue suggests its Isiac origin.

Madama Lucrezia

This statue is the only female representation of Rome's "talking statues."

Ida J. Howard was born in 1857, before the Civil War began.

A New Archive Digitizes More Than a Century of Black American Funeral Programs

A chronicle of lives lived from before the Civil War to today.

Matthew Taub June 24, 2020

This cannon re-enactment was put on for the annual tradition of European Heritage Days.

The French City Where a Midday Firework Marks the Start of Lunch

Philippe Arnello is the custodian of the daily cannon—a 150-year-old tradition in the coastal city of Nice.

Chrissie McClatchie June 22, 2020

8 Great Gargoyles and Grotesques to Both Terrify and Amuse

Not all the church-clinging beasties are so bad.

Isaac Schultz June 18, 2020

Ponte delle Tette

In the past, Renaissance sex workers were encouraged to entice customers on this bridge.

Birdsboro, Pennsylvania

Daniel Boone Homestead

Where the famed frontiersman was born, raised, and survived Quaker intrigue

A "glorious, Monet-style chaos" has taken root at the University of Cambridge's King's College Chapel.

A Stately English Lawn Is Going Wild In the Name of Biodiversity

"If there are ways to manage our landscapes that can make them more exciting for all the insects and mammals, then why not do it?”

Luna Shyr June 15, 2020

This 2008 stamp celebrated the 130-year anniversary of the arbitration by President Hayes.

Rutherford B. Hayes Is More Famous in Paraguay Than in the U.S.

The 19th U.S. President lends his name to a city, region, school, and annual festival.

Mark Johanson June 11, 2020

Fort Douglas Post Cemetery, in Salt Lake City, holds the graves of 20 German prisoners of war from World War II.

Three Headstones in American Military Cemeteries Bear Swastikas

But not for much longer.

Matthew Taub June 10, 2020

John Muir's Giant Sequoia.

Martinez, California

John Muir's Giant Sequoia

A sparse, solitary sequoia still stands as a living tribute to the famous conservationist who planted it—but it's dying.

Cities such as San Francisco are full of history—but there's opportunities for discovery everywhere.

How to Dig Into the History of Your City, Town, or Neighborhood

Even a short local walk can hold countless stories.

Lauren Vespoli June 9, 2020

Meet the Jackson Town Council of 1920-23, aka the "petticoat rulers": (from left) Mae Deloney, Rose Crabtree, Mayor Grace Miller, Faustina Haight, Genevieve Van Vleck.

Remembering When Women Ruled a Wild West Town

In 1920 the "bad-man rendezvous" of Jackson, Wyoming, elected an all-female government. Will it be another hundred years till that happens again?

Amelia Mularz June 5, 2020

Theresa McCulla of the American Brewing History Initiative with a collection of historic beer-advertisement posters at the Smithsonian National Museum of American History in 2018.

How a Beer Historian Is Documenting COVID-19's Impact on Brewing

The biggest blow to beer since Prohibition.

Courtney Iseman June 5, 2020

The metal-clad men of the Middle Ages would scale ladders, among other exercises, to stay fit.

To Work Out Like a Knight, Try Donning Armor and Extolling Virtue

Being fit and chivalric is as much a mental state as a physical one.

Isaac Schultz June 5, 2020

The monument, pictured here in August 2017, was once partly covered by wood. It has since been dismantled altogether.

How an Infamous Confederate Obelisk Finally Came Down

The monument in Birmingham, Alabama, became a flashpoint in the fight for racial justice.

Jessica Leigh Hester June 5, 2020

<em>Karakuri</em> dolls have been an ornate element of Japanese craftsmanship since the Edo period.

What It’s Like to Build a Traditional Japanese Automaton From Scratch

All you need is a good imagination. And a whole lot of patience.

Isaac Schultz June 4, 2020

Ingredients that underpin the cuisine include pitseed goosefoot (left), a type of physalis known as ground cherries, among other names (center), and sunflowers pressed into oil (right).

The Cherokee Chefs Bringing Back North America’s Lost Cuisine

Researching traditional foods led them to the revelations of an archaeological dig in Kentucky.

Eric J. Wallace June 4, 2020