15 Twitter Accounts for History Buffs

We’ve covered word nerds; now, follow a few twitter accounts that will satisfy your historical curiosity.

1. Tweets of Old

These tweets, which contain actual lines from old newspapers, are very entertaining—and tell us a lot about the people of yesteryear.

A kitten with two heads was born in a Charles street stable this week. The little monstrosity was perfect in all other particulars. MA1905
— R.L. Ripples (@TweetsofOld) July 15, 2014

2. John Quincy Adams

If you've ever wanted to read our sixth President's diary, this Twitter account is for you.

7/8/1814: IV:30. Sudden Summer heat. I dined at table d'hote at one. My Colleagues together at 4. Evening walk alone.
— John Quincy Adams (@JQAdams_MHS) July 8, 2014

3. Girls Own Advice

These tweets are, according to the bio, "genuine replies from 1880s and 1890s problem pages." Some are wise. Some are weird. Some are enough to make us glad we live in a modern day and age.

You have unintentionally been guilty of a somewhat forward action in shaking hands with the "young gentleman" pic.twitter.com/SpbI8ovXyA
— Girls' Own advice (@GirlsOwn) July 9, 2014

4. Slate Vault

The official Twitter account of Slate's The Vault Blog is interesting in its own right.

Instructions for avoiding cholera, Suffolk, UK, 1832 http://t.co/FqClrRCqZm via @britishlibrary pic.twitter.com/yafn4dqahb
— Slate Vault (@SlateVault) July 12, 2014

5. Weird History

Exactly what it sounds like, and quite delightful. The tweeter even makes a point to publish old articles featuring names that are famous today.

6. Retronaut

Excellent vintage photos!

7. British Pathé

Tweets featuring videos from the now-defunct Pathé News.

Wedding at the world's smallest church: http://t.co/pS1E8g72OU
— British Pathé (@BritishPathe) June 11, 2014

8. Public Domain Review

Fascinating findings from videos and documents in the public domain.

Patent for a Diving Suit (1881) http://t.co/Fh6Fm1djjy pic.twitter.com/GfvOf3IeXX
— Public Domain Review (@PublicDomainRev) June 24, 2014

9. Michael Beschloss

Fun facts from a presidential historian.

Fort Stevens DC, where Lincoln faced Confederate fire 150 years ago--was allegedly told, "Get down, you fool!" #LOC pic.twitter.com/gsh0O8tr57
— Michael Beschloss (@BeschlossDC) July 12, 2014

10. DigiVictorian

This account, which covers Victorian Popular Culture, is run by Bob Nicholson, a lecturer at Edgehill University in the UK.

"A musical enthusiast...is so fond of 'dwelling on a note' that he has taken up his residence in A flat." (1891) #VictorianJoke *groan*
— Dr Bob Nicholson (@DigiVictorian) July 14, 2014

11. Today in History

You could visit Wikipedia ... or you could follow this Twitter account.

1985: Tech - The Nintendo Entertainment System, the best-selling game console of its time, was released in Japan. #history
— Today In History (@Yesterday_Today) July 16, 2014

12. NASA History

Space history!

#Apollo11 crew members arrive at @NASAKennedy #today in 1969 to prepare for mission. Here's @TheRealBuzz pic.twitter.com/d4C8dVlvMr
— NASA History Office (@NASAhistory) July 9, 2014

13. SI Vault

Sports history!

It's singer Sting with pro wrestler Sting: pic.twitter.com/6iJPKIWebY
— SI Vault (@si_vault) June 20, 2014

14. Today’s Document

One excellent historical document a day, direct from the National Archives.

"…I have resolved…to throw away my first fire…" #AlexanderHamilton's fateful decision in his duel w/Aaron Burr #tdih: http://t.co/YJKsLxtXeP
— Today's Document (@TodaysDocument) July 11, 2014

15. Papers of GW

Parts of letters and other tidbits from our first president's papers.

3/31/1776 to J. Washington: I believe I may affirm that no Man ever commanded [an Army] under more difficult Circumstances than I have done
— Washington Papers (@WashPapers) March 31, 2014

What history-obsessed Twitter accounts do you follow? We'll do a follow-up with some of your favorites that we didn't mention here.