Valerie DeBenedette

Valerie DeBenedette is a freelance writer who lives in New York State with a small tan dog and a big red cat. She most often writes about health and medicine and knits quite frequently.

How an Early Female Travel Writer Became an Immunization Pioneer

Lady Mary Wortley Montagu—British aristocrat, feminist, and writer—was largely responsible for the adoption of inoculation against smallpox in England.... READ ON

Sushruta, Ancient Indian Surgeon and Father of the Nose Job

He was practicing plastic surgery thousands of years before European surgeons were even washing their hands.... READ ON

Virginia Apgar, the Woman Whose Name Saves Newborns

The Apgar test has rescued countless infants, but people are often surprised to discover Virginia Apgar was a real person.... READ ON

15 Wonderful Things You Might Not Know About L. Frank Baum

In honor of the author's birthday, here are 15 facts about the actual man behind the curtain.... READ ON

St. Guinefort, the Dog Venerated as a Saint

According to legend, Guinefort protected a baby he was later unjustly accused of murdering.... READ ON

The 11 Sweetest Taffy Shops to Hit This Summer

If you're hitting a boardwalk or beach, you'd better know where the nearest taffy shop is.... READ ON

Saint Gertrude of Nivelles: The Patron Saint of Cats (More or Less)

Patrick isn't the only saint celebrated on March 17.... READ ON

Retrobituaries: Dan Rice, America’s First Famous Clown

Think Robin Williams at his fastest and Jon Stewart at his most political, and you have Dan Rice.... READ ON

Show & Tell: Obstetrical Forceps, an Invention Kept Secret for More Than a Century

In the 1600s, the family who invented forceps for use in childbirth surrounded them in secrecy.... READ ON

Alice Guy-Blaché, Forgotten Film Pioneer

She made hundreds of movies and owned and operated her own studio. So why has she been all but ignored?... READ ON

Retrobituaries: Fanny Crosby, America’s Greatest Hymn Writer

Fanny Crosby—poet, public speaker, activist—wrote so many hymns that publishers had to give her dozens of pseudonyms.... READ ON

11 Overlooked Fruits and Veggies To Try on the Grill this Year

Throw some eggplant and watermelon on the grill next to those burgers and brats.... READ ON

The 16-Year-Old Revolutionary Who Outrode Paul Revere

Sybil Ludington's ride through the New York countryside to rouse the troops was longer and more difficult than Paul Revere's.... READ ON

15 Things You Might Not Know About Thomas Hart Benton

The American muralist's 127th birthday is today!... READ ON

Annie Oakley Once Took Hearst Newspapers to Court for Reporting a False Cocaine Addiction

The biggest fight of Annie Oakley’s life was not in the Old West—it was in courtrooms across the country.... READ ON

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