HISTORY

12 Pieces of 100-Year-Old Advice for Dealing With Your In-Laws

Use it at your own risk.

A Secret Room Full of Michelangelo's Sketches Will Soon Open in Florence

The room was hidden for hundreds of years before someone discovered a trap door hidden in a closet.

Photo of Billy the Kid and Pat Garrett, Purchased for $10, Could Be Worth Millions

Score!

Cooks of yore had some interesting advice on how to prepare a turkey.

10 Odd Historical Hints for Preparing a Turkey

These tips for cooking a Thanksgiving turkey the 18th- and 19th-century way might seem a little strange today.

The Origins of 10 Thanksgiving Traditions

There's a lot more to Thanksgiving than just the turkey and the Pilgrims.

9 Essential Facts About Carbon

Diamonds aren't called "ice" because of their appearance.

How One Widow's Grief Turned a Small Town Into a Roadside Attraction

"The strangest tomb in America, if not in the world, is that which rest the remains of Lon Dorsa in Nevada, Mo. It is so constructed that the widow can look upon her deceased husband at will."

The Pawpaw: The All-American Fruit the Country Forgot

The custardy fruit was once abundant.

Abraham Lincoln Letter About Slavery Could Fetch $700,000 at Auction

Lincoln wrote the letter in 1858 while preparing for the famous Lincoln-Douglas debates.

The Origin Stories of 25 of Your Favorite Fast Food Chains

Curious how your favorite fast food joint became a mainstay at food courts, strip malls, and truck stops around the country?

Hole Punch History: 131 Years Ago Today, a German Inventor Patented the Essential Office Product

The industrial device has remained relatively unchanged over the years.

Why Do We Wish on the Turkey’s Wishbone?

The tradition comes from Europe, and is thousands of years older than Thanksgiving.

This Radioactive Basement in Chernobyl May Be the Most Dangerous Room on Earth

Standing inside it for an hour is enough to kill you.

Found: A Rare Map of Australia, Created During the 17th Century

Created by renowned Dutch cartographer Joan Blaeu, the map was the first to depict Tasmania and New Zealand.

German Nonprofit Gives $1.1 Million to Restore World’s First Iron Bridge in England

A cultural foundation in Germany has stepped in to repair England’s historic Iron Bridge.

Science Museum, London/Wellcome Images, Wikimedia Commons // CC BY 4.0

Eye Doctors Still Use This 100-Year-Old Test for Color Blindness

They're still the most popular test for color vision deficiencies.

By Photo by Veeder - Library of Congress's Prints and Photographs Division, Public Domain, Wikimedia Commons

15 Empowering Quotes From Elizabeth Cady Stanton

The suffragist, social activist, abolitionist and all around pioneer had a lot to say, and said it well.

3 Fascinating Items in Abraham Lincoln's Newly Released Archives

The Library of Congress has been working for years to put the 20,000 Lincoln-related documents online in high-resolution.

How a London Tragedy Led to the Creation of 911

Connecting to emergency services used to be much less efficient—until a 1935 disaster.

Visit the Temple of a Roman Mystery Cult in a New London Museum

The London Mithraeum recreates what it was like to take part in the rituals of an ancient cult using light, haze, and sound.

The Barnes Mystery: A Twisted Tale of Maids, Murder, and Mistaken Identity

Julia Martha Thomas disappeared—but her maid seemed to be doing great.

Courtesy of the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art

Conservators Discover Grasshopper Embedded in van Gogh Painting

Even famous artists can't escape the realities of painting in nature.

Found: A Long-Lost Copy of John Donne's Fart-Filled Satire

The biting work satirizes Jacobean England, public figures, and religious corruption.

A New Analysis of Chopin's Heart Reveals the Cause of His Death

"I am quite sure we now know what killed Chopin."

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