Retrobituaries

The only known photograph of Caroline Weldon (seated), taken in 1915 with her friend Aline Estoppey

Her courage is reflected in her Sioux nickname, “Woman Walking Ahead."

The fearless Polish countess became Britain's first female special agent during World War II.

Brooklyn Museum, Wikimedia Commons // Public Domain

With her husband bedridden, Emily Roebling helped keep the dream of the Brooklyn Bridge alive.

Photo illustration by Lucy Quintanilla, Mental Floss. Trains, iStock. Portrait, Project Gutenberg // Public Domain

He was the self-proclaimed "King of the Hobos."

Courtesy of the George C. Marshall Library, Lexington, Virginia

She cracked some of the biggest espionage cases of the 20th century, but the press preferred to write about her husband.

A pair of Watts-Freeman lobotomy instruments circa 1950

He felt the lobotomy was “only a little more dangerous than an operation to remove an infected tooth."

Haruo Nakajima (second from left) during the filming of Godzilla Raids Again (1955).

He prepared for his role by visiting the zoo.

This learned, opinionated Renaissance monarch caused a sensation throughout Europe.

She may have been the last person to see George Armstrong Custer alive.

She followed the safety protocol, but the mother of two was dead within a year.

He's one of the few people to have a verb—mesmerize—named for him.

Joshua Norton declared himself "Emperor of These United States"—and San Francisco loved him for it.

People didn't think a woman could cross the English Channel both ways—until Florence Chadwick came along.

Changing the shape of the modern woman was just the beginning.

Pictures of disguises in Dosi’s scrapbook via Getty Images

He had at least 17 confirmed disguises, and five fully fleshed-out identities complete with fake identity documents, background stories, and even their own penmanship.

Also known as Bright Eyes, she achieved several important firsts for herself and her people.

She was a smasher of stained-glass ceilings.

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

His books were the real-life X-files.

“If you wish to upset the law that all crows are black, it is enough if you prove that one crow is white. My white crow is Mrs. Piper.”

Julia Margaret Cameron via Wikimedia // Public domain

She was one of the last great thinkers of ancient Alexandria—before she was brutally murdered.

The man who gave Looney Tunes their sound was an eccentric electronic music pioneer.

He was the first to figure out that irritating buzz could be a danger sign.

He led farm workers to victory in California’s landmark Delano grape strike.

Caroline Weldon, 19th Century Indigenous Rights Advocate and Sitting Bull's Secretary

Christine Granville, World War II Special Agent

Emily Warren Roebling, the Woman Who Helped Build the Brooklyn Bridge

Leon Ray Livingston, America's Most Famous Hobo

Elizebeth Friedman, America's Unsung Wartime Codebreaker

Walter Jackson Freeman, Father of the Lobotomy

Haruo Nakajima, the Original Actor Beneath the Godzilla Suit

Queen Christina, Who Ruled as a King

Retrobituaries: Buffalo Calf Road Woman, Custer's Final Foe

Karen Wetterhahn, the Chemist Whose Poisoning Death Changed Safety Standards

Franz Anton Mesmer, the Man Who Invented Hypnotism

Emperor Norton, San Francisco’s Most Beloved 19th-Century Eccentric

Florence Chadwick, the Woman Who Conquered the English Channel

Caresse Crosby, Brazen Inventor of the Brassiere

Giuseppe Dosi, Italy's Famed Detective and Master of Disguise

Native American Writer and Activist Susette La Flesche

Polymath, Mystic, and Saint Hildegard von Bingen

Dan Rice, America’s First Famous Clown

Charles Fort, Chronicler of Unexplained Phenomena

Leonora Piper, Turn-of-the-Century Medium

Hypatia, Scholar and Teacher of Ancient Alexandria

Raymond Scott, Avant-Garde Creator of Classic Cartoon Music

Patrick Manson, the Man Who First Linked Mosquitoes to Disease

Larry Itliong, Leader of One of the Nation’s Most Successful Strikes