American History

Some of the 3,000 commemorative letters sent in the first Postal Department rocket mail are still around. Some made it into the National Postal Museum's collection.

Mail Delivery By Rocket Never Took Off

Although the Postmaster General was on board with the idea of missile mail, the Navy was ultimately less interested

Mobster Frank Costello testifying before the Kefauver Committee.

How Watching Congressional Hearings Became an American Pastime

Decades before Watergate, mobsters helped turn hearings into must-see television

Niagara Falls is beautiful, but it can also be destructive.

When the Niagara River Crushed a Power Plant

A cascade of rock slides left Schoellkopf Power Station's three generators in ruins and killed one worker

Before St. Martin's living digestive system was studied, doctors knew what the digestive system looked like but not how it looked or behaved while working.

This Man's Gunshot Wound Gave Scientists a Window Into Digestion

The relationship between St. Martin and the doctor who experimented on him was ethically dubious at best

Paratroopers from the 1st Allied Airborne land in Holland during Operations Market Garden, September 1944.

Meet the Daredevil Parachutist Who Tested the First Nylon Parachute 75 Years Ago

Adeline Gray was just 24, but she was already an experienced parachutist and a trained pilot

A View in Louisburg in North America

When Nova Scotia Almost Joined the American Revolution

New England expats felt a strong allegiance to the struggles felt by their American friends to the south

Meet Pedro the “Voder,” the First Electronic Machine to Talk

Pedro was an experiment in reproducing speech electronically, but took on a kind of life of its own

Although ketchup has roots in Southeast Asia, tomato ketchup may be an American original.

There's Something Fishy About the Ketchup You Put On Your Burgers

The red stuff that Americans eat on their French Fries doesn't look much like the 'kôechiap' it's based on

GIFs began as still images in the early days of the Internet before becoming the animated loops that are seen everywhere now.

A Brief History of the GIF, From Early Internet Innovation to Ubiquitous Relic

How an image format changed the way we communicate

Why Does Every American Graduation Play ‘Pomp and Circumstance’?

The song was written for a British king’s coronation and its name is a Shakespeare reference. What gives?

"The Drunkard's Progress" shows how temperance advocates wanted to position alcohol consumption: as a choice leading, inevitably, to ruin and death.

Why Was Maine the First State to Try Prohibition?

The groundbreaking "Maine law" laid the groundwork for other states to experiment with temperance laws

Recent research found that fully one third of humanity can't see the Milky Way because of light pollution

Is Light Pollution Really Pollution?

As countries grow richer, light pollution gets worse–but some are fighting to change that

A McDonald’s in Tangiers, Morocco. The sign is in Arabic.

What Do They Call a Quarter Pounder With Cheese in Casablanca?

McDonalds has been international for 50 years now... and its restaurants have learned how to blend in to the local scene

President Truman receives a birthday cake in the Oval Office in 1951. Six years earlier, his birthday coincided with V-E Day.

No U.S. President Has Ever Died in May and Other Weird Trivia About Presidential Lives

Presidential lives are scrutinized for meaning, even when none is readily apparent

The historical marker in Enterprise, Alabama describing the significance of the statue.

Why an Alabama Town Has a Monument Honoring the Most Destructive Pest in American History

The boll weevil decimated the South's cotton industry, but the city of Enterprise found prosperity instead

The flag of North Carolina includes the dates traditionally associated with the Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence and the 1776 Declaration of Independence.

The First Declaration of Independence Drafted in the 13 Colonies Was (Probably) a Hoax

Although some are still very invested in the Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence, the scholarly community maintains it was never real

“We’ve been taxing work, output and income and subsidizing non-work, leisure and unemployment. The consequences are obvious! To Don Rumsfeld,” Arthur Laffer wrote around the graph, signing and dating his work as well.

The Restaurant Doodle That Launched a Political Movement

How one economist’s graph on a napkin reshaped the Republican Party and upended tax policy

The Maillard Reaction's best-known application is in tasty, tasty food.

Why Food Smells So Good When It’s Browning

A complex chemical reaction called the Maillard Reaction is responsible

Immigrants arriving at Ellis Island with their possessions in 1907.

The Centuries-Long Squabble Over Who Owns Ellis Island

It's actually the federal government, but don't tell New York or New Jersey

Bill Robinson as photographed by George Hurrell in 1935.

Three Ways Bill "Bojangles" Robinson Changed Dance Forever

Robinson worked throughout his career to make life better for black performers

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