The True Story Of How Britain Destroyed Their Files On Colonialism
Britain destroyed and withheld evidence of crimes in Africa with the explicit purpose of being kept out of the hands of post-independence governments.
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These Are The Presidential Elections Where The Winner Lost The Popular Vote
It's usually safe to assume that the winner of the popular vote will win the electoral college. That assumption has fallen flat five times in American history.
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The Messed Up Truth About The Soviet Labor Camps
The infamous Russian gulag was a system of prisons, specifically designed for hard labor. This is the messed up truth about the Soviet labor camps.
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Why Julius Caesar Wasn't Really An Emperor
Gaius Julius Caesar is known for having been a statesman who changed the course of history. Per Britannica, he was a general who overthrew the long reign of Roman nobility and replaced it with a dictatorship. (He came, he saw, he conquered, or in his words, Veni, vedi, vici.) July is his namesake.
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The Surprising Place The Ark Of The Covenant Was Kept
The ark of the covenant is of great importance for many religions, and even more so for the Israelites who escaped Egypt. They carried the ark with them during the Exodus, and, because of its importance, they constructed a place to shelter it, called a tabernacle, to keep it safe while they rested.
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False Things You Believe About US Elections
Even as American politics is absorbed as a spectator sport, there is still a lot that people don't know and falsely believe about US elections.
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What Was The Mountain Men's Annual Rendezvous?
Is a "mountain man" precisely the kind of long-bearded, ax-hefting hermit you imagine him to be? Who exactly were these atavistic conquerors of tree and hill, these intrepid trappers of critters and traders of tabacky? Something a bit more authentic than who we see on The History Channel, mayhaps?
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Was Daniel Boone Tried For Treason?
One man wrote of Boone, "He never liked to take life and always avoided it when he could." An historically accurate depiction of Boone reveals that he would have rather negotiated peace than engage in violence, and this attitude would put him into a bit of trouble with the military in 1778.
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The Odd Use For Lysol In The Early 20th Century
Per Mother Jones, birth control was often difficult to obtain in the first half of the 20th century. It was expensive, hard to access, and required the intervention of doctors who often didn't want to provide contraceptives to their patients. This left people to devise their own methods.
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The Surprising Perks Alcatraz Had That Other Prisons Didn't
Alcatraz had one luxury that most other prisons lacked: "reasonably hot" showers. Showers weren't private, and had to be quick, but they were at least not frigid. It's suspected that this gesture was merely an attempt to prevent prisoners from getting acclimated to the cold water of the Bay.
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The Messed Up Truth Of The Soviet Gulag
The Gulag was one of the most powerful organizations in the Soviet Union. But the messed up truth of the Soviet Gulag is still not widely known.
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Cosmetics Were Often Deadly In Ancient Greece. Here's Why
Ancient Greeks took the cosmetic use of dangerous lead a step further, favoring a white lead face cream that was meant to clear up blemishes and even the tone and texture of skin. Unfortunately, lead causes health problems ranging from infertility to dementia.
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The Heroic Carrier Pigeon Of World War I
The U.S. Army deployed around 600 carrier pigeons, according to the World War I Centennial Commission, and one stood out as heroic. The pigeon's name was Cher Ami -- French for "dear friend."
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Here's What You Need To Know About The Electoral College
The electors represent the choice of the majority of their state -- whoever wins the popular vote in their state. To put it simply, when you vote on November 3, you're voting for your candidate's electoral representatives, explains the website of the US House of Representatives.
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The Toughest Women In The Wild West
The truth of life in the Wild West was rarely easy for the people who actually had to live there. Things like medical care or law enforcement could be hard to find. To be a woman there was even more difficult. These women were some of the toughest to make their mark
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The Woman Behind One Of America's Last Stagecoach Robberies
In the cowpoke getup, the 100-pound Pearl looked like more like a young boy playing sheriff than a menacing highway robber, but the clothes -- and the .38 revolver she took with her -- were enough to scare the daylights out of the passengers on the stagecoach bound for Florence, Arizona.
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Where Did Kipling Write The Jungle Book?
Kipling wrote his most famous novel in a place about as far removed from India as you can get.
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Here Are Some Of The Most Disastrous Typos In History
Have you ever noticed an obvious typo in an important document just seconds after you submitted it? The answer to that question is probably "Yes"; it's a terrible moment that unites us all. Humans are imperfect, so unless we get replaced by robots, it's unlikely that we'll ever stop making typos.
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The Truth About Mark Twain's Children
Twain basically invented himself as a public figure, and both he and his irreverence infiltrated social circles, from Nikolai Tesla to abolitionists to suffragettes. Twain did have a private life, however, and it centered around his wife Olivia ("Livy") and their children.
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The Truth About The Forgotten Earp Brother, Warren
It's plain that a not insignificant number of those trailblazing frontiersman were really just a bunch of pugnacious lowlifes always on the lookout a chance to steal something, most often after shooting something or someone. One such scoundrel was Warren Earp, the youngest brother of Wyatt Earp.
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Outbreaks That Led To Civil Unrest
The coronavirus (COVID-19) is the latest in a litany of pandemics that have been unleashed upon society, a powerful threat with a global impact. It's no wonder that pandemics throughout history have more often than not coincided with significant civil unrest.
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The Worst Election Day In United States History Was 100 Years Ago
One of the most horrific and brutal outcomes of the KKK's efforts of voter intimidation and suppression occurred in 1920 in Ocoee, Florida.
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Was This Man History's First Recorded Serial Killer?
Serial killings had to have started somewhere — they weren't birthed by some mystical demon. This is a very human problem that started somewhere in our history, and the earliest known serial killer may have been the child butcher Gilles de Rais. Was this man history's first recorded serial killer?
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Famous People The Kennedys Couldn't Stand
The Kennedy family was iconic, glamorous, and very polarizing and saw many individuals as enemies. Here are some famous people the Kennedys couldn't stand.
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The Accident That Led To The Invention Of Post-Its
Spencer Silver discovered that his glue had microspheres that retain stickiness. He couldn't think of a use for his invention; after all, the goal was to find a new adhesive that could stick anywhere. So his microsphere-filled, removable adhesive sat on a shelf for several years.
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The Truth About Old West Bounty Hunters
The bounty hunters that were despised by outlaws, lawmen, and citizens alike for making a living off hunting down fugitives isn't really historically accurate.
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The Dark Truth About Amish Country
The Amish have a bit of a reputation as a devoutly religious group who live simply, without modern conveniences. But there is a dark truth to the group.
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