Skip to main content

Subscribe to Smithsonian magazine and get a FREE tote.

An early 20th-century depiction of the Battle of Little Bighorn

History

A Century and a Half After Custer’s Last Stand, the Battle of Little Bighorn Continues to Mystify

The June 1876 firefight resulted in the deaths of George Armstrong Custer and 267 of his men. Historians continue to debate exactly how the Lakota Sioux and the Northern Cheyenne secured their victory over the U.S. Army

Greg Daugherty

Crystal containing thorium-229 atoms used in the European team's clock

Smart News

The World’s First Nuclear Clocks Are Ticking, Opening a New Way to Investigate Dark Matter and Other Mysteries of Physics

Smart News

Latest Features

Stay Up to Date

Get the latest from Smithsonian magazine in your inbox.

Get the latest stories delivered to your inbox every weekday.

A bi-weekly newsletter bringing you thought-provoking perspectives on art, culture and exciting destinations.

A bi-weekly newsletter sharing new discoveries, fascinating stories and enhanced understandings of our past.

A monthly newsletter bringing you the most interesting new research on wildlife, the environment, space, psychology, paleo history and beyond.

Stay connected to new research, exhibits and fascinating stories stemming from the collections of your favorite Smithsonian museums.

Email Powered by Salesforce Marketing Cloud (Privacy Notice / Terms & Conditions)

Uncovering the past. Understanding the present. Informing the future.

Give a Gift Renew
Smithsonian magazine Summer 2026 issue cover
The “Ether Dome” at Massachusetts General Hospital is now a National Historic Landmark.
Science Theater of Relief
Medical procedures used to be a scream-filled endurance test until doctors at this Boston institution learned to tame the pain of patients
The view from Olana State Historic Site in Hudson, New York.
Travel Rediscovering America’s Original Grand Tour
Follow along as we retrace the route one journalist laid out in “The Fashionable Tour,” from New York City to Niagara Falls, when memories of the fight for independence were still fresh
Missing Caption
History How to Build a Character
Silence Dogood. Richard Saunders. Benevolus. Sidi Mehemet Ibrahim. All were pen names that allowed Franklin to say things he couldn’t have otherwise said
More from the Current Issue
  image   image

Most Popular

None

Smart News

A Letter Signed by George Washington That Helped Pave the Way for American Independence Goes on Display in London

None

History

A Century and a Half After Custer’s Last Stand, the Battle of Little Bighorn Continues to Mystify

None

Smart News

Revealing Its Original Shape Not Seen in Centuries, Greece Restored Part of the Parthenon’s Western Facade

None

Smart News

‘Ugliest Shark on the Planet’: See the Elusive Goblin Shark, Filmed for the First Time in Its Deep-Sea Habitat

None

At the Smithsonian

These Devoted Dads Across the Animal Kingdom Will Warm Your Heart This Father’s Day

Photo of the Day

This is a ruby throat, that has been visiting our garden for years. Every year, he flies 500 miles across the Gulf of Mexico, to visit us. Well, he visits the feeders and flowers.

Ruby Enjoying Salvia

By Van Butler

Get the Photo of the Day directly to your inbox daily. Sign up for our daily newsletter.

Sign Up

Smithsonian Videos

Preview thumbnail for video 'The Remarkable, Amazing Stories of Route 66 Reflect the Twists and Turns of 100 Years of Americana

The Remarkable, Amazing Stories of Route 66 Reflect the Twists and Turns of 100 Years of Americana

Preview thumbnail for video 'A Photographer's Glimpse Into the Dwindling World of the Cascade Red Fox

A Photographer’s Glimpse Into the Dwindling World of the Cascade Red Fox

Preview thumbnail for video 'The Real Story Behind Abigail Adams' 'Remember the Ladies' Letter

The Real Story Behind Abigail Adams’ ‘Remember the Ladies’ Letter

More Videos

Podcast

Smithsonian Podcast: There’s More to That

Smithsonian magazine covers history, science and culture in the way only it can — through a lens on the world that is insightful and grounded in richly reported stories. In There’s More to That, meet the magazine’s journalists and hear how they discover the forces behind the biggest issues of our time.

Listen In

Latest Episodes

Podcast artwork

The Remarkable, Amazing Stories of Route 66 Reflect the Twists and Turns of 100 Years of Americana

April 23, 2026 | 34 minutes

Podcast artwork

A Photographer’s Glimpse Into the Dwindling World of the Cascade Red Fox

April 9, 2026 | 32 minutes

Podcast artwork

The Real Story Behind Abigail Adams’ ‘Remember the Ladies’ Letter

March 26, 2026 | 31 minutes

Podcast artwork

Venomous Snakes Represent a Serious Public Health Problem. Scientists Are Biting Back With a Groundbreaking Antidote

March 12, 2026 | 28 minutes

History

An early 20th-century depiction of the Battle of Little Bighorn

A Century and a Half After Custer’s Last Stand, the Battle of Little Bighorn Continues to Mystify

The June 1876 firefight resulted in the deaths of George Armstrong Custer and 267 of his men. Historians continue to debate exactly how the Lakota Sioux and the Northern Cheyenne secured their victory over the U.S. Army

Authorities Investigated Reports of an Illegal Excavation in Rome. Then, They Stumbled Upon an Ancient Villa Adorned With Mosaics

A 6-Year-Old Boy Spotted Something Sticking Out of the Ground in a Field. It Turned Out to Be a Viking Sword

More History

Science

Lightning strikes in Peckham, Oklahoma.

When a Team of Meteorologists and Combat Pilots Set Out to Understand Thunderstorms, They Made Flying Safer for Everyone

The sky was a very dangerous place in the early days of commercial aviation. By flying into storms to learn how they worked, these experts made air travel and weather forecasting much more predictable

The Operating Room Where Anesthesia Was First Demonstrated Is Now a Landmark. But for the Men Who Claimed Credit, There Was Much Misery

‘Stupid Hot’: Heat Waves Muddle the Minds of Animals and Humans as Confusion and Aggression Seem to Rise With the Temperature

More Science

Innovation

Around two million graduating high school students in the United States—more than half—take the SAT each year.

100 Years Ago, Students Across the U.S. Took the First SAT. Today, Relatively Few Colleges Require the Test. Where Is It Headed?

The standardized exam has evolved over the past century, all in the name of testing for college readiness. Now, it has become a symbol of the American higher education system

Can Printed ‘Skin’ Heal Burns and Prevent Scars?

Cellphones Were Created to Untether Us. Then They Got Smart and Evolved Into an Omnipotent Appendage

More Innovation

Travel

With a full-size basketball court, and conspicuously without any presidential paper documents, the center, in many ways, is a departure from presidential institutions that came before.

Here’s How the Obama Presidential Center Is Different From Other Presidents’ Museums

More than a library and archives, the new Chicago institution is a place for the community to gather, talk and play together

How Tanjia, a Meat Stew Slow-Cooked in Bathhouses, Shaped Marrakesh’s Social Life

To See the Magnificence and Majesty of Machu Picchu Without the Hike, Check Out These Amazing Images

More Travel

Arts & Culture

Museumgoers can read the labels on the backs of the paintings, which may provide clues about each work's provenance.

Who Are the Owners of These Nazi-Looted Masterpieces—and Could Displaying Them at One of France’s Most Popular Museums Help Track Them Down?

A new permanent display at the Musée d’Orsay showcases artworks that may have been stolen or sold under suspicious circumstances during World War II. Officials are still hoping to find the families of their rightful owners

The Real Winnie-the-Pooh Lives at the New York Public Library. When Queen Camilla Visited the Bear, She Reunited Him With a Dear Friend

How the Classic American Game of Twister Went From Risqué to Record-Breaking

More Arts & Culture

At the Smithsonian

Benitoite mineral from California

What Natural History Objects Represent Your State? You Can Find Out in This New Exhibition of More Than 600 Specimens and Artifacts

The Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History celebrates America’s 250th anniversary by spotlighting fascinating items from across the nation

Ants Can Get Distracted by Cookies, Chips and Other Junk Food. Here’s Why That Could Be a Problem for the Environment

Young Blue Crabs Have Been Mysteriously Dwindling in the Chesapeake Bay for Years. This Winter, They Saw a Boost in Numbers. What’s Driving These Trends?

More At the Smithsonian