World War II

Ōkunoshima

The Dark History of Japan's Rabbit Island

What It Was Like to Be on the Ground at Iwo Jima

Weapon Hunter host Paul Shull is tracing the history of the iconic American gun known as the Stinger

Hitler used Mercedes cars as part of his stagecraft, presenting a foreboding image of Nazi Germany.

Why Americans Flocked to Catch a Glimpse of Hitler's Car

At carnivals and state fairs across the country, curious onlookers were drawn to the Fuhrer's chariot

This Virginia Winery Once Housed One of WWII's Most Important Spy Stations

Speakeasies are so 2012—this place has actual secrets

John F. Kennedy's permanent gravesite at the Arlington National Cemetery.

The Man Who Dug JFK’s Grave, Twice

Clifton Pollard dug graves in the Arlington National Cemetery for more than thirty years

Group with flags in the forest: Michael Walter, Miklos Roth, Szlama Weichselblatt, Avram Leder, Halina Bryks, Naftali Steinberg, Roman Kniker, Jakob Kahan

This Orphanage Did More Than Find Homes for Children of the Holocaust. It Helped Them Reclaim Their Humanity

Run by the United Nations, Kloster Indersdorf took a revolutionary approach in caring for its charges

A reproduction of the "Tower of Blue Horses," which hasn't been spotted since the late 1940s.

Two New Exhibitions Celebrate a Long-Lost Painting

The "Tower of the Blue Horses" is gone, but not forgotten

Daylight saving time, which has a history dating back to Benjamin Franklin, starts this Sunday.

During (and After) WWII, Some States Had Year-Round Daylight Saving Time

A 1963 'Time Magazine' article called it "a chaos of time"

Allied Troops Used These Massive Pipe Bombs at Omaha Beach

World War II veteran John Raaen Jr. was there the day Allied troops stormed Omaha Beach at Normandy

A Messerschmitt Bf 109. This is a Spanish-built version of the plane, licensed from Messerschmitt AG.

14-Year-Old Boy Discovers Remains of German Fighter Plane and Its Pilot

Daniel Rom Kristiansen was learning about WWII in school when he decided to look for a lost warplane

A Pearl Harbor Veteran Tells His Harrowing Story of Survival

Mickey Ganitch, a U.S. sailor stationed at Pearl Harbor, was gearing up for a football game on December 7, 1941, when hundreds of fighter pilots appeared

A collage of the work distributed by the British propaganda effort.

The Fake British Radio Show That Helped Defeat the Nazis

By spreading fake news and sensational rumors, intelligence officials leveraged “psychological judo” against the Nazis in World War II

Workers labor in the fields in the shadow of Mt. Williamson.

View Daily Life in a Japanese-American Internment Camp Through the Lens of Ansel Adams

In 1943, one of America’s best-known photographers documented one of the best-known internment camps

The Watanabe family brought this suitcase with them to Idaho's Minidoka camp. Evacuees were allowed to bring only what they could carry.

What's Changed in the 30 Years Since the Smithsonian Opened an Exhibition on Japanese Internment

A new display at the American History Museum marks the 75th Anniversary of Executive Order 9066

This image, entitled "Doing Their Share, Too," celebrated the war work of black women.

This African American Artist’s Cartoons Helped Win World War II

Charles Alston knew how to turn art into motivation

This animal hair toothbrush (horse hair, to be exact) is said to have belonged to Napoleon Bonaparte.

You Can Still Buy Pig-Hair Toothbrushes

There's an argument for it, given all the environmental destruction causes by plastic ones

Tootsie Rolls contain small amounts of cocoa and also an ingredient you might not expect—orange extract.

Tootsie Rolls Were WWII Energy Bars

The candies were included in rations because they stayed fresh for a long time

Dachau's gate had a chilling message for its inmates.

Stolen ‘Arbeit Macht Frei’ Gate Returns to Dachau

The identity of the thieves remains a mystery

Hans Scholl, Sophie Scholl and Christoph Probst (pictured, left to right, in 1942) resisted the Nazis as members of the White Rose, a secret student group.

The Secret Student Group That Stood Up to the Nazis

The White Rose was short-lived, but its words were hard to ignore

Aleutian people stand on the deck of a ship forcibly evacuating them to southeastern Alaska.

The U.S. Forcibly Detained Native Alaskans During World War II

In the name of safety, Aleuts were held against their will under intolerable conditions in internment camps

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