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History

George Fabian Lawrence, better known as “Stoney Jack,” parlayed his friendships with London navvies into a stunning series of archaeological discoveries between 1895 and 1939.

The Commoner Who Salvaged a King’s Ransom

A furtive antiquarian nicknamed Stoney Jack was responsible for almost every major archaeological find made in London between 1895 and 1939

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Document Deep Dive

Document Deep Dive: Even Julia Child Used a Recipe

See the famous chef’s thought process as she wrote out precise measurements to bake one of her favorite breads

From “The Marlborough-Vanderbilt Wedding”

How American Rich Kids Bought Their Way Into the British Elite

The nouveau riche of the Gilded Age had buckets of money but little social standing—until they started marrying their daughters to British nobles

Portrait of a young revolutionary: Friedrich Engels at age 21, in 1842, the year he moved to Manchester–and the year before he met Mary Burns.

How Friedrich Engels’ Radical Lover Helped Him Father Socialism

Mary Burns exposed the capitalist’s son to the plight of the working people of Manchester

Still from trailer for It movie, an adaption of the Stephen King novel

The History and Psychology of Clowns Being Scary

You aren’t alone in your fear of makeup-clad entertainers; people have been frightened by clowns for centuries

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No, You’re Probably Not Smarter Than a 1912-Era 8th Grader

How well can you do on this 101-year old quiz for Bullitt County, Kentucky, eighth graders?

Alexander Hamilton, painted by John Trumbull, c. 1806

Alexander Hamilton’s Adultery and Apology

Revelations about the treasury secretary’s sex life forced him to choose between candor and his career.

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Sorry, Wolfgang, Fusion Foods Have Been With Us for Centuries

The banh mi, ramen and other foods considered national dishes that actually have cross-cultural beginnings

An Arab city of the early medieval period. Urban centers in the Middle East were of a size and wealth all but unknown in the Christian west during this period, encouraging the development of a large and diverse fraternity of criminals.

Islam’s Medieval Underworld

In the medieval period, the Middle East was home to many of the world’s wealthiest cities—and to a large proportion of its most desperate criminals

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Hangovers: The Driving Force Behind Our Favorite Foods

Overimbibing makes some people’s brains shut down, for others, it gets the innovative juices flowing

The Battle of Chapultepec, which resulted in a U.S. victory, was waged on September 13, 1847 in Mexico City.

Brainpower and Brawn in the Mexican-American War

The United States Army had several advantages, but the most decisive was the professionalism instilled at West Point

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When Lettuce Was a Sacred Sex Symbol

For nearly 3,000 years lettuce was associated with the Egyptian god of fertility, Min, for its resemblance to the phallus

(Photo courtesy of the Sneden Collection at the Virginia Historical Society.)

The Civil War

Document Deep Dive: The Day the Confederates Attacked Washington

This map painstakingly created by a Union cartographer presents a snapshot of the nation’s capital during the war

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The Civil War

The Curious Case of Nashville’s Frail Sisterhood

Finding prostitutes in the Union-occupied city was no problem, but expelling them was

The Lone Ranger mask from the Smithsonian National Museum of American History.

Is the New Tonto Any Better Than the Old Tonto?

A new film revives The Lone Ranger, but has it eliminated the TV series’ racist undertones

Days after Jackie Mitchell (center) struck out Yankee superstars (from left) Lou Gehrig and Babe Ruth, the duo watched the female phenom demonstrate her fastball during spring training in Chattanooga, Tennessee, on April 4, 1931.

The Woman Who (Maybe) Struck Out Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig

Of all the strange baseball exploits of the Depression era, none was more surprising than Jackie Mitchell’s supposed feat

Leborgne’s brain (colorized photo) has appeared in numerous medical textbooks.

Discovering the Identity of a 150-Year-Old Patient

Who was “Monseiur Leborgne”?

A Brief History of the Baseball

The development of the baseball, from shoe rubber and lemon peels to today’s minimalist, modernist object

American South

A Cutting-Edge Second Look at the Battle of Gettysburg

New technology has given us the chance to re-examine how the Civil War battle was won and lost

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The Octogenarian Who Took on the Shoguns

A tribesman who led a doomed revolt against Japan in 1669 still inspires new generations of Ainu nationalists

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