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Shade-protecting overhangs known as awnings line a street in New York City in the 1850s.

Six Innovative Ways Humans Have Kept Cool Throughout History

From sleeping porches to coastal escapes, these tips and tricks helped people deal with extreme heat before the advent of air-conditioning

Established in 2019, Indiana Dunes National Park represents one of the most understated successes of 20th-century conservation—and the battle is far from over today.

Inside the Fight to Save the Indiana Dunes, One of America's Most Vulnerable National Parks

Caught between steel mills, suburbs and a hard place, the 15,000-acre site is a fantasia of biodiversity—and a case study for hard-fought conservation

A little over a century ago, a limestone cave system north of Kuala Lumpur was reborn as a holy Hindu shrine, called Batu Caves.

From Cisterns to Temples, These Twelve Underground Worlds Are Open for Exploring

Some of these age-old subterranean spaces have even been transformed into amusement parks, art galleries and restaurants

The Wentworth brothers campaigned ceaselessly for the liberty of free speech in the House of Commons. They were driven by the ongoing succession crisis, which they felt Elizabeth was ignoring, placing England in danger of civil war or foreign invasion.

The Brothers Who Asserted Their Right to Free Speech in Tudor England

Peter and Paul Wentworth called on Elizabeth I to name an heir to the throne, wielding Parliament's free speech privileges to urge the queen to take action

The new adaptation of The Decameron is “like a medieval ‘Love Island,’ and it descends into Lord of the Flies chaos,” says actor Tanya Reynolds.

The Real Story Behind Netflix's 'The Decameron'

Loosely based on Giovanni Boccaccio's 14th-century collection of short stories, the series follows a group of Italian nobles and servants who flee to the countryside to escape the Black Death

A 1959 photograph of William "W.R." Saxon, who is standing third from left

This Little-Known Civil Rights Activist Refused to Give Up His Bus Seat Four Years Before Rosa Parks Did

William "W.R." Saxon filed a lawsuit against the company that forced him to move to the back of the bus, seeking damages for the discrimination and mental anguish he’d faced

Of these featured individuals, Benjamin Spock, Johnny Weissmuller and Harold Sakata medaled at the Olympics.

Ten Surprising Public Figures Who Dreamed of Olympic Gold

The list includes European royals, Darth Vader's stunt double and an American World War II general

In "Lady in the Lake," Natalie Portman plays a fictional journalist who investigates a pair of mysterious deaths. The cases are inspired by the real-life disappearances of Esther Lebowitz and Shirley Lee Parker.

The Real Story Behind the Baltimore Deaths That Inspired 'Lady in the Lake'

A new mini-series offers a fictionalized take on two unrelated 1969 cases: the mysterious disappearance of bartender Shirley Lee Parker and the murder of 11-year-old Esther Lebowitz

President Ronald Reagan, pictured waving to a crowd shortly before John Hinckley Jr. tried to assassinate him on March 30, 1981

The History of Presidential Assassination Attempts, From Andrew Jackson to Teddy Roosevelt

Before last weekend's attack on Donald Trump, would-be assassins unsuccessfully targeted Ronald Reagan, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and seven other sitting presidents or candidates for office

From the real reason behind the Games' collapse to a breakdown of who was eligible to compete, here's what you need to know about the ancient Olympics.

Nine Things You Didn't Know About the Ancient Olympic Games

With an intensive athletes’ boot camp and the threat of execution for unwelcome spectators, the Greek sporting event was a serious affair

Scarlett Johansson and Channing Tatum in Fly Me to the Moon, a new movie directed by Greg Berlanti

How 'Fly Me to the Moon' Pokes Fun at Moon Landing Conspiracy Theories

The new Scarlett Johansson and Channing Tatum film presents an alternative history in which government officials prepared to fake the moon landing before NASA pulled off the feat for real

After Ronald Reagan stumbled through his answers and closing statement at the first presidential debate in 1984, Walter Mondale closed the gap in the polls. This photo was taken at the second debate two weeks later.

When a Debate Flop Raised Concerns About Ronald Reagan's Fitness to Run for Re-Election

During the 1984 campaign, the 73-year-old president meandered his way through his first face-off against Walter Mondale, prompting questions about his mental acuity

Olympic rings are seen on the Eiffel Tower near the restored statue of "Cavalier Arabe" on the Pont d'Iéna bridge in Paris on July 4, 2024, ahead of the upcoming Paris 2024 Olympic Games. 

The Paris Summer Olympics: Smithsonian's Guide to the Games

Prepare yourself for the Paris Olympics with this comprehensive guide to the history, science, arts and thrills of the worldwide celebration

To mark her graduation from dental school in 2021, Breanna Henley took photographs in front of a slave cabin at Redcliffe Plantation.

Why Descendants Are Returning to the Plantations Where Their Ancestors Were Enslaved

Some Black Americans are reclaiming antebellum estates as part of their family legacy, reflecting the power and possibility of these historic sites

A self-portrait taken in New York by Vivian Maier in 1954

Meet Vivian Maier, the Reclusive Nanny Who Secretly Became One of the Best Street Photographers of the 20th Century

The self-taught artist is getting her first museum exhibition in New York City, where she nurtured her nascent interest in photography

An 18th-century illustration of a jury of matrons

How All-Female 'Juries of Matrons' Shaped Legal History

Courts called on these jurors to determine whether women sentenced to death were pregnant or faking it to avoid execution

A woman named Evelyn Thaw dodges a camera, 1909

How the Rise of the Camera Launched a Fight to Protect Gilded Age Americans' Privacy

Early photographers sold their snapshots to advertisers, who reused the individuals' likenesses without their permission

Red Bear’s Winter Count, Martin E. Red Bear, canvas and acrylic paint, 2004

From Powwows to Smartphones, See the Past and Present of Indigenous Plains Life in Narrative Art

The National Museum of the American Indian showcases centuries-old narrative art traditions that a new generation of artists is embracing

Was Leicester Hemingway's micronation of New Atlantis a quixotic experiment in democracy or an elaborate improv comedy sketch? 

Why Ernest Hemingway's Younger Brother Established a Floating Republic in the Caribbean

On July 4, 1964, Leicester Hemingway founded New Atlantis, a raft-turned-micronation intended to support marine life in the region

The mythical beasts have fired up cultures around the world.

From China to the Mediterranean and More, Here's How Different Cultures Envision Dragons

In some parts of the world, the mythical creatures are monsters. In others, they’re more benign beings

Smithsonian Channel

Preview thumbnail for video 'How the Meaning of Thanksgiving Has Changed

How the Meaning of Thanksgiving Has Changed

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Preview thumbnail for video 'This Object in History: Fernandomania

This Object in History: Fernandomania

Preview thumbnail for video 'This Ancient Egyptian Mega-Tomb Is the Largest of Its Kind

This Ancient Egyptian Mega-Tomb Is the Largest of Its Kind

Photo of the day

A picture of my daughter on our trip to Paris earlier this month. One Of a Kind