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History

The document, which had been stored in a folded shape for more than 200 years, is composed of parchment pages that offer new insight into the Smithsonian founder's family history.

New Analysis Reveals More Details About Smithsonian Founder’s Illegitimate Family Tree

The newly recovered 1787 Hungerford Deed, detailing a contentious squabble over property and prestige, can now be viewed in a new virtual exhibition

Rebecca Lukens

Smithsonian Voices

How Rebecca Lukens Became the Nation’s First Woman Industrialist

A sudden tragedy thrust this pioneer into the family business and into history, making her the first woman to run an iron mill in the United States

Just over 150 employees handcraft 12 million cigars a year from the historic J.C. Newman Cigar Company.

The Last Cigar Factory in Tampa

After a multi-million renovation, the J.C. Newman Cigar Company in Ybor City offers visitors a museum and tours of its working factory

Were it not for tuberculosis, artist and furniture maker Daniel Mack writes, “It’s unlikely that there would have been an Adirondack chair.”

How the Adirondack Chair Became the Feel-Good Recliner That Cures What Ails You

The furniture piece has gone through countless permutations, but it all started at a time when resting outdoors was thought to be a matter of life or death

Procession marking the opening of the Belfast-based Ulster parliament in June 1921

One Hundred Years Ago, Northern Ireland’s ‘Unholy War’ Resulted in a Deadly Summer

In July 1921, an outburst of sectarian violence in Belfast claimed 16 lives on the eve of a truce between Great Britain and Ireland

Some of the details between the film and its source material are, of course, different, but the themes at their respective hearts remain consistent.

‘The Green Knight’ Adopts a Medieval Approach to ‘Modern’ Problems

A new film starring Dev Patel as Gawain feels more like a psychological thriller than a period drama

The P-51 Mustang was the darling of the Army Air Forces. Aerodynamically agile and acrobatic, the aircraft was fast and furious in its effectiveness in downing enemy aircraft.

The P-51 Mustang Was the Quintessential Aircraft of the World War II Era

In duels over Eastern Europe, the agile fighter scored kill after kill

Del Martin, left, and Phyllis Lyon were officially wed June 16, 2008 in the first same-sex wedding to take place in San Francisco after legalization.

The Incredible Story of Lesbian Activists Del Martin and Phyllis Lyon

After first meeting in 1950, the couple was instrumental in founding the nation’s first organization for gay women

Professional puzzler Stanley Newman leads a Smithsonian Associates Streaming seminar "Mastering Crossword Puzzles" on August 21.

Smithsonian Voices

Master Crosswords, Learn Embroidery, Visit Venice or Explore Copper Canyon, Mexico

Beat the August heat with these 20 Smithsonian Associates online programs

The first page of the Hungerford Deed, 1787, Smithsonian Institution Archives, Acc. 19-150.

Smithsonian Voices

This Property Contract Sheds New Light on James Smithson’s Gift to the Smithsonian

The 1787 Hungerford Deed, donated to the Smithsonian in 2019, offers a glimpse into the family dynamics that shaped the founder’s decision

Will an American athlete from the Tokyo Games grab gold and become the next to be featured on the cover of Wheaties?

The Paris Olympics

How Wheaties Became the ‘Breakfast of Champions’

Images of Olympians and other athletes on boxes helped the cereal maintain a competitive edge

Interest in gymnastics soared during the Cold War, when the Olympics emerged as a cultural battleground for Western and Eastern nations.

The Paris Olympics

A History of Gymnastics, From Ancient Greece to Tokyo 2020

The beloved Olympic sport has evolved drastically over the past 2,000 years

A mural in Munich's former Olympic Village features Otl Aicher's pictograms.

The Paris Olympics

This Graphic Artist’s Olympic Pictograms Changed Urban Design Forever

Having lived through Germany’s Nazi regime, Otl Aicher went on to pioneer democratic design

James Delgado, the former director of NOAA’s Maritime Heritage Program, says there is consensus that the Prinzessin Victoria Luise was the “first purpose-built, non-private excursion ship: what we call ‘cruise’ ships today.”

The History of the World’s First Cruise Ship Built Solely for Luxurious Travel

At the turn of the 20th century, a German Jewish shipping executive had an innovative idea for a new revenue stream: the cruise

All members of the community interviewed for this story say the indigenous groups of the region have always known about the murals and recognize them as part of their cultural heritage.

When Claims of ‘Discoveries’ in the Amazon Ring False

When news broke worldwide of an incredible find in Colombia, local experts and guides say their knowledge was misrepresented

The blanket toss is one of the many events that occur during the annual World Eskimo Indian Olympics in Fairbanks, Alaska.

For More Than 60 Years, Indigenous Alaskans Have Hosted Their Own Olympics

Athletes at the World Eskimo-Indian Olympics in Fairbanks test their mettle in events like the blanket toss, knuckle hop and ear pull

Babe Didrickson’s brash behavior along with her decorated athleticism (above: second from right in the 80-meter hurdle) challenged every imagined ideal for a woman athlete in the 1930s.

The Paris Olympics

Olympian Babe Didrikson Cleared the Same Hurdles Women Athletes Face Today

The star track and field athlete of the 1930s boisterously challenged gender expectations with her record-setting athleticism

Detail of medieval roll showing England's Henry VIII tilting at a joust in front of his first wife, Katherine of Aragon. In the West, chariot racing died out rather quickly, but beginning in the second half of the 11th century, knightly tournaments were the spectacle of medieval Europe.

The Paris Olympics

What the Medieval Olympics Looked Like

The Middle Ages didn’t kill the Games, as international sporting competitions thrived with chariot races and jousts

Pure athletic prowess wasn’t really the point—the People’s Olympiad was about cultivating a spirit of equality, in direct contrast to Nazi ideals.

The Paris Olympics

The ‘Protest’ Olympics That Never Came to Be

A leftist response to the 1936 Games being held in Nazi Germany, the proposed competition was canceled by the Spanish Civil War

The entrance to Chez Panisse in Berkeley, California.

Fifty Years Ago, Berkeley Restaurant Chez Panisse Launched the Farm-to-Table Movement

‘Local, organic, sustainable’ are common buzzwords on American menus now, but it wasn’t always that way

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