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History

Worshippers, some of them wearing protective masks, take part in the Friday prayers at Mecca's Grand Mosque on March 6, 2020, a day after Saudi authorities emptied Islam's holiest site for sterilization.

Covid-19

This Pandemic Isn’t the First Time the Hajj Has Been Disrupted for Muslims

Plague, war and politics have altered the yearly pilgrimage to Mecca throughout history

A policeman stands over a graffiti drawn to bring awareness to social distancing as a preventive measure against COVID-19 in Chennai, India, on April 9, 2020

Covid-19

How ‘Social Distancing’ Can Get Lost in Translation

Governments around the world grapple with how to deliver important guidelines on minimizing the spread of COVID-19

The list covers findings in biology, justice and human rights, the environment, and more.

Planet Positive

Fifty Things We’ve Learned About the Earth Since the First Earth Day

On April 22, 1970, Americans pledged environmental action for the planet. Here’s what scientists and we, the global community, have done since

The first physician to definitively distinguish typhus and typhoid was American doctor William Wood Gerhard.

Covid-19

What an 1836 Typhus Outbreak Taught the Medical World About Epidemics

An American doctor operating out of Philadelphia made clinical observations that where patients lived, not how they lived, was at the root of the problem

This week's selections include The Betrayal of the Duchess, Anonymous Is a Woman and Nerve.

Books of the Month

The Science of Fear, the Royal Scandal That Made France Modern and Other New Books to Read

The fourth installment in our weekly series spotlights titles that may have been lost in the news amid the COVID-19 crisis

Ashford calls a strike with enthusiasm during an August 29, 1968, game between the Indians and Twins.

What Made Emmett Ashford, Major League Baseball’s First Black Umpire, an American Hero

During his 20-year professional career, his boisterous style endeared him to fans but rankled traditionalists

Eugene V. Debs was in a West Virginia penitentiary when he lost the 1920 presidential election.

Has Anyone Ever Run for President While in Prison? And More Questions From Our Readers

You’ve got questions. We’ve got experts

Flak-Bait made history on April 17, 1945, when it became the only American bomber to fly 200 missions.

This World War II Bomber Took More Enemy Fire Than Most Others and Always Came Home

Known for its memorable April 17, 1945 mission, the B26 bomber ‘Flak-Bait’ undergoes preservation at the National Air and Space Museum

One of designer Ellery Chung's famous King-Smith shirts, featuring a Tahitian print.

The History of the Hawaiian Shirt

From kitsch to cool, ride the waves of undulating popularity of a tropical fashion statement

Artifacts from the Lendbreen site

Treasure Trove of Artifacts Illustrates Life in a Lost Viking Mountain Pass

Lendbreen, a pass high in the Norwegian mountains, was an important route from the Roman era until the late Middle Ages

Each museum and research facility under the Smithsonian umbrella is reckoning with COVID in its own way. But they are also collaborating on both strategy and logistics.

Covid-19

How Smithsonian Curators Are Rising to the Challenge of COVID-19

In a nation under quarantine, chronicling a crisis demands careful strategy

A footpath weaves through ferns and trees on Denecourt Trail No. 6. The designer made sure the paths meandered around interesting features.

The Invention of Hiking

Follow the Frenchman who remade the woods surrounding a royal estate into the world’s first nature preserve

Only 20 questions were on the 1950 census form, which made it easier for this Virginia mother to respond to the enumerator's survey while at home with her young children.

Here’s Why Taking America’s Roll Call Is a Hard-Knock Job

History’s census enumerators came back with the numbers and some very tall tales

Cate Blanchett plays conservative activist Phyllis Schlafly

Women Who Shaped History

The True Story of ‘Mrs. America’

In the new miniseries, feminist history, dramatic storytelling and an all-star-cast bring the Equal Rights Amendment back into the spotlight

A billboard near Benton, Illinois. The rock 'n' roller from Liverpool was unknown in the States when he visited the town in 1963.

The Charming Story of George Harrison’s Vacation in Small-Town America

The Beatles guitarist visited his sister in southern Illinois just months before he’d become world famous

Copper wire

Covid-19

Copper’s Virus-Killing Powers Were Known Even to the Ancients

The SARS-CoV-2 virus endures for days on plastic or metal but disintegrates soon after landing on copper surfaces. Here’s why

Protesters gathered outside the U.S. Supreme Court on April 23, 2019. The Commerce v. New York case highlighted a proposed question about U.S. citizenship included by the Trump administration in the 2020 U.S. census.

The Enumerated Story of the Census

A new book charts the history of counting the public, from the ancient censuses in Rome to the American version of decennial data collection

Though much has changed since 1918, the sentiments shared in writings from this earlier pandemic are likely to resonate with modern readers.

Covid-19

What We Can Learn From 1918 Influenza Diaries

These letters and journals offer insights on how to record one’s thoughts amid a pandemic

In May 1967, the Beatles celebrate the completion of their new album, "Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band."

The Inside Story of the Beatles’ Messy Breakup

Tensions leading to the split, announced 50 years ago today, had been bubbling under the band’s cheery surface for years

This week's selections include Hidden Valley Road, The Last Voyage of the Andrea Doria and Coffeeland.

Books of the Month

Coffee’s Dark History, the Sinking of the World’s Most Glamorous Ship and Other New Books to Read

The third installment in our weekly series spotlights titles that may have been lost in the news amid the COVID-19 crisis

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