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Smart News / Smart News History & Archaeology

The Washington Monument in Washington, D.C.

You’ve Seen The Washington Monument. Now See the Other Washington Monuments

Unsurprisingly, the obelisk in Washington, D.C. is not the only monument to America’s first president

In this Dec. 21, 2012 file photo, people gather in front of the Kukulkan temple in Chichen Itza, Mexico. Mexican experts said Wednesday, Nov. 16, 2016 they have discovered what may be the original structure at the pyramid of Kukulkan at the Mayan ruins of Chichen Itza.

Ancient Maya Heritage Comes Alive…With Some Help From Google and the British Museum

Victorian explorer Alfred Maudslay’s images are now available online for all to see

More than 50 percent of Sweden is covered in forest, making bunkers easy to disguise in plain sight.

New Video Highlights Hidden Cold War Bunker in Sweden

Viral footage shows off the site that appears to have been inhabited by Swedish intelligence workers

'Alice's Wild West Show' was actress Virginia Davis's favorite role in the 'Comedies'

Walt Disney’s First ‘Princess’ Was A Spunky Four-Year-Old

The silent ‘Alice Comedies’ ran from 1924 through 1927, predating Mickey

Unicode By LN Tallur Bronze, coins and concrete 2011 Tallur Studio, Koteshwara, Karnataka, India

Sweeping Mumbai Exhibition Tells the Story of India, With Help From the British Museum

‘India and the World’ features 124 loans from London and 104 objects from institutions across India

Civil War reenactors fire a salute in a public parade.

Civil War Reenactments Were a Thing Even During the Civil War

These ‘practice battles’ are the root of today’s Civil War reenactors

Orange County Sheriff's Department disposing of illegal alcohol, circa 1932.

Why the Ku Klux Klan Flourished Under Prohibition

The Ku Klux Klan’s resurgence in the 1920s is linked to the passage of the Volstead Act in 1920

Christopher Columbus statue in Columbus Circle in New York City

More than 120 Academics and Artists Call for Removal of Controversial Monuments in New York

The letter singles out three statues and two commemorative markers honoring contentious historical figures

Marianne Means during a 1983 interview with C-SPAN's Brian Lamb.

Pioneering Political Journalist Marianne Means Has Died at Age 83

The first woman assigned to cover a president’s activities on a full-time basis, Means wrote a widely syndicated column about the goings-on in Washington

Winter recreationists circa 1975.

The Snowmobile Changed How Americans Did Winter

As the cold comes in, snowbound communities are tuning up their vehicles and recreationists are making speedy winter plans

The beginning of the Crazy Horse Memorial.

The Memorial to Crazy Horse Has Been Under Construction For Almost 70 Years

But you can still visit the memorial, which is located in South Dakota

Archaeologists in California Unearth a Large Sphinx—From the Set of ‘The Ten Commandments’

Director Cecil B. DeMille gave the order for the entire set be buried beneath the sand after shooting on the blockbuster concluded

11 Cauldrons Found at Iron Age Settlement in England

The cauldrons, most of which were buried in a circle, appear to have been used in ceremonial feasts

A family of four buying gas at a service station.

A Short Picture History of Gas Stations

Gas stations have evolved a lot from their humble roots

The face of a dreamer.

Winston Churchill Imagined the Lab-Grown Hamburger

But he was off about the year when it would be created

A Thomas Gainsborough painting of Queen Charlotte

Five Things to Know About Queen Charlotte

Before Meghan Markle, the late 18th-century Queen Sophia Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz may have been the country’s first biracial royal

Some of the Roman defenses at Pegwell Bay

Cool Finds

Archaeologists Discover Where Julius Caesar Landed in Britain

A large camp along Pegwell Bay is the likely spot where 20,000 Romans landed in 54 B.C.

Cool Finds

Ancient Orca Geoglyph Rediscovered in Peru

Found on a hillside in the Palpa desert, the 200-foot image was likely made by peoples of the Paracas and Nazca cultures

A square dance on Skyline Farms in Alabama, circa 1937.

Square Dancing is Uniquely American

Like the culture it came from, square dance has roots in European, Native American and African practices

Spandex, under the brand name Lycra, quickly took off after it was introduced in 1962. This ad was published in Good Housekeeping in October of that year.

Thank(?) Joseph Shivers For Spandex

From Spanx to space suits, spandex has shaped modern garments

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