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When it comes to representation, this coin is more than worth its weight in 24-karat gold.

New $100 Coin Features First-Ever African-American Lady Liberty

She’ll put a new face on a familiar allegory

January 13, 2017

Civil Rights-era freedom riders are just one of the groups whose history is honored in three new national monuments.

New National Monuments Highlight Reconstruction and Civil Rights History

President Obama designated three Southern sites critical to sharing that story

January 13, 2017

The Heinkel He-280, the world's first jet fighter, was developed in Nazi Germany during World War II.

Since First Successfully Used More Than 75 Years Ago, Ejection Seats Have Saved Thousands

The faster an airplane is moving, the harder it is to get out of: that’s why ejection seats are so important

January 13, 2017

Now, writers can find inspiration in the historic library of one of America's most famous authors.

You Can Write Inside Mark Twain’s Library

Commune with Clemens in his historic home

January 13, 2017

Bruce Springsteen performs with drummer Max Weinberg in 2008.

Bruce Springsteen Is Getting His Own Archive

A new center will celebrate the glory days of Boss and other American musical icons

January 13, 2017

The cryonics industry and those who support cryonics refer to those who undergo the procedure after death as "cryonauts."

The First Cryonic Preservation Took Place Fifty Years Ago Today

Today, we still have no idea if the process will ever produce results

January 12, 2017

Harriet Tubman in 1911. The later years of her life are being preserved at a new national historical park that bears her name.

Women Who Shaped History

Harriet Tubman Is Getting Her Own National Historical Park

The park will tell the story of Tubman’s later years

January 12, 2017

Another example of the prototype does exist, but it has been broken.

Why a Glass Penny Cost One Collector Over $70,000

The prototype was part of a short-lived attempt to take the copper out of one-cent coins

January 12, 2017

Men looking at material posted in the window of the National Anti-Suffrage Association headquarters, around 1911.

Why Some Women Campaigned Against The Vote For Women

Although it seems counter-intuitive now, some women had reasons for not wanting the vote

January 12, 2017

The warning label on cartons of duty-free cigarettes in Munich, Germany circa 2006.

People Have Tried to Make U.S. Cigarette Warning Labels More Graphic for Decades

On this day in 1964, the surgeon general officially said that smoking causes cancer. But warning labels in America still don’t show its effects

January 11, 2017

Senators Kenneth Wherry (pictured at left) and J. Lister Hill conducted the first congressional investigation into homosexuality in the federal workforce.

State Department Apologizes for the ‘Lavender Scare’

For decades, the agency purged gay and lesbian workers believing their sexual orientation made them security risks

January 10, 2017

Clare Hollingworth poses in the streets of Saigon in 1968.

The Legendary Reporter Who Broke the Beginning of World War II Is Dead

Clare Hollingworth redefined the role of war correspondent

January 10, 2017

A plaque outside of the Rosslyn, VA garage where the informant code-named "Deep Throat" met with journalist Bob Woodward during the Watergate investigation.

The Parking Garage Where Deep Throat Spilled the Beans on Watergate Is Being Torn Down

Demolition is scheduled for early this year

January 10, 2017

Inventor Sir Clive Sinclair demonstrates his battery-assisted pedal powered tricycle at Alexandra Palace, London.

This Three-Wheeled, Battery-Powered Plastic Car-Bike Was a Giant Flop in 1985

But today, some have asked if Sir Clive Sinclair was just ahead of his time

January 10, 2017

A portrait of John D. Rockefeller circa 1900, after he had built Standard Oil into the largest oil company in the United States.

John D. Rockefeller Was the Richest Person To Ever Live. Period

Standard Oil, his company, is one of the biggest reasons we have anti-monopoly laws

January 10, 2017

The Pioneer Cabin Tree in 2006

One of California’s Iconic “Tunnel Trees” Has Fallen

The Pioneer Cabin Tree was likely hundreds of years old

January 9, 2017

Members of an anti-flirt club

New York State Once Introduced an Anti-Flirting Bill

The law aimed to crack down on public displays of affection of all kinds

January 9, 2017

Jeanette Epps tries on a space suit

The International Space Station Will Finally Welcome a Black Astronaut

In May 2018, flight engineer Jeanette J. Epps will begin her mission on the ISS

January 9, 2017

A daguerreotype portrait of Samuel Morse by his student, Mathew Brady, circa 1844-1860.

The Innovative Spirit fy17

The Inventor of the Telegraph Was Also America’s First Photographer

The daguerreotype craze took over New York in the mid-nineteenth century

January 9, 2017

Joan of Arc on horseback in an illustration from a 1505 manuscript.

Remembering Joan of Arc, The Gender-Bending Woman Warrior Who Changed History

The Maid of Orleans and her holy voices were in many ways too different to live

January 9, 2017

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