Myth Busting

John Thorn, perhaps the most knowledgeable historian of our national pastime, at home in Catskill, New York.

How Baseball’s Official Historian Dug Up the Game’s Unknown Origins

A lifelong passion for the national pastime led John Thorn to redefine the sport's relationship with statistics and reveal the truth behind its earliest days

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How to Separate Fact From Myth in the Extraordinary Story of Sojourner Truth

Two historians tell us why the pioneering 19th-century feminist, suffragist and abolitionist’s legacy has so frequently been misrepresented

The Bostonians’ “preferred outcome” was for the tea to be “peacefully sent back to London,” says historian Benjamin L. Carp. “It’s only when they find out … the governor is not going to let [that happen] that they say, ‘Well, we have no choice [but] to destroy [the tea].”

The Many Myths of the Boston Tea Party

Contrary to popular belief, the 1773 protest opposed a tax break, not a tax hike. And it didn't immediately unify the colonies against the British

A woman adds artificial sweetener to a drink. The paranoia over the health dangers of aspartame can be traced back to an early Internet hoax.

The Decades-Long Struggle to Figure Out Whether Aspartame Is Bad for You

As groups within the World Health Organization are reviewing the artificial sweetner’s potential to cause cancer, take a look back at a hoax from the '90s

The only reference to 355 appears in an August 15, 1779, letter: “I intend to visit 727 [Culper code for New York] before long and think by the assistance of a 355 [lady in the code] of my acquaintance, shall be able to outwit them all.”

The Myth of Agent 355, the Woman Spy Who Supposedly Helped Win the Revolutionary War

A single reference in the historical record has spawned an array of adaptations, most of which overstate the anonymous figure's role in the Culper Spy Ring

Scene from the Bayeux Tapestry, which famously depicts William the Conqueror's victory over the so-called Anglo-Saxons

The Many Myths of the Term 'Anglo-Saxon'

Two medieval scholars tackle the misuse of a phrase that was rarely used by its supposed namesakes

Harrison Ford as Indiana Jones, sizing up the idol, in the opening scene of Raiders of the Lost Ark

The Enduring Myths of 'Raiders of the Lost Ark'

Forty years later, archaeologists look back at what the first Indiana Jones movie got wrong about their profession

“I am not setting out here to rehabilitate Nero as a blameless man,” curator Thorsten Opper says. “But I have come to the conclusion that almost every single thing we think we know about him is wrong.”

Was Emperor Nero Really as Monstrous as History Suggests?

A new exhibition at the British Museum introduces visitors to the man behind the mythical Roman ruler

Mired in myth and misconception, the killer’s life has evolved into “a new American tall tale,” argues tour guide and author Adam Selzer.

The Enduring Mystery of H.H. Holmes, America's 'First' Serial Killer

The infamous "devil in the White City" remains mired in myth 125 years after his execution

Explore the true history and myths behind six “terrible” women, from the all-knowing Sphinx to the fire-breathing Chimera and the lesser-known shapeshifter Lamia.

Men Have Feared Women for Millennia. Just Look at the Monsters of Greek Mythology

A new collection of essays considers how the villainous women of classical antiquity, from Medusa to the Sphinx, resonate in contemporary Western society

Artist J. Howard Miller produced this work-incentive poster for the Westinghouse Electric & Manufacturing Company. Though displayed only briefly in Westinghouse factories, the poster in later year has become one of the most famous icons of World War II.

Why Rosie the Riveter Continues to Endure

Forever changing the nation, the women who worked in American factories during the war have been collectively awarded the Congressional Gold Medal

This popular painting of "The First Thanksgiving at Plymouth" by Jennie A. Brownscombe is an example of how the myths of the holiday became engrained in Americana.

Why the Myths of Plymouth Dominate the American Imagination

A new book shows us a different picture of the English settlers who arrived at the lands of the Wampanoag

The Knights Templar constructed the Saint Stanislaus chapel in the Polish village of Chwarszczany during the 13th century.

Crypts, Tunnel Discovered Beneath Knights Templar Chapel in Poland

Last fall, an archaeological investigation revealed tantalizing structures hidden below the 13th-century building

The Norse system of thralldom was not always complete chattel slavery, but most of the enslaved had little agency.

The Little-Known Role of Slavery in Viking Society

A new book looks at the legendary Scandinavians through their own eyes

Ducks can apparently eat up to 200 locusts a day, one Chinese researcher says.

Is a Duck Army Coming for Pakistan's Locusts? Not So Fast

In the wake of a social media storm, experts question a popular plan to dispatch insect-eating birds from China

The iconic Plymouth Rock and other sites were covered in red graffiti Monday during a vandalism spree discovered at the site marking the landing of the Pilgrims in Massachusetts 400 years ago.

Plymouth Rock and Other Massachusetts Monuments Vandalized With Red Graffiti

Town manager Melissa G. Arrighi called the defacement "unfathomable and unconscionable"

It turns out the story of the domesticated bunny is a lot fuzzier than the legends tell it.

The Odd, Tidy Story of Rabbit Domestication That Is Also Completely False

New study lends weight to the idea that domestication isn’t a point, but a process

Does the Moon's Phase Cause Earthquakes?

One researcher offers a succinct answer

One of the samples sequenced by the yeti researchers

Most "Yeti" Evidence Is Actually From Brown Bears

The results dispel the idea of these mythical beasts while providing clues to the ancestry of the elusive Himalayan and Tibetan bears

One concern about wind turbines is that they are noisy, but the Department of Energy notes that at a distance of 750 feet, they make about as much noise as a household fridge.

Two Myths and One Truth About Wind Turbines

From the cost of turbines to one U.S. senator's suggestion that "wind is a finite resource"

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