The 1970s were a wild ride for fashion, politics, music, and, yes, cars. As gas prices spiked and tastes shifted from big and brawny to compact and efficient, the decade’s most memorable automobiles reflected the changing times. Whether you were into style, speed, or just saving gas, the ’70s had a ride for you. Here are seven of the most decade-defining cars of the 1970s — models that turned heads, made the news, and earned their street cred one mile at a time. Which one would you...| History Facts
Military uniforms serve a multifaceted purpose for the people who wear them: They forge a feeling of cohesion and present a unified front in battle, while also leaving room for individual identification of rank and accomplishments by way of specific clothing, insignias, and medals. While few would dispute the importance of uniforms being, well, uniform, military dress rarely remains constant for long. Changing technology, strategy, and fashion all dictate the regular reevaluation and updating...| History Facts
Ever wondered which great mind from the ancient world you’d click with at a symposium — or at least, whose philosophy you’d share? While we can’t all spend our days debating under olive trees or meditating in mountaintop monasteries, we can tap into the timeless wisdom of the ancients. From Greece to India to China, these thinkers shaped how humanity has wrestled with life’s biggest questions. Read on to see which of the six philosophical giants — three from the East, three from t...| History Facts
When Jurassic Park premiered in June 1993, it wasn’t just another summer blockbuster. Many of us still remember sitting in the theater, popcorn in hand, in awe as a shockingly lifelike brachiosaur appeared. The dinosaur moved, ate, and roared across the screen with a realism we’d never seen before. Director Steven Spielberg worked closely with paleontologists such as Jack Horner to base the film in modern scientific understanding, but as Horner himself has said, “We weren’t trying t...| History Facts
Humans are superstitious creatures by nature, with many strange habits that seem entirely illogical. We avoid walking under ladders or opening umbrellas indoors in fear of bad luck. We knock on wood to prevent disappointment. We shun the number 13 and we can’t quite decide whether black cats are good or bad omens. None of these actions makes much practical sense, and the same is true for a range of superstitions involving food. Food is a necessity that keeps us functioning and alive, but ...| History Facts
Septuplets are seven siblings born at the same time; a septennium is a period of seven years; and September is the… ninth month of the year. What gives? As you may expect, “sept” is a prefix with Latin roots that means “seven,” and it didn’t end up at the beginning of the word “September” by accident. The month of September was originally part of the Roman republican calendar, which was used in ancient Rome for hundreds of years before the debut of the Julian calendar in 46 BC...| History Facts
During the Great Depression in the 1930s, most Americans were just trying to get by, and few had the luxury of coming home from the grocery store with extra items. But that didn’t stop an Oklahoma grocer from coming up with the idea of a shopping cart, an invention that started out almost as disdained as it was practical. The man behind the idea was Sylvan N. Goldman, owner of the Humpty Dumpty grocery chain. Interested in increasing his sales, he often paid close attention to how people sh...| History Facts
On the evening of November 2, 1948, America’s newsrooms confidently prepared for what seemed inevitable: Thomas E. Dewey’s victory over Harry S. Truman in the U.S. presidential election. Radio commentators and pollsters had spent weeks predicting the Republican governor’s triumph. The media’s certainty was so complete that some newspapers even went to press before final results were tallied, and on November 3, the Chicago Daily Tribune famously ran with the headline “DEWEY DEFEATS T...| History Facts
In a world without cameras, biometric databases, or even consistent spelling, identifying individuals could be quite a complex challenge. Before photography helped fix identity to an image, societies developed a range of creative methods to determine who someone was — a task that could be surprisingly difficult, especially when that someone was outside their home community. From scars to seals to signatures, here’s how identity was tracked before photo IDs. Names (and the Trouble With The...| History Facts
When you think of the origins of American suburbia, the name Levittown may spring to mind. A symbol of post-World War II optimism and domestic comfort, this Long Island development, constructed between 1947 and 1951, is often credited as America’s first modern suburb. Yet Levittown wasn’t technically the first suburb in U.S. history — though as the first mass-produced, federally supported suburban development in the country, it did shape a new national lifestyle — and with it, a new c...| History Facts
If you’re anything like me, you probably have a usual order at your local breakfast spot. Some folks opt for scrambled eggs and bacon, while others go for pancakes drenched in butter and maple syrup. (I personally prefer a sesame bagel with lox and cream cheese.) U.S. presidents through history were no different: While some POTUSes enjoyed a traditional breakfast of eggs, bacon, and coffee, others preferred morning meals that ranged from decadent to bizarre. This gave us an idea: Choose s...| History Facts
The well-coiffed men of the Victorian era wore finely tailored suits, trim waistcoats, and fancy statement hats. These men also, in contrast to their generally prim and proper aesthetic, sometimes had truly impressive beards. The Victorian “beard movement,” which started around 1850, was partially about looking manly and rugged — especially after British soldiers came back from the Crimean War unshaven in 1856. But beards were also, according to some medical professionals at the time, a...| History Facts
America has had 50 vice presidents, 15 of whom went on to become president. Only four of them were elected president while still serving as veep, however: John Adams (1796), Thomas Jefferson (1800), Martin Van Buren (1836), and George H.W. Bush (1988). Several other sitting vice presidents have run for the highest office in the land but were unsuccessful, including Richard Nixon in 1960, Hubert Humphrey in 1968, and Al Gore in 2000. So while the vice presidency stands as perhaps the single be...| History Facts
Edinburgh Castle, where Scottish monarchs lived for hundreds of years, sits atop an imposing rock outcropping called Castle Rock. Along with the Royal Mile, a hilly thoroughfare gently sloping down one side of the castle, it’s one of Scotland’s biggest tourist attractions. But for a long time, it was just an incredibly convenient rock, from a defensive standpoint, with sheer cliffs along three sides. Ancient people started using it in the Bronze Age, and flattened its top around 900 BCE....| History Facts
There’s never been a period of American history quite like the Great Depression, and hopefully there never will be again. Coming about at the same time movies were becoming an increasingly dominant cultural force, the economic downturn lasting from 1929 to 1939 was, perhaps counterintuitively, inextricably linked with the golden age of Hollywood. Some of the best movies made during the Depression were also about the Depression, though a number of later productions captured the era just as w...| History Facts
As you might imagine, the Austro-Turkish Wars took place between what are now Austria and Turkey. This being between the 16th and 18th centuries, however, the official belligerents were the Habsburg monarchy and the Ottoman Empire. Perhaps the most (in)famous skirmish of that conflict didn’t involve both sides, though. What’s been called “history’s worst friendly fire incident” was officially known as the Battle of Karánsebes and took place in present-day Romania on the night of Se...| History Facts
We recognize it instantly: two rounded lobes meeting at a point, the universal symbol of love. The heart shape is found everywhere — on greeting cards, jewelry, bumper stickers, and emoji keyboards. It even stars in tourism campaigns such as “I ❤ NY” and drives the $27.5 billion Valentine’s Day industry. But while the symbol represents deep emotion, it looks nothing like an actual human heart. So where did the symbol come from? The answer lies in a long history shaped by philosophy,...| History Facts
Most of us, at some point, have probably seen a scattering of strange coins — perhaps at a yard sale or tucked away in a dusty drawer — and asked ourselves, “I wonder if those are worth anything?” For many of us, that’s about as close as we get to the fascinating world of coin collecting, or, to give it its technical name, numismatics. But there are plenty of proper numismatists out there. According to data from CivicScience, 38% of U.S. adults have collected coins at some point dur...| History Facts
In February 1836, an outnumbered band of Texan independence fighters faced a Mexican army in what would become one of the most storied conflicts in American history: the Battle of the Alamo. Although they lost the battle, the Texan fighters’ final stand became a historic symbol of resistance and freedom, immortalized in the famous battle cry, “Remember the Alamo!” Here’s a look back at why this fascinating battle was important — militarily, politically, and symbolically. Rising Tens...| History Facts
The apparent one-hit wonder of the U.S. Founding Fathers, John Hancock is largely known today solely for inscribing the first and largest signature at the bottom the Declaration of Independence — an act that resulted in his name becoming a synonym for the legally identifying scribbles we apply to checks and other important forms today. It may seem curious that Hancock’s name stands front and center among the signatures on this most cherished document of American history, ahead of far more...| History Facts
You’ve probably noticed them without giving them a second thought. Those tiny metal studs near the front pockets of your jeans are easy to overlook, but they’ve been a fixture of the garment for more than a century. So why are they there? Sure, they add to denim’s rugged, familiar charm — but they also tell the story of how jeans became some of the most useful pants in history. The First Rivets By the late 19th century, what we now call jeans — then more commonly known as waist o...| History Facts
The 1970s were a wild ride for fashion, politics, music, and, yes, cars. As gas prices spiked and tastes shifted from big and brawny to compact and efficient, the decade’s most memorable automobiles reflected the changing times. Whether you were into style, speed, or just saving gas, the ’70s had a ride for you. Here are seven of the most decade-defining cars of the 1970s — models that turned heads, made the news, and earned their street cred one mile at a time. Which one would you...| History Facts
Falling between the heyday of the Western Roman Empire and the onset of the Renaissance, the Middle Ages have an unflattering reputation as something of a backward epoch of human civilization. Wars raged across Europe, serfs toiled in backbreaking service to feudal lords, and diseases wiped out villages with little hope of preventing the next outbreak. While the negative connotations may not be entirely fair, few would dispute that medieval citizens lived in more primitive conditions than the...| History Facts
Middle names are a strange concept. They often lie silent and unused, only to emerge when we fill out official forms and documents, providing an extra piece of proof as to who we are, despite our near-total disregard for the name in our daily lives. In the U.S., a majority of people have a middle name, but only around 4% of people are referred to by it. And, according to a poll by The Atlantic, only about 22% of Americans think they know the middle names of at least half of their friends or a...| History Facts
It’s easy to assume waffles are a recent invention after cooking them (or having them cooked for you) on electric appliances your whole life. But waffle irons are far older than one might expect. All you need to make a waffle is metal, heat, and batter, and ancient Greeks had all three at their disposal. Ancient Greeks (and later, ancient Romans) used a pair of cooking irons (flat or patterned metal plates with long handles) over a fire to cook a batter of flour and either water or goat...| History Facts
With the ratification of the Constitution in 1788 and the Bill of Rights in 1791, citizens of the fledgling United States of America could count on documentation that guaranteed the separation of federal powers and an array of personal liberties. Of course, what good is freedom without a sound financial system to give people the opportunity to thrive? To address that issue, Congress passed the Banking Bill in 1791 to create the Bank of the United States, and the Coinage Act of 1792 to establi...| History Facts
In 1789, George Washington became the first president of the United States. Since then, 44 other individuals have served as commander in chief, each leaving a political legacy to be analyzed and judged in the course of time. But their legacies are not only political — they’re also familial. The number of children each president had is often overlooked, but on a personal level, few things could be more important. And in two cases, presidential children — John Quincy Adams and George W. B...| History Facts
Furniture isn’t just about form and function — it’s a reflection of how we live. As technology evolves and lifestyles shift, pieces that were once considered household essentials can quietly fade into obscurity. From furniture designed around now-outdated technology to those that catered to social customs of another era, many former decor staples have all but disappeared from modern homes. If you’ve ever tried to fit a heavy television into a hulking TV cabinet or spent an hour at t...| History Facts
United States currency is full of symbolic design choices and cryptic markings. First issued in 1861 as a demand note, the $20 bill is one of the most commonly used denominations. Over the years, the $20 bill has undergone numerous facelifts, from changing portraits and seals to the addition of color-shifting ink and security threads. Today’s version packs in more symbols than most people may realize. If you’ve ever wondered what those little letters, numbers, and emblems really mean, her...| History Facts
One of the U.S. president’s most significant roles is serving as commander in chief, the top authority over all branches of the United States military. But where does this title come from, and what exactly does it entail? Constitutional Origins The Founding Fathers used the term “commander in chief” when drafting Article II, Section 2 of the U.S. Constitution. It states: “The President shall be Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy of the United States, and of the Militia of the...| History Facts
The Mongol Empire was the largest contiguous land empire in human history. It encompassed 9 million square miles at its peak, with some estimates placing its population as high as 100 million people — about 25% of the world at the time. And while Genghis Khan tends to receive most of the credit for that, he didn’t do it alone. There was also Subutai, a Mongol general who conquered 32 nations. Indeed, many sources claim Subutai conquered more land than anyone else in history, including suc...| History Facts
Although it still exists, the telegraph has been all but forgotten in a world dominated by instant digital messaging, relegated to the archives of 20th-century institutions alongside the corner phone booth and the horse and buggy. Yet there was a time when this form of communication was the best and most efficient way to deliver a message across significant distances. Western Union, the largest provider of the service, logged more than 200 million telegrams sent in its peak year of 1929. Give...| History Facts
The 1950s were a transformative decade for transportation in the United States. Factors such as postwar prosperity, suburban living, and a decline in public transit led to a major increase in car ownership. At the start of the decade, approximately half of Americans owned an automobile; by 1960, nearly 75% of Americans owned at least one car, and many owned two. It was the golden age of the automobile. Of course, a car can’t go anywhere without gasoline, so what did this trend mean for the ...| History Facts
If you’ve been to a few weddings, you probably know the flow by now: the vows, the kiss, and then the party, with a few time-honored traditions woven in. One of the most iconic rituals? Guests showering the newlyweds with rice as they make their grand exit. It’s a festive moment and makes for a great photo — but have you ever stopped to wonder where this tradition comes from? What may seem like a simple gesture is actually rooted in centuries of symbolism. That tiny grain of rice carrie...| History Facts
War is full of logistical challenges, one of the major concerns — in conflicts both ancient and modern — being how to feed the armies doing the fighting. Whether it’s Roman legionaries, British Redcoats, or modern infantry, soldiers have always needed a reliable supply of food to maintain both their energy levels and morale. As the old saying goes, “An army marches on its stomach.” Military rations have existed since at least the time of ancient Rome, when soldiers received 2 poun...| History Facts
It’s perhaps the most famous document in American history — the collection of fighting words that formally severed ties with the British Empire and launched a precocious new nation into existence. But while some of its features are familiar to the public, including a few phrases from the preamble and the conspicuous signature of John Hancock, many details surrounding the Declaration of Independence are little known beyond historians of the subject. Not unlike the esteemed local monument...| History Facts
Tracing the development of a nation’s currency can provide a unique glimpse into the nation itself. But currency is complicated — its history often defies a simple straight-line narrative, and there are countless technicalities along the way that threaten to glaze over the eyes of anyone without a degree in economics. So let’s take a look at some of the most interesting moments in the history of U.S. currency, and leave the rest to the economists. The First National Bills Were Called ...| History Facts
From our modern vantage point, the culinary options of bygone cultures are sometimes difficult to comprehend. It seems that hungry people gobbled down anything they could get their hands on, including dormice (rodents), beaver tails, and fish bladder jam. But while some of the choices seem unusual in hindsight, we can at least grasp their nutritional value. Other foods, however, were just downright dangerous to the human digestive system, and certainly wouldn’t have been on the menu had the...| History Facts
Even in this age of internet-inspired distractions, Paul Bunyan remains a well-known figure in the pantheon of American icons. It’s easy to see why when considering his portfolio. A hardworking lumberjack, Bunyan cleared entire forests with a single stroke of his ax; created natural formations such as the Grand Canyon with his sheer size and strength; and was even kind to animals, as illustrated by his longtime companionship with Babe the Blue Ox. No fewer than six towns lay claim to being ...| History Facts
Spend any time gazing at medieval European paintings, and one question tends to emerge: What is going on with those babies? Far from the sweet, chubby cherubs we might expect to see, these infants often resemble balding middle-aged men, complete with wrinkled foreheads and dour expressions. What could possibly explain this bizarre artistic choice? To understand, we have to dive into how European art — and the perception of children — evolved from the Middle Ages to the Renaissance. Religi...| History Facts
According to legend, Johnny Appleseed wandered the Midwestern frontier in the 1800s with a tin pot on his head and nothing on his feet, scattering apple seeds from a sack and winning over settlers and Indigenous peoples alike with his joie de vivre. It all sounds too far-fetched to be real, but unlike Paul Bunyan — another celebrated frontiersman said to have wielded his axe in a similar time and place — Johnny Appleseed’s legend is rooted in truth. Though there are few established fact...| History Facts
The modern English word “history” comes partly from the Latin historia and partly from the French storie (or estoire), but those terms both trace their roots back to the same place. Not coincidentally, that place is one of the bedrocks of Western civilization: ancient Greece. Going back about as far as we can, the word “history” can be traced to the ancient Greek verb οἶδα (heda), meaning “to know.” From there, the Greek ἵστωρ (histōr) arose, which had a variety of mea...| History Facts
The Middle Ages weren’t just shaped by monarchs and wars — they were lived by everyday people whose names appear in the records they left behind. Parish registers, royal charters, tax rolls, and literature give us a glimpse into the history of common names in medieval England and other parts of Europe and what they meant to the people who carried them. Some of the most valuable insights about what people were called, and why, come from medieval books created specifically to record names. ...| History Facts
For a long time, America’s discovery was routinely attributed to Christopher Columbus and his voyage of 1492. But the real story of human arrival in the so-called New World is far more complex than that story would suggest, and spans thousands of years before European contact. Indeed, the very question of who “discovered” America — and for the purpose of this article, we’re focusing on the North American continent specifically — depends largely on how we define “discovery” ...| History Facts
According to popular legend, the English aristocrat John Montagu, the 4th Earl of Sandwich, was engaged in an all-night card game in 1762 when he became distracted by hunger pangs. Not wanting to stop playing, he instructed his servant to bring him a snack of beef between two slices of bread, allowing him to satiate the twin desires of filling his belly and raking in more dough. While he was hardly the first person in history to consider eating food in this fashion — Montagu may have been i...| History Facts
Bell-bottoms have long been synonymous with sailors in the U.S. Navy: Just picture Sailor Jack, the patriotic mascot who first appeared on boxes of Cracker Jack in 1918, or Frank Sinatra and Gene Kelly dancing and singing in the 1945 musical Anchors Aweigh. During World War II, songwriter Moe Jaffe even reworked the lyrics of a bawdy 19th-century English sea shanty into “Bell Bottom Trousers,” a song about a woman’s love for her sailor, who wore “bell bottom trousers, coat of navy blu...| History Facts
The American workforce has transformed dramatically since the 1950s, a decade marked by economic prosperity, suburban expansion, and rapid industrialization. It’s likely that folks at the time couldn’t have imagined how much the U.S. job market would change over the next few decades — or how quickly innovation would make once-common jobs almost obsolete. Careers such as switchboard operator and typist may have seemed stable and essential in the mid-20th century, but time, technology, ...| History Facts
Without question, the $2 bill is the black sheep of the U.S. currency family. Despite being a small enough denomination to fairly easily acquire, the “Tom” — nicknamed for its portrait of Thomas Jefferson — rarely surfaces in day-to-day transactions. In fact, many folks erroneously believe the $2 note to be out of circulation, with some cashiers even refusing to accept these unfamiliar bills. Make no mistake, the $2 bill is very real and remains in regular circulation, albeit at a sma...| History Facts
Much like fashion, the cyclical nature of baby names is influenced not only by cultural shifts, but also by historical events and popular media. For instance, in 1931, the name Bella was ranked No. 985 in the top 1,000 female names by the Social Security Administration, which uses Social Security card application data to determine the popularity of names, before falling off the list entirely for 69 years. We can’t be sure why the name made the list again in the year 2000, coming in at No. 7...| History Facts
Photographs allow us to witness history with our very own eyes, immortalizing brief moments in time that are worth preserving — be it a mother struggling during the Great Depression or a handshake between Elvis Presley and Richard Nixon. Each image has a story behind it that helps explain why those moments maintain their appeal all these decades later. Here are some of the most famous photographs in recent history, and why they matter. “Migrant Mother” (1936) In March 1936, photographe...| History Facts
Endlessly scrolling through Netflix without being able to decide what to watch is an all-too-common problem, but it’s easier to solve if you have a specific genre in mind. And while most of the history dramas streaming on the platform aren’t exactly historical themselves, as Netflix’s catalogue is known to skew toward newer films, that doesn’t mean they aren’t worth watching. Here are five of the best, which tell stories ranging from complex biographies to a single day in World War ...| History Facts
Covered bridges are an idyllic symbol of rural America. These charming, often hand-built structures have been romanticized in popular culture for years, from Thomas Kinkade’s painting “The Old Covered Bridge” to the novel (and film adaptation) The Bridges of Madison County. Despite their dispensability in the age of concrete and steel, these old wooden bridges continue to be beloved landmarks, their distinct roofs making them easily recognizable even today. But what exactly led to their...| History Facts
Middle names are a strange concept. They often lie silent and unused, only to emerge when we fill out official forms and documents, providing an extra piece of proof as to who we are, despite our near-total disregard for the name in our daily lives. In the U.S., a majority of people have a middle name, but only around 4% of people are referred to by it. And, according to a poll by The Atlantic, only about 22% of Americans think they know the middle names of at least half of their friends or a...| History Facts
The invention of the bathing suit as a tasteful, stylish outfit specifically for water-based leisure may go as far back as ancient Rome.| History Facts
The ancient Greeks are widely regarded as the founders of modern medicine. Yet initially, they saw illness as a divine punishment and healing as a literal gift from the gods — beliefs not uncommon in the ancient world. By the fifth century BCE, however, the Greeks began testing and advancing medical theories based on actual scientific observations — cause and effect — rather than spiritual beliefs alone. Three factors began to take prominence in ancient Greek medicine: diet, drugs, an...| History Facts
Much like fashion trends, culinary tastes have changed over time, and once-common dishes have given way to new ingredients, easier preparation methods, and more refined recipes. Desserts, in particular, have seen a rise in popularity over the centuries. Originally served alongside savory items on the dinner table, sweet dishes were moved to the final course of the meal in 17th-century Europe, and cookbooks dedicated to dessert recipes started appearing around the same time.Advertisement The a...| History Facts
Grocery deliveries may be a modern convenience, but the service hearkens back to a bygone era when clinking glass bottles signaled the arrival of the milkman. The milkman (or milkwoman, though the job was usually held by men) is a cherished fixture of American history, as a prominent part of much of the 19th and 20th centuries. While milk remains a staple of the American diet, changes in consumerism and technology have made the once-ubiquitous milkman a relic of the past. Cattle farming was...| History Facts
