WEIRD HISTORY
Maggie Lena Walker was one of the most important Black businesswomen in the nation, and today too few people have heard of her. Maggie Lena Walker, from the Scurlock Studio Collection in our Archives Center. By Crystal Marie Moten – Maggie Lena Walker …
By Setareh Janda – Who was Mata Hari? Exotic dancer, courtesan, seductress, spy, and femme fatale: Mata Hari was many things to many different people. But she is perhaps best remembered for the fact that she was executed during World War I …
By Setareh Janda – Anyone who grew up reading Scott O’Dell’s classic Island of the Blue Dolphins was probably captivated by the main character. She is a young woman who lives on an island in the Pacific Ocean totally alone. Her entire tribe has …
By Amanda Sedlak-Hevener – Who was Victoria Woodhull? You might not know her name, but once you hear her story, you’ll never forget her. She was the first woman to run for President of the United States, and as a third-party candidate, no …
An 1801 poll list from Somerset County, New Jersey, held by the New Jersey State Archives in Trenton. At least 46 of the 343 voters on the list appear to be women. Michelle Gustafson for The New York Times. By Jennifer Schuessler …
By Anthony Wood – The road, part of which is seen from above in this image, may have been created as two great ancient powers prepared to square off against one another. Traci Ardren/University of Miami. – Archaeologists have used laser technology to map …
A cave in France contains man’s earliest-known structures that had to be built by Neanderthals who were believed to be incapable of such things. By Robby Berman – Image source: yannvdb/Wikimedia Commons – In a French cave deep underground, scientists have discovered what …
A few traditions in the Roman Catholic Church can be traced back to pagan cults, rites, and deities. By Molly Hanson – Photo by Josh Applegate / Unsplash – The Catholic rite of Holy Communion parallels pre-Christian Greco-Roman and Egyptian rituals that involved …
by Eric Foner – Elected 150 years ago, Hiram Revels was the first. – A few days ago, 300 people gathered in the Old State Capitol in Jackson, Miss., to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the election of Hiram Revels as the nation’s …
Discovered on the island of Lindisfarne, the artifact was likely once part of a Hnefatafl board game set. A piece of worked glass unearthed from the English island of Lindisfarne that researchers suspect may have once been a Viking game piece (Jeff Veitch). …
