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A poster made by Ghazal Foroutan

Was She Really Rosie?

The unlikely, true story of the Westinghouse “We Can Do It” work-incentive poster that became an international emblem of women’s empowerment.

Cabinet of Curiosities

Marshall Islands stick chart, Meddo type

Marshall Islands Wave Charts

Charts constructed of carefully bound sticks served as memory aids, allowing sailors of the Marshall Islands to navigate between the islands by feel.

Suggested Readings

An illustration of a person smelling

Nose Smarts, Apologies, and Haiti’s Meaning in America

Well-researched stories from Smithsonian Magazine, Black Perspectives, and other great publications that bridge the gap between news and scholarship.

Learning to Look

An advertising poster for Brauerei Hölle (Hell Brewery), Radolfzell

What is a Symbol?

A symbol can be any object, character, color, or even shape that represents an abstract concept without explanatory text. But wait, there's more!

Plant of the Month

Watercolor illustration of Plumeria Acuminata commissioned by Scottish doctor and botanist William Roxburgh, late 18th century or early 19th century.

Plant of the Month: Frangipani

An ornamental plant whose white flowers hang over graveyards and temples in Southeast Asia presents complicated questions on national belonging and religious identity.

Most Recent

The Sweet Sixteen of Sneakers on JSTOR

Why should basketball fans have all the March Madness fun? We're running a basketball sneaker bracket. Play along on Twitter.
A train yard in Montgomery, Alabama

The Ballad of Railroad Bill

The story of Morris Slater, aka Railroad Bill, prompts us to ask how the legend of the "American outlaw" changes when race is involved.
Cougar Silhouette

Ghost Cats of the East

Why do people claim to see cougars in the eastern United States when the cats are now extremely rare in that part of North America?
Fairy King and Queen, 1910

Building a Fairy Kingdom in Britain

Around the fourteenth century, folk and literary traditions concerning elves, demons, and other creatures coalesced into a unified fairy kingdom.

More Stories

Cabinet of Curiosities

Marshall Islands stick chart, Meddo type

Marshall Islands Wave Charts

Charts constructed of carefully bound sticks served as memory aids, allowing sailors of the Marshall Islands to navigate between the islands by feel.

Suggested Readings

An illustration of a person smelling

Nose Smarts, Apologies, and Haiti’s Meaning in America

Well-researched stories from Smithsonian Magazine, Black Perspectives, and other great publications that bridge the gap between news and scholarship.

Learning to Look

An advertising poster for Brauerei Hölle (Hell Brewery), Radolfzell

What is a Symbol?

A symbol can be any object, character, color, or even shape that represents an abstract concept without explanatory text. But wait, there's more!

Plant of the Month

Watercolor illustration of Plumeria Acuminata commissioned by Scottish doctor and botanist William Roxburgh, late 18th century or early 19th century.

Plant of the Month: Frangipani

An ornamental plant whose white flowers hang over graveyards and temples in Southeast Asia presents complicated questions on national belonging and religious identity.

Long Reads

A study of facial expression and gesture, 1823

How Upper Lips Got Stiff

The truism that “boys don’t cry” is a Western social convention. Colonialism and imperialism made sure it spread East.
Olivia Hussey and Leonard Whiting join hands in Romeo and Juliet, 1967

Her Bounty Is Boundless

From the first actor—a man—to play Juliet to the “girl boss” version on Broadway, Shakespeare’s young lover offers something new in every iteration.
Samuel Delany at the St. Mark's Poetry Project in New York

Ode to Samuel Delany

Composed half-a-century ago, The Ballad of Beta-2 was a science-fiction vision of the future that speaks directly to our present.
Robert Smalls, born in Beaufort, SC, April 1839

Using Data to Discover and Explore the Stories of Enslaved People

Enslaved: Peoples of the Historical Slave Trade brings together datasets from multiple sources in a single free website that anyone can use.

History is chasing you, America, like a mean dog, and the only way to get it off your back is to turn around and stare it in the face.

Remembering Her Memories: Lucille Clifton’s Generations in Our Time

C. Buddy Creech

C. Buddy Creech: Your Vaccine Questions Answered

Vaccinologist C. Buddy Creech on getting vaccinated, racial disparities, and the lessons we’ve learned after a year of COVID-19.
Jill Lepore

Jill Lepore: How to Respond to the Crisis of Our Institutions

Lepore talks about presidential deceit, why women are often forgotten by history, and the “epistemological crisis” of our era.