Women's Christian Temperance Union lecturing in a crowded bar in Pasadena, CA., 1947

The Forgotten Temperance Movement of the 1950s

Despite the repeal of Prohibition, alcohol consumption was an enormous political issue for many white American Protestants.
Early morning sunlight bathing an inlet on Florida's Emerald Coast

Microbots, Swamps, and the “Chitlin Circuit”

Well-researched stories from Knowable Magazine, Slate, and other great publications that bridge the gap between news and scholarship.
A collection of objects from the civil war

Patriotism and Consumerism in the Civil War

For a burgeoning consumer society, store-bought flags and bonnets offered proof that commercialism could go hand in hand with heartfelt emotion.
Florestine Perrault Collins

Challenging Race and Gender Roles, One Photo at a Time

Florestine Perrault Collins escaped the bounds of prescribed gender roles and racial segregation to run a successful photography studio in 1920s New Orleans.
From the cover of a 1988 issue of The Moral Majority

The Moral Majority: Collection of Primary Sources

The Moral Majority Report and the Liberty Report newsletter from the conservative advocacy group are now on JSTOR. Researchers take note.
Meji Jingu Shrine on December 15, 2012 in Tokyo, Japan

Sacred Trees in Japan

In the modern city of Tokyo, mature forests and trees form a spiritual bridge between past and present.
A butcher processes some meat at Vincents Meat Market on April 17, 2020, in Bronx, New York City

Zombies of the Slaughterhouse

The oppressions of Homo sapiens and other species in the US livestock industry aren’t distinct from one another—they’re mutually constitutive.
Perseus Rescuing Andromeda by Cavaliere D'Arpino, painted on lapis lazuli

Paintings Made of Stone

Renaissance painters incorporated the inherent qualities of stone to produce works of art that revealed the beauty of nature and hand of God.
Crowds in Algiers celebrating their country's Independence Day in the city centre

The Algerian War: Cause Célèbre of Anticolonialism

On July 5, 1962, Algeria declared its independence after 132 years of French occupation. The transition was chaotic and violent, but inspired revolutionaries worldwide.
Humulus Lupulus No. 50 Common Hops, C. S. Rafinesque, Medical flora, 1828-1830. Rare Book Collection, Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection.

Plant of the Month: Hops

As the craft beer industry reckons with its oppressive past, it may be time to re-examine the complicated history (and present) of hops in the United States