The Snow Day as Modern Festival
An unexpected day off work and school can take on the trappings of a religious ritual.
Cutex Hooked Americans on Manicures
How a company that started off selling cuticle remover convinced American woman to paint their nails.
The First School Gardens
In the early 1900s, immigration and child labor laws resulted in growing numbers of schoolchildren. Gardens were seen as a way to keep them under control.
Don’t Fear the Sex Recession
We shouldn't see changes in Americans’ sex lives as a single phenomenon with an overarching cause.
The Festival of the Flayed God
The terrifying and gruesome rituals of the Flayed God had a symbolic subtext that was somewhat gentler than one might imagine.
Pop-Culture Preaching in the 1910s
Billy Sunday was a charismatic preacher who brought in thousands to his vaudeville-inspired church services.
When Buddhism Came to America
Buddhism was embraced by the Beats of 1950s America. But some Buddhists felt these converts were engaging with the practice in a shallow way.
When Home Ec Classes Borrowed Babies
In the early-to-mid 20th century, foster children in Canada and elsewhere were placed in practice homes and cared for by home economics students.
White Women’s Role in School Segregation
White American women have long played significant roles in maintaining racist practices. One sociologist calls the phenomenon "social mothering."
When Shoes Were Fit with X-Rays
Fluoroscopes were used in shoe stores from the mid-1920s to 1950s in North America and Europe -- even though the radiation risks of x-rays were well-known.