The Decadent Art of Butter Sculpture
Butter sculpture is a fixture of American state fairs. The practice of using food as a medium for art dates back centuries.
New Graduates’ Favorite JSTOR Articles
When JSTOR saved the day...Recent college grads remember the articles that helped them with their research before graduation.
Who Doesn’t Like Healthy School Lunches?
The Trump administration’s decision to relax nutrition standards for school lunches is the latest development in a century-long fight.
Was Christine Jorgensen the Caitlyn Jenner of the 1950s?
“What is femininity anyway?” Jenner writes in her new book, The Secrets of My Life. Perhaps the famous trans woman Christine Jorgensen knew.
Our Lady of Political Anxiety
From Our Lady of Fatima to the 1949 Virgin Mary sighting in Wisconsin, what do Marian sightings reveal about our political anxieties?
When American Schools Banned German Classes
When American troops headed to Europe for WWI, hostility to all things German intensified across the country. Schools even banned German fairy tales.
Grief? There’s an App for That.
Would you want to be able to talk to a loved one after they'd passed away, knowing it wasn't really them? Would it help? Would it hurt?
Why Retirement Age Is 65 (And Why It’s Getting Higher)
Is there something magical about age 65? The history behind the retirement age involves economics, aging, and Otto von Bismarck.
The Story of the Invention of the Potato Chip Is a Myth
Everyone knows the potato chip was invented in Saratoga Springs, NY in 1853. Except it wasn’t.
Race and Labor in the 1863 New York City Draft Riots
In July 1863, over a thousand Irish dockworkers rioted against the Civil War draft in New York City in a four-day upheaval, targeting black workers and citizens.