Where Did Zip Codes Come From?
How a plan for getting the mail delivered faster allowed targeted marketing to grow.
Why Do Police Use Tear Gas When It Was Banned in War?
The development of chemical warfare around the time of World War I led to the use of tear gas as a weapon by civilian police forces.
Institutionalized Racism: A Syllabus
How can we help students understand George Floyd's death in the context of institutionalized racism?
One Parallel for the Coronavirus Crisis? The Great Depression
“The idea that the federal government would be providing emergency relief and emergency work was extraordinary,” one sociologist said. “And people liked it.”
Baseball History and Rural America
Baseball's creation myth is bunk, and historians have shown how important cities were to the game's development. But it was still a rural passion.
The Surprising Backstory of Victory Gardens
In World War I, the Victory Garden movement encouraged people to grow their own food to conserve home-front supplies. But kids' gardens had planted the roots.
Nurses Have Always Been Heroes
Nothing drives that home more than this amazing photo collection from the Philadelphia General Hospital School of Nursing.
Has the U.S. Government Abandoned Birds?
Recent changes to the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918 leave birds vulnerable to industry, experts say.
How Harry Truman Rose to Fame Curbing War Profiteers
Right when the U.S. needed supplies for World War II, military contractors started overcharging. An obscure senator from Missouri challenged them.
How Tucson Enforced Its 1918 Mask Requirement
During the influenza pandemic, the Arizona city's police force fined and arrested people for not wearing face masks.