How Florida Got Its Name
506 years ago, Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de León landed in what he christened "Florida." Historians still wonder where the name came from.
A Horse’s-Eye View of the Civil War
Horses and mules played a major role in the American Civil War. In the end, there were about twice as many dead equines as humans.
How the Bay of Pigs Invasion Changed JFK
The disastrous Bay of Pigs invasion, early in John F. Kennedy's presidency, led him to reconfigure his foreign policy decision-making process.
How American Soldier Jessica Lynch Became a Symbol
Jessica Lynch was the first woman American POW to be successfully rescued. She became symbolic in ways that had little to do with the facts of her story.
Voltairine de Cleyre: American Radical
She was a notable anarchist thinker and speaker, but history has largely forgotten Voltairine de Cleyre.
The Untold History of Lynching in the American West
In the aftermath of the Mexican-American War, people of Mexican ancestry were the target of intense racist violence.
The Woman Agrostologist Who Held the Earth Together
When government wouldn't fund female fieldwork, Agnes Chase pulled together her own resources.
Why White Women Tried to Ban Native American Dances
In the early 1920s, reformers obsessed over the sexual nature of some Pueblo rituals, and attempted to control their performance.
Women Made Butter a Behemoth
In the 19th century, butter production became a valuable way for women to profit off their farms-- and it soon became a major agricultural product.
How Sacagawea Became More Than A Footnote
A suffragist searching for a heroine found Sacagawea and lifted her out of historical obscurity.