The Little-Known Nantucket-British Deal of 1814
Remembering a strange chapter of history when Nantucket allied itself with Great Britain.
America’s First Woman Astronomer
Maria Mitchell became famous when she discovered a comet in 1847. She didn't stop there, fighting for education and equality for women in the sciences.
Was Mark Twain a Con Man?
A man named Samuel Clemens received funds from the radical abolitionist Boston Vigilance Committee in 1854. It may have been Mark Twain, pulling a prank.
Who Gets to Make Commencement Speeches (and Why)?
Why are battles over just who gets the honor of toasting new graduates—and what they say—always so heated?
Charles Knowlton, the Father of American Birth Control
Decades after Charles Knowlton died, his book would be credited with the reversal of population growth in England and the popularization of contraception in the United States.
Why We Still Use “Horsepower”
Horses were omnipresent in the West until only a few generations ago, but then they were replaced by machines and disappeared from our streets as well as our consciousness.
The Shaker Formula for Gender Equality
Shaker communities seem to have appealed to a lot of women because they offered a respite where their work was honored and respected.
The Long, Winding History of the “Battle Hymn of the Republic”
Julia Ward Howe wrote her most famous poem, the legendary Civil War song, “Battle Hymn of the Republic,” in a single burst of inspiration 156 years ago.
How Thrift Stores Were Born
According to the Association of Retail Professionals, about 16 to 18 percent of Americans shop at thrift stores in any given year.
How Noah Webster Invented the Word Immigration
Noah Webster, author of An American Dictionary of the English Language published in 1828, invented the word "immigration."