How a French Midwife Solved a Public Health Crisis
Angélique Marguerite Le Boursier du Coudray revolutionized childbirth in France through education, building a detailed birthing mannequin.
Two Drops of Life: India’s Path to End Polio
On the eve of its 6th polio-free anniversary, India immunizes over 170 million children, despite a lack of roads, reinfection threats, and a periodic mistrust of vaccines.
How Training Bras Constructed American Girlhood
In the twentieth century, advertisements for a new type of garment for preteen girls sought to define the femininity they sold.
P.S., Mushrooms Are Extremely Beautiful
American mycologist Violetta White Delafield painted over 600 stunning watercolors of mushrooms as part of her fieldwork. Here they are in all their glory.
Doris Day Changed Us Forever
What did women coming of age in the 1950s think of Doris Day in Calamity Jane? Does her filmography have the same meaning now?
Why Did the Suffragists Wear Medieval Costumes?
Medieval costume was a standard feature of U.S. women’s suffrage parades, often with one participant designated as Joan of Arc.
The Latent Racism of the Better Homes in America Program
How Better Homes in America—a collaboration between Herbert Hoover and the editor of a conservative women’s magazine—promoted idealized whiteness.
On the 100th Anniversary of the Negro Leagues, a Look Back at What Was Lost
A century ago, teams from eight cities formally created the Negro National League. Three decades of stellar play followed.
How Saint George’s Dragon Got Its Wings
As time went on, the dragons in Russian iconography slowly became more Western in style—just like Russia itself.
Darwin in Love
Charles Darwin, who of all people should have known better, married his first cousin. Did his love for Emma color his later works?