Woman on a Mission
For pioneering journalist Bessie Beatty, women’s suffrage and the plight of labor were linked inextricably.
A Precautionary Tale
West Germany’s “do no harm” approach to environmental protection—which became known as the precautionary principle—was revolutionary in its time.
The Lives Beyond the Life Sentences
Their lives didn't stop when the judge sentenced them to life in prison. Then what? A 1994 issue of The Angolite profiled the longest-serving Americans.
Urchins of New York and Elsewhere
Remembering the Sky Parlor for lost children and the public’s fascination with those who went astray.
Mary Sidney and the Voice of God
Philip Sidney’s attempt at translating the Psalms ended with his early death. Then, his sister took up the cause—and proved herself the superior poet.
On Drugs and Harm Reduction with Maia Szalavitz
Author of Undoing Drugs and NYT columnist Szalavitz talks history, science, media shifts, politics, and how the US might mitigate its overdose crisis.
See Jane Use a Speculum
In the pre-Roe era, a collective of women known as The Janes took reproductive health into their own hands.
Kolkata and Partition: Between Remembering and Forgetting
In West Bengal’s capital city, suppressing the painful history of the 1947 Partition allows for the celebration of moments of endurance and success.
Bourbon Country
Examining the ingredients—time, grain, government regulations—that have made bourbon an enduring national favorite.
Body Double
Long before the imposture of Anna Delvey, the Tichborne Claimaint swept a nation’s imagination.