James Butler Hickok (May 27, 1837 – August 2, 1876), better known as “Wild Bill” Hickok, was a folk hero of the American Old West known for his life on the frontier as a soldier, scout, lawman, gambler, showman, and actor, and for his involvement in many famous gunfights. He earned a great deal ofContinue reading “Portraits of Wild Bill Hickok, the Most Famous of All Western Gunfighters”
Category Archives: event & history
Here’s the Earliest Known Image of Women’s Hockey, ca. 1890
This 1890 photograph is the oldest-known picture of women playing hockey, taken at Rideau Hall in Ottawa. Isobel Stanley, daughter of Lord Stanley, is seen wearing white.
Scalped in 1867 by Cheyenne in Nebraska, Here’s the Story Behind William Thompson’s Scalp
Scalping is often depicted in old-timey cowboy-and-Indian movies with lots of quavering music and dramatic pauses. But then you see the real scalp under a bell jar and it isn’t so melodramatic anymore. William Thompson’s scalp, archived at the Main Library in Omaha, Nebraska, looks more like some sort of rodent than an impactful partContinue reading “Scalped in 1867 by Cheyenne in Nebraska, Here’s the Story Behind William Thompson’s Scalp”
Portrait of Madam C.J. Walker, the First Black Woman Millionaire in America
Madam C.J. Walker (born Sarah Breedlove; December 23, 1867 – May 25, 1919) was an African American entrepreneur, philanthropist, and political and social activist. She is recorded as the first female self-made millionaire in America in the Guinness Book of World Records. Multiple sources mention that although other women (like Mary Ellen Pleasant) might haveContinue reading “Portrait of Madam C.J. Walker, the First Black Woman Millionaire in America”
March 31, 1889: The Eiffel Tower Is Opened
The Eiffel Tower was built to be the entrance to the 1889 World’s Fair in Paris. Construction was started by Gustave Eiffel’s company in January 1887 and completed in March 1889. On March 31, 1889, the Eiffel Tower is dedicated in Paris in a ceremony presided over by Gustave Eiffel, the tower’s designer, and attendedContinue reading “March 31, 1889: The Eiffel Tower Is Opened”
Family of Nine Living in Field on U.S. Route 70 Near the Tennessee River During the Depression, 1936
A native of Boston, Carl Mydans (1907–2004) was born into a family of second-generation Russian immigrants. He studied journalism at Boston University, where he first learned how to take and develop photographs. After he graduated in 1930, he found work as a reporter for American Banker, but eventually bought a 35-millimeter Contax camera. The ContaxContinue reading “Family of Nine Living in Field on U.S. Route 70 Near the Tennessee River During the Depression, 1936”
60 Vintage Photos of the Anglo-Egyptian Army in Sudan During the Battle of Omdurman on 2 September 1898
The Battle of Omdurman was fought during the Anglo-Egyptian conquest of Sudan between a British–Egyptian expeditionary force commanded by British Commander-in-Chief (sirdar) major general Horatio Herbert Kitchener and a Sudanese army of the Mahdist Islamic State, led by Abdullah al-Taashi, the successor to the self-proclaimed Mahdi, Muhammad Ahmad. The battle took place on 2 SeptemberContinue reading “60 Vintage Photos of the Anglo-Egyptian Army in Sudan During the Battle of Omdurman on 2 September 1898”
The Story of Painless Parker, an Early 20th Century Street Dentist Who Pulled 357 Teeth in One Day
Please help us to continue our work bringing you the best in history on a daily basis. The cost of subscriptions to journals, archives and other media is expensive. We also have the added internet costs. You can help us by subscribing to this page for $5 per month or if you like you canContinue reading “The Story of Painless Parker, an Early 20th Century Street Dentist Who Pulled 357 Teeth in One Day”
Sarah Rosetta Wakeman aka Lyons Wakeman: A Woman’s Life as a Man in the Civil War
In 1940, Jackson Doane, of Binghamton, unearthed a packet of letters, a ring and a picture in his family’s attic from Sarah Rosetta Wakeman, the older sister of Jackson’s great-grandmother. She was a family member that seemed to be little spoken about — and little known. In 1976, Jackson read those letters, discovering that theyContinue reading “Sarah Rosetta Wakeman aka Lyons Wakeman: A Woman’s Life as a Man in the Civil War”
40 Incredible Colorized Photos Show What Life in America Looked Like during the 1930s and 1940s
Street kids at play, Georgetown, Washington D.C., Summer 1935 The Great Depression was the worst economic downturn in the history of the industrialized world, lasting from 1929 to 1939. It began after the stock market crash of October 29, 1929, the “Black Tuesday”, which sent Wall Street into a panic and wiped out millions ofContinue reading “40 Incredible Colorized Photos Show What Life in America Looked Like during the 1930s and 1940s”
