HISTORY

Top 10 Decade Defining Dance Moves of the 1990s

Watch These Dance Moves That Defined the ’90s

From the Humpty Dance to the Macarena, these moves were mainstays of ’90s dance floors.

These authors took matters into their own hands.

8 Books You Didn’t Know Were Originally Self-Published

The road to the bestseller list started with a self-financed trip to the printing press for these famed authors.

The Internet Archive is the ultimate boredom-buster.

7 Fun Ways to Use the Internet Archive

The Internet Archive goes beyond the Wayback Machine—it also hosts movies, arcade games, and more.

SS ‘Eastland’ overturned in the Chicago River.

Watch The Oldest Footage of Chicago on Film

Yestervid compiles silent film footage of the Windy City dating back to 1896.

A photo of a woman resembling Patty Hearst, with a weapon in hand, from the robbery of a bank by members of the Symbionese Liberation Army.

9 Infamous Kidnappings From History

On February 4, 1974, publishing heiress Patty Hearst was taken from her Berkeley, California, apartment—but Hearst is far from the only abduction case to have captured public attention.

Ladies riding in a car—or, if you’re using slang from the 1900s, an ‘automobubble’—circa 1901.

38 Terrific Slang Terms From the Last Century

Wastoid, wedgie, and dumpster fire, oh my! In the latest episode of The List Show, you can learn about the fun origins of some pretty wacky and absolutely real slang terms from the last hundred years.

The Accidental Origins of the Super Bowl’s Name

This particular corner of Super Bowl history involves tons of bowl games and at least one bouncy ball.

Search of the Internet Revealed No Evidence of Time Travelers

The researchers analyzed search engines, search data, and social media in hopes of turning up evidence of time travelers.

What Happened to the Physical Copy of Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” Speech?

For two decades, the original copy of Martin Luther King Jr.’s iconic speech was stashed inside a Harry Truman biography for safekeeping.

The Legend of ‘Bum’ Farto, the Key West Fire Chief-Turned-Drug Dealer Who Vanished

In 1975, Bum Farto had it all. A dead body and a drug deal gone wrong changed everything.

Why Do We Use the Word ‘Mug’ as a Synonym for ‘Face’?

How a love of drinking and Britain’s 18th-century Toby jugs might have inspired the slang word for ‘face.’

16 Fascinating Facts About Picasso’s ‘Guernica’

Though it’s now considered one of Pablo Picasso’s masterpieces, ‘Guernica’ didn’t have many fans when it debuted—one critic even called the artwork “one of the poorest things produced in the world.”

The oldest members of Generation Alpha are officially teens as of 2024.

Everything You Need to Know About Generation Alpha—The Children of Millennials

Generation Alpha—the children of Millennials and the kid siblings of Generation Z—was born the same year the iPad was released.

Average Life Expectancies Have More Than Doubled Over the Past 70 Years—Here's Why

In 1900, the global average life expectancy was around 32 years old. Today, it's 71. How did this happen?

100 Things We Learned in 2023

From record-breaking plants and incredible animal news to space superlatives and the awesome power of Taylor Swift fans, here’s the long list of things we learned in 2023.

The dialects of the two countries have been diverging.

13 Words That Differ in the North and South Korean Dialects

The two dialects have transformed to the point that North Korean defectors often struggle with unfamiliar language when arriving in South Korea—so much that the South Korean government publishes a list of commonly confused words to aid new defectors.

Portrait of Alexander Hamilton by Thomas Hamilton Crawford.

11 Surprising Facts About Alexander Hamilton

Even if you've seen the Broadway musical 'Hamilton,' there's probably a lot you don't know about this enigmatic founding father.

An illustration of the Vril-Ya Bazaar and Fete.

The Strange Story of the Vril-Ya Bazaar and Fête, the 'World's First Sci-Fi Convention'

The Vril-Ya Bazaar and Fête was inspired by a popular Victorian science fiction novel—and introduced the world to Bovril.

Barack Obama giving his inauguration speech, 2009.

Listen to Some of the Most Famous Presidential Speeches From History

Listen to inaugural addresses and other speeches from each president from John F. Kennedy to Barack Obama.

From Blue Ball to Intercourse: Why Pennsylvania's Amish Country Has Such Lewd-Sounding City Names

The Amish aren't known for their bawdy senses of humor, but try telling that to the couple snapping a photo under the sign announcing they've arrived at Intercourse.

Barbie and Ken are just two members of the Barbie bunch.

Our 26 Favorite Stories of 2023

From Celine Dion’s “erotic motorcycle” to the crafty female platypus who faked a pregnancy in order to bust out of the Bronx Zoo, 2023 was full of some pretty great stories.

A detail of ‘Green River Cliffs, Wyoming, 1881’ by Thomas Moran

11 Amazing Facts About the Louisiana Purchase

Napoleon needed cash fast, so he made the U.S. an offer it couldn’t refuse.

Why Does the New Year Start on January 1?

Ever wonder why the new year officially starts on January 1? Turns out, you can thank Pope Gregory XIII—and Julius Caesar.

Cooking kids was not a tradition (but sending strange cards was).

11 Unusual Victorian New Year's Traditions

For many Victorians, parties, dancing, and festive spirits were staples of New Year’s celebrations. Yet there were many other odd, quaint, and charming customs that for the most part are no longer with us.

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