Soviet food scientists went to work creating foods that would fit Soviet tastes, and one of the resulting creations is still beloved today: the ice cream treat plombir.
The Invention of Jaywalking
The invention of the road as a car-centered space is a relatively new one. For most of history up until the early twentieth century, streets were shared spaces where multiple activities took place
Black Inventor Garrett Morgan
If you’ve done 1860s Unboxed, you learned a lot about traffic lights and even made your own! But you likely wouldn’t have recognized the traffic signals of the 1860s. They took on many forms and were not standardized until well into the twentieth century. By the 1920s though, things had only gotten busier with bicycles, horse-drawn carts, and motor vehicles … Read More
Civil Rights Highlights: Literacy Test
Imagine going to register to vote in your local election. You go to the government office during the appropriate hours and request the form needed to register. Rather than give you the form, they begin to ask you questions. Was your grandfather able to vote? Can you prove that you have completed your education through fifth grade? Can you prove … Read More
Civil Rights Highlight: Gwenn Oaks Park
At History Unboxed®, we are constantly reminded that history is all around us. Living near DC, I’m reminded by the grand monuments and well-known historic sites. But there is a merry-go-round that sits in the middle of the National Mall, flanked by the Smithsonian museums and the Washington Monument, with a hidden history as a symbol of the civil rights … Read More
Give ’em the old Razzle Dazzle
For the ships, the black and white or multi-colored paint jobs confused the U-boat operators enough so that they could not tell if it was one ship or several and made it harder to detect the hull of the ship accurately.
World War I and the Birth of Plastic Surgery
When we think of plastic surgery nowadays, we often think of cosmetic procedures where people want to look younger or more attractive. But plastic surgery has its roots in reconstructive surgery, often to deal with injuries inflicted while at war. The plastic surgeries performed today have their roots in one of the deadliest conflicts of all time: World War I. … Read More
Sports and the Masculinity Crisis of 1900
In the 1900s, there was a crisis of masculinity across the United States and Europe. The Industrial Revolution of the nineteenth century had led to incredible changes in life and work, and many men wondered at their place in the world. What did it mean to be a man? What did masculinity look like? In this changing world, how were men meant to act?
Paris’s Cabarets of Heaven & Hell
These cabarets were different. Rather than the can-can and variety shows of most establishments, the creator, Antonin Alexander, pioneered the themed restaurants that are now so commonplace. But before Rainforest Cafe and Medieval Times, there was Cabaret de l’Enfer.
Memento Mori: Remembering Death Across Time
Memento mori imagery was found throughout medieval Europe in art and architecture. It would often consist of a skull or skeleton.
The Dark History of Human Zoos
In order to reinforce ideas of the backwardness and savagery of Indigenous and non-Western peoples, individuals and governments would set displays featuring not only exotic plants and animals but also people.
Jack the Ripper’s London
You wouldn’t want to have lived in Jack the Ripper’s London. Whitechapel in East London had garnered a reputation for being poor, overcrowded, and crime-ridden even before the infamous murders of 1888. What dangers could be worse than a knife-wielding serial killer? Read on to see!
Haussmann’s Renovation of Paris
The Paris we have today is thanks to Napoleon Bonaparte’s nephew Emperor Napoleon III and a French official with a dream, Georges-Eugène Haussmann.
Barbed Wire and the End of the Wild West
Barbed wire completely changed the landscape both socially and literally. Vast areas that would previously have been impossible to fence were enclosed to keep cattle in place.
John Stuart Mill and Women’s Rights in Victorian England
When we talk about the right to vote for women, we often think of the women who fought in the early twentieth century, but nineteenth-century men and women alike were questioning strict gender roles and the cultural presumptions made about women including philosophers Harriet Taylor Mill and John Stuart Mill. Read our guest blog post to learn more! On May … Read More
1870s Fashion History: Bustles
A funny thing was happening in the 1870s. The expansive skirts that were all the rage in the 1860s were changing and–thanks in part to new inventions in fashion–women’s rears were bigger than ever. Much like today, the fashionable silhouette shifts from year to year. For many years, a bell-shaped silhouette was popular, created by layers of petticoats, then horsehair … Read More
Swimming Inventions of the 19th Century
Peoples around the world have taken pleasure in swimming throughout history and prehistory. Generally, they would swim in the nude or undergarments, like the Japanese fundoshi or a garment similar to boxer shorts in England. But Western concepts of modesty especially in the nineteenth century meant specialized garments for swimming but also specialized machines and jobs!
History in the News: Benin Bronzes
Looted art and artifacts sit in museums across the Western world, but some of these items are slowly making their way home. Some institutions are working proactively to return stolen artifacts while others are refusing any attempts for cultures to regain their cultural materials. The Benin Bronzes are a great way to highlight the complicated politics of repatriation. Let’s see … Read More
From Buta to Kashmir to Paisley
What do Empress Joséphine Bonaparte, a town in Scotland, and a sixteenth-century Persian dynasty have in common? They share the love of boteh, or paisley, designs.
Could You Survive the 1860s?
As we prepare to release History Unboxed 1860s, we here at the HUB ask ourselves: “would we have survived the 1860s?” No decade in the nineteenth century seems to be trying as hard to create things that sicken, maim, or kill. Let’s go over a few.
Angel Island Immigration Station: Ellis Island of the West
While many people immigrated through the better-known Ellis Island in New York, there was not a similar immigration processing station to manage immigrants coming from Asian countries via the West Coast. Angel Island off the coast of San Francisco, California opened as an immigrant detention center in 1910. It processed hundreds of thousands of immigrants mostly from China, Japan, Russia, and South Asia for over three decades until its closure in 1940.