America’s Civil War Reviews: Close Quarters, Profound Trauma
The effects of imprisonment on the senses scarred prisoners for the rest of their lives
The Riddle of Sinatra
When Frank Sinatra needed a next level, arranger Nelson Riddle helped him find it
Shiloh Interpretive Markers are Cast Iron Art
The 600 tablets scattered about the site tell the story of the battle with color coding and precise placement
Norton I, America’s First Emperor: Fraud or Genius?
Norton I, Emperor of the United States, was San Francisco's favorite benign fraudster
How Oscar Wilde Captured America’s Fancy
Oscar Wilde came to conquer American with an arched eyebrow and a saucy demeanor
Shaved Heads and Syphilis: A Brief History of Wigs
As Coronavirus-induced shutdowns swept the nation and exposed cracks in many parts of our society, they also exposed another pressing desire—haircuts.
Civil War Artifacts and Oddities for Sale
Want to buy a belt plate? A forage cap? This relic show has them, and more
Civil War Circuses Beloved by Blue and Gray Audiences
Soldiers and civilians flocked to see the freakish and fantastic
Harry Houdini Could Escape Anything—But What About a Lockdown?
While pondering the pandemic, read about the greatest getaway artist ever
Sergeant York: The German Backlash
The Berlin government ordered a historian to write a report calling York's exploit an American lie.
Online Exclusive: How ‘OK’ Became OK With Americans
A 19th-century journalism fad made the abbreviation central to our lingo
Online Exclusive: Scruffy Florida Seafarers Made Their Fortunes Salvaging Shipwrecks
Long before it became Margaritaville, Key West was a boom town built on bad news
