10 Wacky Facts About the Empire State Building
(via Walks of New York) On this day in 1931, the Empire State Building in New York was first opened
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US History
15 Things You May Not Know About Ulysses S. Grant
(via Neatorama) Our 18th U.S. president, born April 27, 1820, Ulysses S. Grant was, like so many of our presidents
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The Unsavory History of Sugar, the Insatiable American Craving
(via Smithsonian) Americans have always taken as much sugar as they could get—but in the beginning, they couldn’t get much.
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11 Well-Read Facts About the Library of Congress
(via History and mental_floss) On this day in 1800, President John Adams approves legislation to appropriate $5,000 to purchase “such
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A Comedy of Errors: The First Congressional Baseball Game
(via Hardball Times) The encroaching clouds burst open, pounding Washington with tremendous rain, thunder and lightning, foreshadowing the electric and
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The Great Girl Scout Cookie Shortage of World War II
(via mental_floss) In the early spring of 1943, Girl Scout Cookie chairwoman A.A. Rabe had some devastating news for residents
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When Cyclists, Not Drivers, Led the Charge for Better Roads
(via Atlas Obscura) In 1909, a section of Woodward Ave. in Detroit was paved, a mile stretch that was not
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Why We Think Outhouses All Had Crescent Moons in Their Doors
(via Atlas Obscura) The rickety old Wild West outhouse with a crescent moon cut out of the door is one
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Inside America’s Last Great Pinball Factory
(via Popular Mechanics) Back in the day, if you lost a quarter to a pinball machine you likely lost it to
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The New York Community That Welcomed 1,000 WWII Refugees
(via Atlas Obscura) In 1944, when Oswego was selected by the U.S. to shelter refugees from Europe, it was chosen
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10 Things You May Not Know About the Pony Express
(via History) On this day in 1860, the first Pony Express mail, traveling by horse and rider relay teams, simultaneously
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V-Mail: the WWII program that scanned GI letters home onto microfilm
(via Retronaut) Shortly after entering World War II, the US military found that delivering immense volumes of mail to and
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