HISTORY.com Editors

On December 7, 1941, a surprise Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor shocked America. These are the stories of veterans who were there.

On the morning of December 7, 1941 Paul Kennedy found himself staring straight at an incoming Japanese aircraft.

Perfect picks for the wanna-be time traveler on your list.

As a first-grader, her image became an emotional symbol for civil rights and educational equality.

Aileen Wuornos, Ed Gein and Dennis Rader left infamous legacies.

These standout titles don’t just recount battles.

Before we carved pumpkins, the Irish chiseled creepy faces onto turnips.

From pagan rituals to costumes and candy corn, discover how Halloween—and its associated traditions—has evolved through the ages.

The practice can be traced to the ancient Celts, early Roman Catholics and 17th-century British politics.

Christopher Columbus' arrival in North America in 1492 undoubtedly changed the world and lives of the Indigenous people he met. But was it for the better?

U.S. presidents have received elaborate welcomes by the British monarchy since 1918.

From its colors to the rendering of a snake-eating eagle, the Mexican flag is packed with symbolism and history.

Preserved by icy waters, the majestic wooden ship of the infamous 1914-1916 Antarctic expedition is revealed in images from the deep of the Weddell Sea.

These people went off the beaten track. Then things went horribly wrong.

Who was the real St. Patrick? Was that legend about the snakes true? And why did so many St. Patrick's Day traditions start in America?

D-Day was a historic World War II invasion, but the events of June 6, 1944 encompassed much more than a key military victory.

These aircraft, tanks, rocket launchers and more serve as the workhorses of American warfare. One has even earned the nickname "the finger of God."

Chris Mellon believes the government should more aggressively gather intel on military UFO sightings, some of which were captured on video.

Civil War secrets found in a battlefield garbage pile. A jewel thief in a powdered wig who hastened Marie Antoinette’s downfall. A Supreme Court showdown started by barmaids. Discover 25 fascinating—and often overlooked—moments that made history.

A brutally drawn-out election in 1271 led to the formation of the secretive, secluded conclave—and quicker elections.

A look back at some pivotal moments in the complicated relationship between the two superpowers.

Which famous French explorer is credited with naming them?

Their backstories may surprise you.

Halloween's focus on horror and make believe has spawned creepy legends, ghost stories—and hoaxes.

From witches to zombies to creepy clowns, the season's hair-raising legends all formed from decades—to centuries—of lore.

The Woodstock music festival may not have been a smoothly run event, but it featured electric moments—musical and otherwise—that made it unforgettable.

A diplomat who used the power of paperwork, a 16-year-old girl who shot Nazis from her bicycle and a teacher who hid Jewish children in baskets were among those who risked their lives to save others during World War II.

The Greenwood district of Tulsa, Oklahoma had flourished as a neighborhood built by Black people, for Black people. In 1921 it was destroyed by a white mob. Get the facts on the attack and subsequent coverup.

The 20-foot piece of the NASA space shuttle was found off the coast of Florida during the filming of the new HISTORY Channel series, 'The Bermuda Triangle: Into Cursed Waters.'

Images show devastation during the 2001 terror attacks, and the tragic aftermath.

Watch videos about the attacks of 9/11 and the aftermath.

The struggle for LGBTQ rights dates at least as far back as 1924 and accelerated in the wake of the 1969 Stonewall Uprising.

He's America's first president. The icon we all think we know. But in reality, he was a complicated human being.

If you’ve ever received an anonymous flower basket at your doorstep on the first day of May, you may have been the recipient of a May Day basket.

This HISTORY Channel podcast, produced in partnership with WNYC Studios, was honored with a 2024 Peabody Award.

Meet the standout soldiers, spies and homefront forces who fought in American conflicts, from the Revolution to World War II.

'After Auschwitz, the human condition is no longer the same. After Auschwitz, nothing will ever be the same.' —Elie Wiesel.

On the morning of 9/11 in New York City, ordinary people picked up video cameras and recorded. This is what they saw—and how they reflected on the experience years later.

The first Indigenous cabinet member in U.S. history, Haaland hails from a lineage of 35 generations based in New Mexico.

These videos showcase the vision and hope John F. Kennedy inspired in Americans—and the immense national grief they shared upon his death.

Stories of a ghostly President Lincoln wandering the corridors and rooms of the White House have persisted for more than a century.

From 'I Have a Dream' to 'Beyond Vietnam,' revisit the words and messages of the legendary civil rights leader.

When Neil Armstrong stepped down a ladder and onto the moon on July 20, 1969, the nation achieved an audacious vision. But there were surprising moments along the way and not everything went as expected.

Some have connected the site with the alleged government coverup of an alien spacecraft crash. Others claim the moon landing was filmed there. If that's not true, what is?

Ellis Island, a historical site in New York City, opened in 1892 as an immigration station and processed more than 12 million immigrants until it closed in 1954.

Chernobyl is a nuclear power plant in Ukraine that was the site of the worst nuclear accident in history when a routine test went horribly wrong on April 26, 1986.

An arms race occurs when countries increase their military resources to gain superiority over one another, such as the U.S. and Soviet Union in the Cold War.

Daniel Boone was a hunter, politician, land speculator and frontiersman whose name is synonymous with the Cumberland Gap and the settlement of Kentucky.

McCulloch v. Maryland was a landmark Supreme Court case from 1819. The court’s ruling asserted national supremacy over state authority.

Julia Tyler (1820-1889) was an American first lady (1844-1845) and the second wife of John Tyler, the 10th president of the United States. Thirty years younger than her husband, Julia married John Tyler two years after the death of his first wife, Letit...

Thelma “Pat” Nixon (1912-93) was an American first lady (1969-74) and the wife of Richard Nixon, the 37th president of the United States. As first lady, Pat Nixon encouraged Americans to donate their time and service to volunteerism, continued preservat...

Letitia Tyler (1790-1842) was an American first lady (1841-1842) and the first wife of John Tyler, the 10th president of the United States. Two years before her husband assumed the presidency, Letitia suffered a debilitating stroke. As a result, she spe...

Ellen Arthur (1837-80) was the wife of Chester A. Arthur, the 21st president of the United States, though she never served as first lady because she died of pneumonia before her husband assumed office. In her absence, the president’s sister, Mary Arthur...

Eliza Johnson (1810-76) was an American first lady (1865-69) and the wife of Andrew Johnson, the 17th president of the United States. Though she supported her husband’s political career, she shied away from the public role associated with it, and did no...

Jane Pierce (1806-63) was an American first lady (1853-1857) and the wife of Franklin Pierce, the 14th president of the United States. Although Franklin Pierce was candid about his political ambitions and was already a rising member of Congress when the...

Florence Harding (1860-1924) was an American first lady (1921-23) and the wife of Warren G. Harding, 29th president of the United States. Energetic, strong-willed and popular, she was an important influence on her husband’s business and political career...

Frances Cleveland (1864-1947) was the wife of Grover Cleveland, the 22nd and 24th president of the United States. Just 21 years old when she became first lady, Frances Cleveland holds a number of distinctions in presidential history: She was the younges...

Hannah Van Buren (1783-1819) was the wife of Martin Van Buren, the eighth president of the United States. Hannah Van Buren died 18 years before her husband Martin was elected president and never served as first lady. Instead, that social role was played...

Helen Taft (1861-1943) was an American first lady (1909-13) and the wife of William Howard Taft, 27th president of the United States and later chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. As a member of a successful Ohio political family, Helen (or Nellie, ...

Ida McKinley (1847-1907) was an American first lady (1897-1901) and the wife of William McKinley, the 25th president of the United States. Her ill health, particularly the onset of epilepsy when she was in her 30s, limited her ability to perform many of...

Claudia “Lady Bird” Johnson (1912-2007) was an American first lady (1963-69) and the wife of Lyndon Johnson, the 36th president of the United States. A strong believer in her husband’s political talents, Lady Bird used her own inheritance to fund his ea...

Lou Hoover (1874-1944) was an American first lady (1929-1933) and the wife of Herbert Hoover, the 31st president of the United States. As a child, Lou developed an interest in nature and the outdoors, a passion she would follow to Stanford University, w...

Louisa Adams (1775-1852) was an American first lady (1825-1829) and the wife of John Quincy Adams, a U.S. Congressman and the sixth president of the United States. The first-ever first lady born abroad, she met her husband while he was serving as a U.S....

Westward expansion began with the Louisiana Purchase and was fueled by the Gold Rush, the Oregon Trail and a belief in "manifest destiny."

Lucille “Lucy” Hayes (1831-89) was an American first lady (1877-81) and the wife of Rutherford B. Hayes, the 19th president of the United States. The well-educated Lucy was the first first lady to have graduated from college, receiving her degree from W...

Martha Washington (1731-1802) was an American first lady (1789–97) and the wife of George Washington, first president of the United States and commander in chief of the colonial armies during the American Revolution. She set many of the standards and cu...

Mamie Eisenhower (1896-1979) was an American first lady (1953-61) and the wife of famed U.S. Army commander and 34th president of the United States, Dwight D. Eisenhower. Ike’s military career kept the couple constantly on the move- in fact, they wouldn...

Rachel Jackson (1767-1828) was the wife of U.S. Army general and President-elect Andrew Jackson, who became the seventh president of the United States (1829–37). She died less than three months before his inauguration. Rachel Donelson was born circa Jun...

Sarah Polk (1803-1891) was an American first lady (1845–1849), wife of James K. Polk, the 11th president of the United States. Compared to most other first ladies of the 19th century, she was deeply involved in her husband’s career and, through him, exe...

Stories about a merrymaking English outlaw go as far back as the 14th century, although it's unclear whether Robin Hood ever existed in the real world.

Mary Boykin Miller Chesnut, (1823-1886) was the author of A Diary from Dixie, an insightful view of Southern life and leadership during the American Civil War. In 1840 she married James Chesnut, Jr., who later served as a U.S. senator from South Carolin...

In 1936, the future looked bright for rigid airships, the hydrogen-filled, lighter-than-air zeppelins. The Hindenburg, Nazi Germany’s pride and joy, spent one glorious season ferrying passengers across the Atlantic. The following year, the airship era screeched to a spectacular halt when the Hindenburg burst into flames while landing in Lakehurst, New Jersey.

Women’s tennis great Billie Jean King was born in California in 1943. The first female athlete to earn more than $100,000 in prize money in a single season, King was also the first woman to be chosen Sports Illustrated’s “Sportsperson of the Year.” The ...

Sandra Day O’Connor, the first female justice confirmed to the U.S. Supreme Court, became known for her dispassionate and meticulously researched opinions.

The Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) is a region on the Korean peninsula that demarcates North Korea from South Korea. Roughly following the 38th parallel, the 150-mile-long DMZ incorporates territory on both sides of the cease-fire line as it existed at the end of the Korean War (1950–53).

Bleeding Kansas describes the period of repeated outbreaks of violent guerrilla warfare between pro-slavery and anti-slavery forces following the creation of the new territory of Kansas in 1854.

Pancho Villa (1878-1923) was a famed Mexican revolutionary and guerilla leader. He joined Francisco Madero’s uprising against Mexican President Porfirio Díaz in 1909, and later became leader of the División del Norte cavalry and governor of Chihuahua. A...

Jacksonian Democracy refers to the ascendancy of President Andrew Jackson (in office 1829 –1837)and the Democratic party after the election of 1828. More loosely, it alludes to the entire range of democratic reforms that proceeded during Jacksons’ tenure—from expanding suffrage to restructuring federal institutions, but also slavery, the subjugation of Native Americans, and the celebration of white supremacy.

U.S. Army general John J. Pershing (1860-1948) commanded the American Expeditionary Force (AEF) in Europe during World War I. The president and first captain of the West Point class of 1886, he served in the Spanish- and Philippine-American Wars and was tasked to lead a punitive raid against the Mexican revolutionary Pancho Villa.

A leading liberal activist and politician, Bella Abzug (1920-1998) was especially known for her work for women’s rights. After graduating from Columbia University’s law school, she became involved the antinuclear and peace movements. In the 1960s, she h...

With her book The Feminine Mystique (1963), Betty Friedan (1921-2006) broke new ground by exploring the idea of women finding personal fulfillment outside of their traditional roles. She also helped advance the women’s rights movement as one of the foun...

Bugsy Siegel rose to prominence in the organized-crime ranks of New York City before he was shot to death in his Beverly Hills home in 1947.

Hanukkah honors the rededication of Jerusalem’s Second Temple.

Eliabeth Monroe (1768-1830) was an American first lady (1817-1825) and wife of James Monroe, the fifth president of the United States. Elizabeth and James spent much of their early married life abroad, where James served as the U.S. minister to several ...

Grace Coolidge (1879-1957) was an American first lady (1923-29) and the wife of Calvin Coolidge, the 30th president of the United States. A former teacher at a Massachusetts school for the deaf, she used her platform as first lady to champion education ...

Abigail Fillmore (1798-1853) was an American first lady (1850-1853) and the wife of Millard Fillmore, the 13th president of the United States. The first first lady to work outside of the home, she met her future husband while she was his teacher at a sc...

Laura Bush (1946-) was an American first lady and the wife of George W. Bush, 43rd president of the United States. As a former public shool teacher and librarian, Laura Bush championed the causes of education and literacy before and during her time in t...

The Alabama claims were brought by the United States against Great Britain for damages caused by Confederate warships built in Liverpool during the Civil War.

Rising from the proliferation of Ethiopianism and Pan-Africanism, Rastafarianism took root in Jamaica following the coronation of Ethiopian Emperor Haile Selassie I in 1930. A spiritual movement based on the belief in Selassie’s divinity, its followers ...

Stokely Carmichael, leader of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, speaks to a crowd in Greenwood, Mississippi in 1964.

In 1763, at the end of the French and Indian War, the British issued a proclamation, mainly intended to conciliate the Indians by checking the encroachment of settlers on their lands.

On October 17, 1989, a magnitude 6.9 earthquake hit the San Francisco Bay Area, killing 67 people and causing more than $5 billion in damages.

On September 21, 1999, an earthquake in Taiwan killed more than 2,400 people, destroyed or damaged thousands of buildings and left an estimated 100,000 people homeless. It was the worst earthquake to hit Taiwan–where quakes are common due to its locatio...

Caroline Harrison (1832-92) was an American first lady (1889-92) and the wife of Benjamin Harrison, the 23rd president of the United States. While first lady, Caroline Harrison worked on behalf of several Washington charities; served as a fundraiser and...