Othelia Winger was only doing what young women her age have done for generations: trying out different shades of lipstick. Through a combination of unfortunate circumstances, her cosmetic choice on one November day in 1930 would prove deadly. Tillie was planning to attend a party near her family’s farm in the Town of Bern, just … More Germs From Lipstick Sample Kill Young Woman
Last week I watched a film called The Boy in the Striped Pajamas. It tells the story of the friendship that develops across the barbed wire of a German concentration camp between a captive Jewish boy and the son of the camp commandant. For me, the film’s stunning ending brought tears and a fresh reminder … More From the Liberation of Auschwitz Comes a Cry: Remember
The sky was brilliant and clear as Michael Grzegorski, his wife and five children set off for midnight Mass on Christmas Eve 1918. He urged his children to look up at the central Wisconsin sky. “Look at the stars in the sky and see if you can find the Star of Bethlehem,” he said. As the … More Farmer Dies on Way to Midnight Mass
I recently met a woman tending to her grandparents grave, a bit frustrated by the misaligned bricks that formed a border around the headstone. I asked her a few questions about the bricks, and she told one of the most touching stories I’ve ever heard. Her grandmother died in 1963. Her grandfather visited the cemetery … More Cemeteries Have Great Stories to Tell
As Nazi Germany took an increasing fight to Great Britain, United States Secretary of War Henry L. Stimson warned the day is coming when the U.S. would need to “send its war ships into war zones.” Today’s 75 Years Ago news feature comes from the Belvidere Daily Republican in Illinois. It shows the contrast between pacifist … More 75 Years Ago: the Winds of War
Sir Winston Churchill was a statesman, a military strategist and the prime minister of Great Britain during the perilous years of World War II. He was also a prolific author and one of the most quotable figures of the 20th century. The son of an English father and an American mother, Churchill was given honorary … More Treasured Wisdom from Sir Winston Churchill
Fifty years ago, police foiled an attempt to kidnap a well-known industrialist. Our story comes courtesy of the The Herald-Press of St. Joseph, Michigan. Kidnappers Foiled, Killed! BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. (AP) — Pistols raised, two men crashed into the home of Leonard K. Firestone Thursday night in an apparent attempt to kidnap the wealthy industrialist. … More 50 Years Ago: Police Kill Would-Be Firestone Kidnappers
Oral history is one of the most important arrows in the historian’s quiver. Source documents, photographs, databases and the like offer their own advantages, but audio and/or video interviews deliver information not available with other types of media. It’s one thing to read about someone and the details of their life. But being able to hear … More Preserve Oral History, While You Can
Some of the most memorable images in our archive are old black-and-white photographs that were hand tinted to add color to parts of or the entire photo. Color film eliminated the novelty of that practice. Today we can do the process in reverse to create special, stunning images from even ordinary color prints. A couple … More Color Splash Your Photo Library
American breweries must have known that the era of Prohibition would not last. Some that were officially shut down from 1920-1933 operated as wildcat breweries making black-market beer. The major brewers got creative, marketing malt syrup as a food ingredient, ostensibly for use in making bread and candy. Our featured ad from history is from … More Ads in History: Blatz Malt Syrup
Treasured Lives 