Seated portrait of John Wilkes Booth with his hand under his chin

Engraving of the Roman emperor Commodus (161-192), a brutal ruler who precipated the decline of 84 years of prosperity and stability in the empire.

Why No One Can Agree on the Origins of the Potato Chip

Al Capone in Alcatraz: How Public Enemy No. 1 Spent His Time in the Famous Prison

Detail, 'Interview between Francois I and Henry VIII at the Field of the Cloth of Gold on 7 June 1520,' Painting by Friedrich August Bouterwek, 1845

What Was the Titanic’s Captain Doing While the Ship Sank?

painting of the Titanic just as it's going under, with lifeboats in the foreground

How an Anti-Obscenity Crusader Policed America's Mail for Decades

The airship Hindenburg burning after it crashed on May 6, 1937 in Lakehurst, New Jersey.

Greg Daugherty, a&nbsp;longtime magazine editor and frequent contributor to HISTORY.com, has also written on historical topics for Smithsonian, National Geographic Traveler, and other outlets.

Greg Daugherty

Greg Daugherty, a&nbsp;longtime magazine editor and frequent contributor to HISTORY.com, has also written on historical topics for Smithsonian, National Geographic Traveler, and other outlets.

Greg Daugherty Archives | History.com

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HISTORY

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History

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Abraham Lincoln rose from humble frontier roots to become America’s 16th president during one of the most tumultuous periods in the nation’s history. A self-taught lawyer, legislator and outspoken opponent of slavery, he is widely regarded as one of the greatest presidents in U.S. history—revered for preserving the Union during the bitter U.S. Civil War and for ending slavery through his Emancipation Proclamation.&nbsp;

Lincoln

Great Britain

America’s Founding Fathers decided that one elected civilian - the U.S. president - would lead the executive branch of the federal government, a governmental structure that has remained in place for more than 200 years.

U.S. Presidents

Toys

Prisons

Food

Tudor Dynasty

Aviation Disasters

Ancient Rome

Crime has been a dark and powerful undercurrent in human society throughout history. Uncover the facts behind some of the most daring robberies, brazen scams and brutal murders ever committed.&nbsp;

Crime

The Civil War was America's bloodiest and most divisive conflict, pitting the Union Army against the Confederate States of America. The war resulted in the deaths of more than 620,000 people, with millions more injured and the South left in ruins.

Civil War

The Roman Empire, led by rulers such as Julius Caesar, Augustus Caesar, Caligula and Nero, was a vast and powerful domain that gave rise to the culture, laws, technologies and institutions that continue to define Western civilization.

Disasters

In the early 20th century, America was flexing its economic and political muscle on the international stage. The era was defined by the temperance movement, Progressive-era activism, the sinking of the Titanic and World War I.

Early 20th Century US

Escapes

The Cold War rivalry between the United States and the Soviet Union lasted for decades and resulted in anti-communist suspicions and international incidents that led the two superpowers to the brink of nuclear disaster.

Cold War

The Great Depression began with the stock market crash of 1929 and was made worse by the 1930s Dust Bowl. President Franklin D. Roosevelt responded to the economic calamity with programs known as the New Deal.

Great Depression

Though the 19th century saw the rise of populism, the labor movement and Jacksonian democracy, it also ushered in the Gilded Age, when men like Cornelius Vanderbilt and J. P. Morgan wielded control over politics and business.

Greg Daugherty ‑ Stories

How Toys Changed After World War II

Was Commodus the Worst Emperor in Ancient Roman History?

How an Anti‑Obscenity Crusader Policed America’s Mail for Decades

The Hindenburg Disaster: Why the Giant Dirigible Burst Into Flames

How Al Capone Spent His Time in Alcatraz

The Rise and Fall of Telephone Operators

When Henry VIII Wrestled the King of France—and Lost

Who Invented the Potato Chip?

Did the Official 1912 Titanic Investigations Go Far Enough?

What Was the Titanic’s Captain Doing While the Ship Sank?

How Did John Wilkes Booth Die?

Titanic: The Surprising Calm Before the Chaotic Sinking