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This Instagram Account Shares Lesser-Known Historical Facts, And Here Are 40 Of The Most Interesting Ones
History isn't just about the past. By learning about those distant people and events, we also understand what shaped the present.
And while nothing will replace sound academic literature, every once in a while, it's healthy to balance it out with other forms of content, reinvigorating our passion for the subject.
That's why we at Bored Panda like covering online projects like 'Weird History' or 'Everyday History Facts.'
This time, we're inviting you to take a look at 'Amazing History', an Instagram account that focuses on the visuals and shares lesser-known historical pictures in an attempt to broaden its followers' horizons. Here are some of the gems it has shared so far.
More info: Instagram
This post may include affiliate links.
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#2
50 Years Ago They Tried To Stop Katherine Switzer From Running The Boston Marathon Because She Was A Woman. Last Month, At 70, She Ran It Again Wearing The Same Number
According to author, historian, and storyteller from the UK Dave Tonge, history can offer a lot to a person.
"It really depends on the type of history being taught," Tonge told Bored Panda. "I, like so many people, was fed a never-ending list of dates — of great battles and Kings and Queens. In other words, the history of the so-called 'great and good'. It's the kind of history that drives many away from the subject because it's 'elite' history that they cannot relate to."
#3
1963
#4
On January 19, 1981, Heavyweight Champ Muhammad Ali Became So Upset When He Found Out That A Vietnam Veteran Was About To Commit Suicide Near His Home, That He Dashed To The Scene In Just Four Minutes. Not Only Did Ali Prevent The Man From Killing Himself, He Also Personally Drove Him To The Hospital
Tonge, however, has always been interested "in the history of the common people (as presented in court documents, for example) and also in the history of riots and rebellions, where the poorer folk whose interests were not represented by the Church and State, rose up against the ruling classes."
"That's why I also got into storytelling; in the folk tales that people shared in the alehouse and by their own hearth at home, again we hear poorer voices coming through and learn something of their ideas, dreams, and beliefs that often conflicted with that of the ruling classes," he explained.
#5
1940s Polio Outbreak
#6
Madam CJ Walker in her Ford
#7
American Aircraft Carrier
History is such a vast subject, one person can't possibly know it all. So Tong believes that its enthusiasts should focus "on periods, or rather events that lead to great changes, especially with regard to ideas and beliefs as well as leading to great social change."
"In medieval times, that might be events like the Black Death, which killed nearly half the population of Europe, but in doing so resulted in momentous changes for those who were left," the historian highlighted. "For example, fewer people had greater opportunities to escape the feudal system that had seen poor families tied to one master and the land upon which they were born."
#8
This Is A 392-Year-Old Greenland Shark That Was Recently Discovered In The Arctic Ocean. He's Been Wandering The Ocean Since The Early 1600s!
#9
Polish Girl, Lidka, 21, Member Of The Resistance, During Warsaw Uprising 1944. Survived The War, Died In 1993
#10
Hedgehog
When it comes to the UK in particular, Tonge thinks momentous events like the Reformation and the English Civil war are also important because "not only do they mark changes to our religious and political system, but also they see poorer folk beginning to formulate their own ideas and beliefs separate to the church and state. "
#11
Two Brave Armenian Women Pose With Their Rifles Before Going To Battle Against The Ottomans - 1895
#12
Joe Medicine Crow
Agnes Jekyll 2 years ago
He lived an amazing life, and died at 102. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Medicine_Crow
#13
Three-Year-Old Peggy Kennedy, A Polio Patient, Smiles At Therapy Ducks In A Pail Of Water. 1956
#14
Letter From A Trapped Coal Miner Says Goodbye To His Wife, 1902
Kayla J 2 years ago
Fraterville Mine disaster Jacob Vowell and his son Elbert along with about 200 other miners were killed "“Ellen, darling, goodbye for us both. Elbert said the Lord has saved him. We are all praying for air to support us, but it is getting so bad without any air. Ellen I want you to live right and come to heaven. Raise the children the best you can. Oh how I wish to be with you, goodbye. Bury me and Elbert in the same grave by little Eddie. Godbye Ellen, goodbye Lily, goodbye Jemmie, goodbye Horace. We are together. Is 25 minutes after two. There is a few of us alive yet. Jake and Elbert Oh God for one more breath. Ellen remember me as long as you live Goodbye darling.”
When it comes to choosing the right sources to get started, Tonge always recommends older history books aimed at school children.
"I'm talking about textbooks from the 1950s and 60s, because they tended to have a lot more detail than the very basic children's history books of today and often refer to original sources many of which are included," the historian explained.
#15
A Reusable Shopping List From The 1920s
#16
Oxford, U.k
#17
225-Million-Year-Old Petrified Opal Tree Trunk Located In Arizona
#18
Job Hunting 1930's
But Tonge's collections like Tudor Folk Tales or Medieval Folk Tales for Children are also great choices because their characters often relate to real historical figures or archetypes from various time periods and everything is based on legit historical documents.
But if it's more memes that you're currently after, check out our piece on History Memes Explained, a cool social media project that not only collects but also dissects the best memes about our past.
#19
Chief Iron Tail
#20
A Peruvian Elongated Skull With A Metal Plate Surgically Implanted, Estimated To Be From About 2000 Years Ago. The Broken Bone Surrounding The Repair Is Tightly Fused Together Indicating It Was A Successful Surgery
Gaby Almodovar 2 years ago (edited)
I don't know, why are most people today thinking, that our ancestors 2-3 or more thousand years ago, were "dumber" as the 21st century people. Sure, the technology was not as advanced, like today's is, but they had the knowledge.
#21
Two Guards From Delhi Durbar With James Ricalton, An American 🇺🇸 Photographer Who Visited India In 1903
#22
2019
#23
This Is The Rms Queen Elizabeth Pulling Into New York With Returning Us Servicemen In 1945. Finally Ww2 Is Over
#24
1500 Year Old Tree, Located In South Africa. The Oldest Living Thing On Earth
Full Name 2 years ago
That is not the oldest tree. There are several trees considerably older.
T. D. Bostick 2 years ago
There's a tree one village over from me that's almost this old. That's not impressive, or accurate.
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Who Panda 420 2 years ago
This is amazing but I thought I had heard that the oldest thing on Earth was actually a forest of some fungus or lichen?
Douglas K Kurtz 2 years ago
It is not the oldest thing on earth, not by a long shot, there's two bristlecone pine trees in New Mexico that are 4,300 years old,, just saw them yesterday
René Grünfeld 2 years ago
This tree in Iran saw Alexander the Great on his way to India. The Sarv-e Abarkuh or Cypress of Abarkuh is about 4,500 years old. The height of Sarv-e Abarkuh is 25 to 28 meters, and its perimeter is 11.5 meters at the trunk, and it becomes larger, at 18 meters, up around the branches. Some believe that Noah the prophet planted the seed of this cypress. Others, however, believe that the prophet Noah’s son, Japheth, planted the seed.
There is another story that tells Zoroaster planted the tree. This theory is a bit stronger because there is a very old mosque near the tree which belongs to the followers of Zoroaster and has certain associations with the tree. To the followers of Zoroaster, cypress was also symbolic of everlasting life, just like fire. Iran-2016-...c16615.jpg 
Auntriarch 2 years ago
Baobabs are wonderful. We used to call them barebums, I blush now for my childhood self
René Grünfeld 2 years ago
This tree saw Alexander the Great on his way to India. The Sarv-e Abarkuh or Cypress of Abarkuh is about 4,500 years old, it is thought Iran-2016-...348f61.jpg 
UpupaEpops 2 years ago
"The Sagole Baobab (also Sagole Big Tree, Muri kunguluwa (i.e. tree that roars), or Muvhuyu wa Makhadzi) is the largest baobab tree (Adansonia digitata) in South Africa. It is located east from Tshipise, in Vendaland, Limpopo Province and has a trunk diameter 10.47 metres, circumference 32.89 metres." -Wikipedia
Gavin Johnson 2 years ago
Blah, blah, blah oldest this, oldest that, Keith Richards. Not only the oldest but he will outlive all other things and watch the sun go down on the last day of our civilisation.
Riley Quinn 2 years ago
Methuselah, a bristlecone pine in the White Mountains of California, stands at the ripe old age of about 5,000, making it the oldest known non-cloned living organism on Earth.
clive apps 2 years ago
not the oldest but up there https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/oldest-living-things/index.html#:~:text=Methuselah%2C%20a%20bristlecone%20pine%20in,cloned%20living%20organism%20on%20Earth.
#25
Tinder During 1901
However, if it's more memes that you're after, check out our piece on History Memes Explained, a cool social media project that not only collects but also dissects the best memes about our past.
#26
Country Store On Dirt Road, North Carolina In 1939
#27
This Skeleton Of A Roman Man, Who Was Crushed By A Flying Stone Slab During The Eruption Of Mount Vesuvius Nearly 2000 Years Ago, Was Discovered In May Of 2018
#28
South Dakota 126 Years Ago. Indian Chiefs Who Had Council With General Miles And Settled The Indian War. 1. Standing Bull, 2. Bear Who Stands And Looks Back, 3. Has The Big White Horse, 4. White Tail, 5. Living Bear, 6. Little Thunder, 7. Bull Dog, 8. High Hawk, 9. Lame, 10. Eagle Pipe
#29
Fossil Trees As Tall As Modern-Day Redwoods Have Been Found In Northern Thailand. This Petrified Trunk Measures 72.2 Meters In Length, Suggesting That The Original Tree Would Have Been Over 100 Meters Tall. Its Approximate Age Is 800,000 Years
#30
Just Rare In 1964, Ringo Starr Snapped A Photo Of Some High School Students Who Had Skipped Class To See The Beatles During Their First Trip To The United States
#31
1943 - Last Photo Of The Legendary Nikola Tesla
#32
Jacob Miller
Chinmayee Kalghatgi 2 years ago
He looks like he’s wearing a bindi except it cost a lot of pain to get it
#33
Young Oyster Shuckers, Josie, Six Years Old, Bertha, Six Years Old, Sophie, Ten Years Old, Port Royal, South Carolina, 1912. Work Began At 4 Am. Photo By Lewis Hine
#34
Union Blue And Confederate Gray Veterans Reunite At Gettysburg In The Year 1913 — Standing By “The Bloody Angle” Where Pickett’s Charge Took Place 50 Years Earlier And Over 3,000 Soldiers On Both Sides Lost Their Lives — Now They Clasp Hands Over The Stone Wall As Brothers
The Starsong Princess 2 years ago
Civil War reunions, attended by both sides, were very common at the end of the 19th century and early 20th. Former soldiers would meet up with friends they had not seen in decades and formerly reconcile with the other side. The last great reunion was in 1938 on the 75th anniversary of Gettysburg.
#35
A German Woman With Her All Belonging Sitting Alone In War Ruined Cologne. 1945
#36
A Triple Decker Bus. Germany, Berlin, 1926
#37
US Veterans Of Four Different Wars, That Lived In The Same Town Of Geary, Oklahoma - 1940s
Katherine Boag 2 years ago
These days to be a veteran of 4 US wars, you only need to have 'served' 1 year...
#39
Archaeologist And A Child From Pompeii
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What do you think ?
Miklós Nagy 2 years ago
Pretty sure I already saw this list. On this site. At least five time.
Who Panda 420 2 years ago (edited)
It's possible they get recycled but it's the comments that change and make it different... sometimes. Sometimes I've seen "new" ones with 3 yr old comments
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Ranch Dressing 2 years ago
A lot of these posts need fact checking. Someone needs to do that at Bored Panda, please
Ivy at Eve 1 year ago
The mirror in the zoo, in Antwerp there was one too (in Dutch). Sometimes, I miss that mirror.
Mariele Scherzinger 2 years ago
Why do they have some posts with and some without buttons to up / downvote?
Miklós Nagy 2 years ago
Pretty sure I already saw this list. On this site. At least five time.
Who Panda 420 2 years ago (edited)
It's possible they get recycled but it's the comments that change and make it different... sometimes. Sometimes I've seen "new" ones with 3 yr old comments
Load More Replies... Ranch Dressing 2 years ago
A lot of these posts need fact checking. Someone needs to do that at Bored Panda, please
Ivy at Eve 1 year ago
The mirror in the zoo, in Antwerp there was one too (in Dutch). Sometimes, I miss that mirror.
Mariele Scherzinger 2 years ago
Why do they have some posts with and some without buttons to up / downvote?
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