30 “Historical Capsule” Posts That Might Make You Feel Like You’ve Stepped Into A Time Machine (New Pics)
We’re rapidly approaching the new year, pandas, and for most of us, this is a time to look forward. In January, I’m going to start journaling every day, stop ordering takeout and make sure that I call my family at least once a week!
But it’s always a good time to take a peek back on the past too. So today, we’ve got a list of photos that might make you feel like you’ve stepped foot into a time machine. We took a trip to the Historical Capsule subreddit and gathered some of their most fascinating pics below. Enjoy scrolling through these blasts from the past, and be sure to upvote the pics that you find most intriguing!
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Picture Of A Brother And Sister In Chicago, 1945
Anna Coleman Ladd, An American Sculptor Who Turned Her Skill To Make New Prosthetic Masks For Those Injured In The Trenches Of World War One
Late 19th Century Portrait Of A Father And His Daughter
The Historical Capsule subreddit has been around for less than a year, but it has already amassed an impressive 316K members. According to the group’s “About” section, members are invited to “explore fascinating old photos and videos that tell stories from days gone by, share and discuss moments that shaped history, [and] join us in celebrating the beauty of the past, one snapshot at a time.”
This community is filled with photos from past generations that might teach you more about the world your grandparents grew up in or what it was like to go grocery shopping a century ago. Even if you’re not a history buff, I’m sure you can appreciate the beauty of these photos and the fact that they’ve been preserved for so many years!
In The 1930s, A Bank Robber Named "Pretty Boy" Floyd Was Known For Destroying Mortgage Papers On Heists, Freeing Hundreds Of People From Property Debt
I have shared this before but my Great Uncle gave him a ride as he was hitchhiking. He said he was a "nice fellow".
Roman Monument For A Lap Dog- Inscription Says "In This Place Lies A Little Dog After An Accomplished Life, And Sweet Honey Covers His Body . His Name Was Fuscus, And He Was Eighteen Years Old. Barely Could He Move His Limbs In His Old Age . . ."
East German Soldier Helps A Little Boy Sneak Across The Berlin Wall, August 13, 1961
Saw this photo in a book certainly. This was taken on the day that Berlin was divided. The soldier was under orders to not let anyone across into East Berlin, but this boy who lived on the eastern side was separated from his family in the chaos. He helped the boy back across the wire to meet up with his family again, but his superior caught and punished him. It's not known what the soldier's punishment was or what happened to him.
We’re big fans of sharing historical photos here at Bored Panda, so it’s actually not the first time we’ve featured this subreddit. And when it comes to why it’s so important to take time to look back on the past, Linked Frame notes on their blog that photography has completely changed our perception of the past.
Before we had access to photos, everything we knew about history came from stories from family members and teachers, artwork and books. Being able to see what people, places and things actually looked like has given us a much deeper understanding of those times. And we shouldn’t take advantage of that; we should continue looking through the photo albums of the past!
A U.S. Serviceman Shelters A Young Injured Japanese Boy From The Rain In Saipan In July, 1944
War makes everyone look like monsters, but really its thousands of poor men forced to fight against each other. No one wants to go to war except for the country leaders.
It Is Quite Astounding To See The 600-Year Progression From Ancient Greek Sculptures!
Images Of Life Across Iran In The 60s And 70s Portray A Vibrant Kingdom Ahead Of The 1979 Islamic Revolution
Photography has also become an incredibly important tool for social change. Once images started appearing in the news, we weren’t able to turn away from atrocities. And people suddenly had a better understanding of important cultural moments. It’s one thing to know that people were starving during the Great Depression. It’s another, much more heartbreaking realization to see photos of emaciated children and struggling mothers.
One Cowboy And One Cowgirl From The 1880s
A Young Barack Obama Spending Time On The Beach With His Grandfather. 1963
A Pair Of Hammerhead Sharks Depicted In The “Oki National Products Illustration Notes” During The Edo Period In Japan, 1735
Of course, photography also helps us understand ourselves! Societies and cultures are constantly changing. But if you can look back on what your ancestors looked like and how they celebrated holidays, you might be able to put the puzzle pieces together and figure out where your own traditions came from. At the same time, these photos can be saved for future generations to see as well, so your great-great-great grandchildren will be able to understand where they came from too.
Portrait Of Big Foot, A Yankton Sioux Warrior. United States, Around 1870
A Fashionable Baby Stroller In West Berlin, C. 1950
"Ex-Campus Writer Hits The Big Time". A Picture Of Steven King From 1975
Viewing a powerful photo can even be an emotional experience. Perhaps you see an image of an important historical moment that you vividly remember witnessing on the news or hearing about while sitting in the office on your lunch break. When we see photos of these moments, we can instantly be transported back to them and filled with the same emotions we felt back then, whether that was fear, elation, devastation, etc.
Finding Some Shade In France. An Autochrome From 1910. (An Original Color Photograph)
Daguerreotype Of A Young Lady With Great Hair. It Must Have Taken Hours To Style It. Photo From The Late 1890s
She has the face of a girl who says, "Oh God, it took so long to do that damn hair..."
Gazes From Greek Statues, All Around 2,000 Years Old. The Different Eye Colors Were Achieved By Using Paint Or Different Colored Gems
One important point that Linked Frame brings up on their blog is that, nowadays, we rarely see any photos that haven’t been manipulated, or at the very least, edited. And what’s worse is that we sometimes can’t tell the difference between a photoshopped image and something that was snapped right from a camera.
Old photos are magical in the way that they just are. Sure, we can colorize them or attempt to make the images clearer. But we know that women weren’t edited to have smaller waists, and cities weren’t photoshopped to look more appealing.
A Buddha Statue In Afghanistan Before Its Destruction In 1992
British Civilians Take Cover From German Bombs In Aldwych Tube Station In London During The Blitz, 1940
Jerry Springer was born in a tube station. Mile End Station. And during a bombing raid during the Blitz too.
Representatives Of The Health Corps Interview Rural Village Women, 1970s. During The Latter Half Of The Pahlavi Era, Iranian's Women's Literacy Rates Improved At A Rate Of 15% Per Decade, And The Number Of Women Enrolled In Higher Education Increased 1500%
Living in this day and age, we are extremely privileged. We all have the opportunity to create our own, personal photo archives in our phones and on our social media accounts. But because of that, we have a responsibility to share what we want future generations to be able to see. Have you ever considered the fact that your grandchildren may be able to hop onto Facebook and see photos of you at your high school prom? It’s probably a good idea to look at your pages and make a decision about what you really feel comfortable with others seeing.
Bmw Isetta Microcar. Germany 1955
Pouring The Foundation Of The Eiffel Tower, 1887
Bedouin Girl With Face Tattoos In Al-Karak, Jordan, 1907
We hope you’re enjoying this scroll through the past, pandas. Keep upvoting the pics that you find especially captivating, and let us know in the comments below what your favorite images from the past are. Then, you can find another Bored Panda list featuring this same subreddit right here!
Three Successive Telegrams That My Great Grandma Saved (1944-45): That Her Youngest Child Is Mia After His B17 Was Shot Down Over France, That He Is A Pow Of The German Government, And Finally, That He Has Been Liberated By The Allies. 4th Photo Is Him With His Siblings ~1930 (In The Striped Suit)
Inside A German Ub-110 Submarine (The Control Room). C. 1918
The wheels on the sub goed round and round........... the doors on the sub goes open and...... oops
Marine Private First-Class Jerry W. Garner Of Mississippi, 19, Wears The Helmet That Saved His Life When His Gun Team Assaulted An Enemy Position 10 Miles South Of Da Nang, 1969
The Goodwin Family, All Eight Members Tragically Perished In The Sinking Of The Titanic, 1912
Passengers Boarding The British Airship R101. (Cardington, England, In The 1920s.)
Huh. "The loss of 48 lives was more than the 36 killed in the much better-known Hindenburg disaster of 1937, though fewer than the 52 killed in the French military Dixmude in 1923 and the 73 killed when the USS Akron crashed in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of New Jersey in 1933."
Chernobyl Disaster Liquidators On The Roof Of Reactor No. 3, 1986. Photo By Igor Kostin. The White Stripes At The Bottom Of The Photo Were Due To High Radiation Levels
It's like you (BP) doesn't want viewers anymore, with Premium-shenaningans and blocking the full posts. And also paying for dark mode? 25b26d47-4...e_text.gif
Not to worry, [now] we non-premium only can see 29 of them 😑
Load More Replies...It's like you (BP) doesn't want viewers anymore, with Premium-shenaningans and blocking the full posts. And also paying for dark mode? 25b26d47-4...e_text.gif
Not to worry, [now] we non-premium only can see 29 of them 😑
Load More Replies...