It’s surprising, and perhaps disappointing, that the Church Committee isn’t better-known. In 1975, Senator Frank Church (D-ID) commanded headlines with his investigation of abuses by the American intelligence community, from domestic surveillance of dissidents to foreign assassinations. Two full-length books … Continue reading History Thread: Revisiting the Church Committee
This week’s History Thread celebrates Katherine Milhous, the famous artist and children’s book writer from the 1930s and 1940s. The daughter of Philadelphia Quakers, she was disappointed at the lack of popular art celebrating her heritage, along with Pennsylvania’s other … Continue reading The Katherine Milhous History Thread
This week’s History Thread celebrates Elbe Day, the occasion where American and Soviet troops met during the final days of World War II. The famous photograph in the header depicts Lt. Bill Robertson of the 69th Infantry Division and Lt. … Continue reading A Handshake in the History Thread
No time for a big write-up so I wanted to feature this wonderful bit of T.E. Lawrence arcana that I just received in the mail: a 1963 reprint of T.E. Lawrence By His Friends. This is a festschrift compiled by … Continue reading The History Thread By Its Friends
Mercifully it’s been almost eight months since this thread’s Nixon-themed header, and what better time to bring back everyone’s “favorite” head-in-a-jar president? Because there’s been a recent flurry of Nixon releases. PBS just released a new American Experience documentary, “The … Continue reading History Thread: Nixon’s Back!!!
Sadly, there was another mass shooting in America yesterday. Bad actors are attempting to blame the shooting on “transgender ideology” (which Elon Musk, among others, has been shamelessly propagating), an idea which is not only shameless but actively dangerous to … Continue reading History Thread: All Assassins are Democrats
Cryptozoology features so many curious, colorful creatures that only buffs would know about many of them. But it’s hard to understand why the Salawa, “a hellish canine creature that is supposed to be a cross between a wolf, a dog, … Continue reading History Thread: The Salawa, or the Failed Making of a Cryptid
In June 1916, the Arab Revolt against the Ottoman Empire erupted. Sherif Hussein of Mecca, head of the Hashemite Dynasty and guardian of the Holy Cities, had been compelled to rebel against Turkish rule due to rumors that Enver Pasha’s … Continue reading History Thread: Bremond of Arabia
On January 3, 1916 Sir Mark Sykes and Francois Georges-Picot devised a secret protocol to divided the Ottoman Empire in the event of an Allied victory in World War I. With Allied troops floundering in their invasion of Gallipoli and … Continue reading History Thread: A Primer on the Sykes-Picot Agreement
Welcome to the glorious History Thread! Apologies for the late sharing, I had planned to take this week off but was compelled by some gloriously stupid correct History Takes on Reddit to share so I don’t flood other threads with … Continue reading The GOOD History Thread
In February 1942, the United States was still adjusting to World War II. Pearl Harbor was only two months past, and Americans entertained fears of an imminent Axis attack on the mainland. Such fears weren’t entirely unjustified: German U-Boats in … Continue reading History Thread: The Los Angeles Terror
On January 5, 1874 the House of Representatives debated a new Civil Rights Act, designed to protect the rights of freedmen as Reconstruction waned in the South. Southern whites, who had never peacefully acquiesced in the first place, were growing … Continue reading History Thread: Robert Elliott and the Rhetoric of Liberty
Henry Brown was born in Virginia in 1815. He grew up in a household that was deeply religious, and like many slaves his Christian faith carried him through the ordeal of bondage. After years of working at a Richmond tobacco … Continue reading History Thread: Henry Brown’s Special Delivery
1905 promised to be a grim and portentous year in the history of the Russian Empire. Russia was entering the second year of its disastrous war with Japan, with the garrison at Port Arthur surrendering after a five month siege, … Continue reading History Thread: Russia’s Bloody Sunday
No prompt this week, but enjoy this picture of Money the Cat. “A real live kitten on the keys, this music-loving feline lends vocal accompaniment to his mistress in Worcester Park, England. As Marion Holland 15, plays the piano, Money … Continue reading The History Thread Sings!
Few images from the Vietnam War, or indeed any war, are as well-known as Eddie Adams’ snapshot of Brigadier General Nguyen Ngoc Loan, the National Police Chief of South Vietnam, executed a suspected Vietcong terrorist. Taken during the height of … Continue reading History Thread: The Shooter in the Photograph
Salutations! The History Thread enters a new year and wants to know, what subjects do you plan/hope to learn more about? Share your prospective interests and perhaps solicit recommendations for books, documentaries, podcasts, etc. as you see fit. I’m hoping … Continue reading The Scholarly History Thread
2022 was a rough year, but at least I got a lot of reading done. Right now I’m curled up with my Library of America edition of Bruce Catton’s Army of the Potomac trilogy, for a cozy, pro-Union narrative history … Continue reading History Thread: Best Books Read in 2022
Today is the anniversary of one of the worst atrocities in modern history, the so-called “Rape of Nanking.” During the Sino-Japanese War, Japanese troops entering the Chinese city behaved with unparalleled brutality towards its residents. I’ll spare you a super-detailed … Continue reading History Thread Remembers the Rape of Nanking
No purpose to the theme but I wanted to use the amazing cover art (courtesy of Josh Kirby, perhaps best-known for his collaborations with Terry Pratchett) from Robert Goulart’s Hail, Hibbler! for a header. I hope I’ll be forgiven. This … Continue reading The History Thread Blasts Off!
Few figures loom larger in America’s liberal demonology than J. Edgar Hoover. In his forty-eight years as Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Hoover transformed a minor arm of the Justice Department into the nation’s most powerful law enforcement … Continue reading History Thread: Beverly Gage’s G-Man: J. Edgar Hoover and the Making of the American Century (2022)
