Disaster
Most Pompeii Residents Escaped — The Survivors History Forgot
Modern estimates show the vast majority of Pompeii's 11,000 residents escaped before the pyroclastic surges hit — including a teenage Pliny the Younger, who waited 25 years before writing down what he…
Farmers Were Warned the Dust Bowl Was Coming — and Plowed Ahead Anyway
John Wesley Powell warned Congress in 1878 that intensive grain farming on the semi-arid Great Plains would end in disaster.…
The Reporter Who Invented Mrs. O’Leary’s Cow Later Admitted He Lied
The Great Chicago Fire of 1871 devastated a third of Chicago's population in 36 hours, but the iconic tale of…
The Weimar Republic Was Winning Until One Economic Shock Handed Hitler Power
Germany's Weimar Republic endured revolution, hyperinflation, and a failed Nazi coup — only to be brought down by the Great…
Mount Fuji’s Last Eruption Buried Edo in Ash for 16 Days in 1707
On December 16, 1707, Mount Fuji's southeastern flank exploded open, burying villages, clogging rivers, and raining ash on Edo for…
Boston’s Great Molasses Flood of 1919 Killed 21 and Moved at 35 MPH
On January 15, 1919, a poorly built storage tank in Boston's North End exploded, unleashing 2.3 million gallons of molasses…
Pompeii’s Shattered Ceiling Fresco Is Being Rebuilt from 2,000 Pieces
When Vesuvius destroyed Pompeii, a richly painted ceiling depicting the marriage of Dionysus and Ariadne shattered into more than 2,000…
American Revolution Casualties: Disease Killed More Than Double the Combat Dead
Approximately 17,000 American soldiers died of typhus, dysentery, and disease during the Revolutionary War — more than double the 6,800…
Kublai Khan Sent 4,400 Ships at Japan — Twice, and Lost Both Times
Kublai Khan built the greatest empire the medieval world had ever seen, then hurled the largest armada in history at…
Edmund Fitzgerald Sank in 17 Minutes — and Lake Superior Kept Every Secret
At 7:10 p.m. on November 10, 1975, Captain McSorley radioed four last words — then the Edmund Fitzgerald was gone…
