In 1942, photographer Jack Delano was tasked with capturing a young American man, George Camblair, transforming from a regular US citizen into a battle-ready soldier. These photos depict his striking transformation and document his journey of an average young man into a skilled and disciplined soldier. Each branch of the US military service required different skills, but all new recruits went through a few weeks of basic training, often called “boot camp....

Although most of these structures have long since been replaced by modern steel or concrete bridges, the legacy of the timber trestle lives on through photographs and memories. In this article, we explore the rich history of timber railroad bridges, from their early origins in the 19th century to their eventual decline in the 20th century. Along the way, we’ll examine the design and construction of these massive wooden structures, the challenges faced by the engineers who built them, and the impact that timber bridges had on the growth of North America’s railroad network....

The siege lasted from September 8, 1941, to January 27, 1944, and was one of the longest and most destructive sieges in history, causing considerable devastation to the city of Leningrad (now Saint Petersburg). The total number of human losses during the 29 months of the siege of Leningrad is estimated as 1.5 million, both civilian and military. Only 700,000 people were left alive of a 3.5 million pre-war population....

He spent a whole afternoon, strolling the streets of the town, taking pictures of residents, documenting their everyday life. In a way, Hagerstown could be called the “Everytown” of the 1930s in the US. Hagerstown was founded in 1762 by Jonathan Hager, a gunsmith, fur trader, farmer, and politician. After settling he quickly increased his wealth and expanded his land holdings acquiring over 10,000 acres which he used to layout plans for the town....

Moreover, though contrary to the 1947 Geneva Convention, which mandated the wholesale exchange of all POWs, President Truman’s policy of voluntary repatriation proved highly successful: 47,000 Chinese and North Korean prisoners of war struck a propaganda blow against their Marxist governments by choosing not to return to their homelands. In September, however, 23 American prisoners of war also refused repatriation, sparking a nationwide debate among journalists, politicians, military officials, psychiatrists, and the soldiers themselves....

He became active in the Italian socialist movement in Switzerland, working for the paper L’Avvenire del Lavoratore, organizing meetings, giving speeches to workers and serving as secretary of the Italian workers’ union in Lausanne. In 1903, he was arrested by the Bernese police because of his advocacy of a violent general strike, spent two weeks in jail, was deported to Italy, was set free there, and returned to Switzerland. In 1904, having been arrested again in Geneva and expelled for falsifying his papers, he returned to Lausanne, where he attended the University of Lausanne’s Department of Social Science, following the lessons of Vilfredo Pareto....

Setting off from Roosevelt Field in New York, his world’s first solo flight across the Atlantic Ocean to Paris was not merely a journey of physical distance, but a testament to the relentless pursuit of human progress. This audacious endeavor, undertaken against the backdrop of a society captivated by the promise of flight, thrust Lindbergh into the global spotlight and elevated him into the pantheon of aviation legends. The flight was inspired by Raymond Orteig, a New York hotel owner, who offered a challenge that would ultimately spark one of the most iconic achievements in aviation history—the solo, nonstop transatlantic flight....

What happened to the hats? Until the 1960s, hats were very popular with both men and women, so much so that, for a man, going out in public without a hat was seen as a bit like going out without shoes. Even outdoor laborers wore caps at work. But in the late 1950s and early 1960s, hats quite quickly became entirely optional, especially among young men, and then positively old-fashioned. So what happened?...

But if we take a quick look back, not too far, we’ll find a time when things were quite different – a time without such rules. When cars were new on the roads, both grown-ups and kids didn’t have anything to hold them in place. As parents began to understand that having children in the car could be distracting and risky, they came up with the idea of using something to keep them still....

As a result of the previous deaths of three family members on a Tuesday, Alexander refused to undertake any public functions on that day of the week. On Tuesday, 9 October 1934, however, he had no choice, as he was arriving in Marseilles to start a state visit to France, to strengthen the two countries’ alliance in the Little Entente. While Alexander was being slowly driven in a car through the streets along with French Foreign Minister Louis Barthou, a gunman — the Bulgarian Vlado Chernozemski, stepped from the street and shot the King twice and the chauffeur with a Mauser C96 semiautomatic pistol....

The war involved a fratricidal conflict between the communist Democratic Republic of Vietnam (North Vietnam) and the non-communist Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam), and extended to neighboring Laos and Cambodia; however, it was also a proxy war in a Cold War contest between the communist bloc and the western bloc. North Vietnam had massed support of the Soviet Union and China and their satellite states while South Vietnam had the backing of the United States and its allies....

The epic event became synonymous with the counterculture movement of the 1960s. Woodstock was a success, but the massive concert didn’t come off without a hitch: Last-minute venue changes, bad weather, and the hordes of attendees caused major headaches. Still, despite—or because of—a lot of sex, drugs, rock ‘n’ roll, and rain, Woodstock earned its majestic place in pop culture history. The Woodstock Music Festival was the brainchild of four men, all age 27 or younger, looking for an investment opportunity: John Roberts, Joel Rosenman, Artie Kornfeld, and Michael Lang....

Many of his photographs focused on the lunchtime rituals of factory workers along with everyday street scenes he encountered as he ambled about the rapidly developing region. Adams visited a bowling alley, a forest of oil derricks, and a trailer park, one of many that popped up to meet a fierce demand among the workers for temporary housing. But only a handful of Adams’ images were published by Fortune magazine....

Born in Romania in the early 1900s, Brauner’s journey took an interesting turn in 1930 when he, like many others, sought refuge from the rising tide of Fascism in his homeland and landed in the vibrant artistic hub of Paris. It was in the midst of the City of Lights that he crossed paths with Yves Tanguy and became part of the surrealist group. His paintings from the 1930s are a surrealist tour-de-force, articulating a style that was very influential on later painters....

The 24-year-old Princess was photographed dancing with the actor John Travolta to the music of his 1977 film Saturday Night Fever in the Entrance Hall. The photographs and TV footage of them “gliding around the room” were widely circulated around the world, and the gown came to be known as the “Travolta dress”. The pair danced to some of Travolta’s biggest hits from the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack and ‘You’re The One That I Want’ from Grease, before another Hollywood star, Tom Selleck, cut in for a waltz with Diana....

Vikki Dougan was born Edith Tooker in 1929 in Brooklyn, New York, and was soon sent by her mother to live in boarding school in upstate New York. As a teenager, she began winning beauty pageants, including Miss Coney Island and the eighth annual New York Skate Queen contest, which led to a lucrative modeling career. Her agent recommended she change her name and she took the first name Vikki, after actress Vickie Lester, and began using her mother’s maiden name, Dougan, as her own last name....

These types of advertising posters and cards were hung in offices, shops, hotels, and published in various local and international magazines and newspapers. The ads were supposed to be focused on foreign consumers. Overall, behind carefully barred borders, the automotive industry developed differently from the free market. Technology fell behind; automobile models were often copied from foreign originals. Most popular cars in the Soviet state – Moskviches, Zaparozhets, Volgas, and Pobedas, could only be received by Soviet citizens after waiting in a queue for several years....

They were members of the bushi (warrior) class in feudal Japan and were trained in the use of weapons to protect their household, family, and honor in times of war. They also have an important presence in Japanese literature, with Tomoe Gozen and Hangaku Gozen as famous and influential examples representing onna-musha. Women warriors were not a rarity in feudal japan. The onna-musha lived within a warring culture and with traditions of acquiring indispensable skills in martial arts, archery, and horse riding....

The history of bars in the USA during the 1950s to 1970s was marked by significant changes in trends, culture, fashion, and drinks. This era saw the emergence of various bar styles, including the tiki bars and cocktail lounges of the 1950s, the counterculture bars of the 1960s, and the disco bars of the 1970s. The 1950s was a period of post-war prosperity, and the bar culture of the time reflected this....

These amazing old photographs show Japan’s demae, or delivery men, who braved the crowded streets balancing towers of dozens of piping hot meals on their shoulders to feed the hungry masses. The delivery of food called demae was originally a service for wealthy daimyō (feudal lords) in the 1700s. The wealthy daimyo would send servants to let shopkeepers know that they wanted food delivered to their homes. As time went by, demae became more mainstream and affordable for the middle class....