Madison Horne Archives ‑ History.com

Photos: Presidential Inaugurations Through History

From pomp and circumstance to protests, see how presidential inaugurations have looked over the years.

Extraordinary 1915 Photos from Ernest Shackleton’s Disastrous Antarctic Expedition

When photographer Frank Hurley signed on to document British explorer Ernest Shackleton’s expedition to the South Pole in 1914, he knew he’d be capturing some of the earliest images of Antarctica’s bleak and beautiful unexplored terrain. But after Shackleton’s ship, HMS Endurance, was trapped by pack ice—and slowly succumbed to its crushing pressure—the expedition’s fate, […]

Photos: Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Before and After the Bombs

In early August 1945, warfare changed forever when the United States dropped two atomic bombs on Japan, devastating the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and killing more than 100,000 people. America’s immediate goal was to hasten Japan’s surrender, end World War II and avoid further Allied casualties. But it also wanted to showcase to the […]

Harlem Renaissance: Photos From the African American Cultural Explosion

The New York City neighborhood of Harlem was the center of a cultural explosion from late 1910s through the mid‑1930s. During the Great Migration, Harlem became a destination neighborhood, particularly for African Americans who had left the south in search of new opportunities. At this time, the Harlem section of Manhattan drew nearly 175,000 African Americans to […]

Women of the WWII Workforce: Photos Show the Real‑Life Rosie the Riveters

When the United States entered World War II after the 1941 attacks on Pearl Harbor, men shipped overseas by the millions to serve in the war. This left many of the civilian and military jobs on the home front unfilled—and that’s when women stepped in. Before the war, some women worked in traditionally female‑dominated positions, such as […]

These Photos Show the Harsh Reality of Life in WWII Japanese American Internment Camps

More than 100,000 Japanese Americans were sent to ‘War Relocation Centers’ between 1942 and 1946.

An Intimate View of MLK Through the Lens of a Friend

One evening in 1958, photographer Flip Schulke was covering a rally at a Black Baptist church in Miami where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was speaking. Schulke had spent the past few years documenting the civil rights movement for publications like Life, Time, Newsweek, Jet and Ebony. After the rally, he was invited to meet […]

Dreaming of a White (House) Christmas: 17 Photos

Celebrating Christmas in the White House has been a tradition since 1800. President John Adams and First Lady Abigail Adams were the first to throw a Christmas party in the president’s official residence, but it was not as we know it today. These were intimate gatherings with family and close officials, not decorations designed for the media […]

How Stunning Photos Portraying Native American Life Carry a Mixed Legacy

In the early 1900s, photographer Edward S. Curtis set out on an epic mission: to capture the experiences of Native Americans throughout the American West. Over the span of 30 years, Curtis documented more than 80 tribes west of the Mississippi, from the Mexican border to northern Alaska. After decades of work (funded by financier […]

World War II Ends: 22 Photos of Jubilant Celebrations After Allied Victory

World War II was more destructive than any war before it. During the six‑year conflict, millions of people were injured, landmarks were destroyed and an estimated 45‑60 million people lost their lives. Adolf Hitler‘s rise to power had spelled disaster for Germany and threatened anyone outside of his National Socialist Nazi party. Under Hitler’s sadistic rule, […]

10 Awe‑Inspiring Photos of the Ancient Pyramids of Egypt

The Egyptian pyramids are some of the most incredible man‑made structures in history. More than 4,000 years after their construction, the pyramids still stand as some of the most important and mysterious tombs in the world. Their design remains a true testament to the wealth and power of the ancient Egyptian civilization. Pharaohs of ancient […]

20 Ellis Island Immigration Photos That Capture the Hope and Diversity of New Arrivals

During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, large numbers of people from northern and western Europe traveled in overcrowded ships to immigrate to the United States. They arrived to escape famine and religious discrimination, to buy farmland and cash in on the Gold Rush. This period also saw the beginning of immigration restrictions, starting with the […]