It is a bit surreal to think that while we can’t physically experience history because we’re born in a particular place and time, the power of technology has empowered us to see it, understand it, and make conclusions from it.
Historical Capsule is a dedicated community that pretty much empowers people to do just that. Join us as we take a journey through time in this listicle of iconic historical photos below.
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100,000 Iranian Women March Against The Hijab Law, Tehran, 1979
In 1979 Muslim fundamentalists overthrew the secular monarchy of Iran and the new Theocrats immediately began dehumanizing and subjugating women. I hope anyone in the USA who reads this is taking notes because it might be happening here in 2025.
Elizabeth Eckford Ignores The Screams Of Students On Her First Day Integrated Into A Little Rock High School, 1957
Two Little Kids Dancing On The Streets Of New York City, C. 1940
So, Historical Capsule is a subreddit that’s a “step into the past”. It’s an online depository for old and vintage photographs that tell stories from significant events and moments in history.
The subreddit is home to 50,000 members, being ranked in the top 3%, and encourages open discussion and celebration of all things history.
Anne Frank’s Father Otto, Revisiting The Attic Where They Hid From The Nazis. He Was The Only Surviving Family Member
Ruby Bridges, The First African-American To Attend A White Elementary School In The Deep South, 1960
This is literally what flipped the South from Dixicrats to Republicans. Never forget that the GOP was (and still is) for apartheid.
A Former Slave Named Gordon Shows His Whipping Scars. Baton Rouge, Louisiana, 1863
On the surface, history might sound like a dull and boring discipline. However, if you dig deeper into what it’s all about, you begin to understand just how much essence it has and how much it has to offer in general.
After all, history might be something that’s all about the past, but you’d be surprised just how transformative it might be.
Lonnie Johnson, Inventor Of Super Soaker, 1992
A Lesbian Couple In Semi-Drag Wedding Attire. Kingdom Of Hungary, Budapest, 1920
Following A 23-Hour (Successful) Heart Transplant, Dr. Religa Keeps An Eye On His Patient's Vital Signs. In The Corner, His Assistant Is Sleeping, 1987
The patient lived for 30 more years and outlived the doctor by 8 years. After retiring from active practice, Religa went on to become a politician. He was a good man.
History professor Mary Jo Festle wrote a piece on how history as a discipline transforms students. In it, she explained that since there isn’t realistically any empirical evidence of this hypothesis, she took it upon herself to figure it out.
She asked nearly 60 of her students across 8 different sections of the small research seminars they hosted to give open-ended responses to prompts reflecting upon the change.
Reporters Who Exposed The Watergate Scandal Watch President Nixon Resign, 1974
Woodward and Bernstein. They did an amazing thing. A very corrupt man was elected to the highest office in the land and they, using nothing more than information, took him down.
While Cleaning Up From The World Trade Centers Falling, Crews Found A Shipwreck 7ft Below The Foundation That Dated Back To 1773
A Blind Muslim Named Muhammad Carrying His Best Friend A Paralyzed Christian Who Suffers From Dwarfism Named Samir, Damascus, Ottoman Syria, 1889
If I've learned anything from science fiction movies, it's to make sure these guys are on your side.
One of the main prompts was asking students to describe how their understanding of what history is changed during their studies.
A third of the students provided some form of “I now understand history is not just facts about names, dates, or a chronology of events.”
Remember That Photo Of The Construction Workers Having Lunch On The Unfinished Empire State Building? Well Here's The Photographer Charles Ebbets Taking That Photo, 1932
A Man Browsing For Books In Cincinnati's Cavernous Old Main Library. The Library Was Demolished In 1955
George Mclaurin, The First Black Man To Be Admitted To The University Of Oklahoma In 1948, Was Forced To Sit In A Corner Away From His Classmates
The answers verified the idea that the interpretive nature of history is a crucial lesson that can be considered a threshold concept.
One student elaborated that they realized how much power historians actually have, i.e. the power to construct the past. History is dynamic and a point of debate as a lot of the unknown in it can be argued.
A Father Looking For His Two Missing Sons That Went Missing During The Kosovo War In 1999
A Starving Boy And A Missionary In Uganda, 1980. Mike Wells Took This Powerful Photograph Of A Catholic Missionary Holding The Hand Of A Starving Ugandan Boy
Sharpshooter Annie Oakley Shooting Over Her Shoulder Using A Hand Mirror, Circa 1899
She has said: When men make shots similar to mine, others call it skill. Every time I do it, they call it luck.
Another point to mention is that students didn’t see themselves as books full of facts and figures in history. It’s these same activities of interpreting and analyzing sources, conducting research, looking for influences and biases and challenging what has been read from a critical, multifaceted standpoint, that makes all the difference in the discipline.
Cudjoe Kazoola Lewis: The Last Known Survivor Of The Atlantic Slave Trade Between Africa And North America. (Photo From The Early 1900s)
A Skateboarder Zipping Through Central Park In The 1960s
A 1912 Photo Shows A Woman Plugging In Her Electric Car
Another student pointed out that, before their studies, they enjoyed watching documentaries and furthering their knowledge that way. After them, however, it was an eye-opening experience to understand that they can now discover history for themselves, see how the evidence works and the puzzle pieces fall into place. There’s more of a hands-on approach than meets the eye.
A Filipino-American Family Posing For A Family Portrait, Philippines, 1912
Back when The Philippines were still an American Colony BTW. Just adding some context.
Allied Soldiers Mock Hitler Atop His Balcony At The Reich Chancellery, 1945
Too bad they never caught him or Gobels alive. An easy death was to good for them.
Joseph Goebbels, The Main Propagandist Of The Nazi Regime, Upon Finding Out His Photographer Was Jewish
If anything, the mini study concluded that in 70% of all cases, history topics were personally challenging in terms of values and assumptions about the world. Among these were themes and topics like gender and sexuality, religious history, the Holocaust as well as Nazism. A number of them touched upon issues of race and foreign policy, civil war and ideology.
Greenpeace Tries To Stop Radioactive Waste From Being Dumped In The Ocean, 1982
Rat Pack At The Sands In Las Vegas, Circa 1960
They're all gone. The Sands is gone. The Venetian stands there now.
A Chinese Lady Whose Feet Were Bound From Childhood. Photo From The Late 1800s
This ultimately led to some openly expressing how challenging topics have made them better human beings. One pointed out how Islam studies brought to light racist assumptions. Another changed their opinion on same sex marriage after investigating sources from LGBTQIA+ people. It gave them perspective. Perspective that made them rethink what they thought before.
An Unemployed Man Holding A Troubling Sign During The Great Depression, 1932
I hope he got help. And work in calligraphy, the handwriting is beautiful.
Greasers In New York City, 1950s
That was my Uncle Bobby. The hair, the cigarettes, the leather jacket & jeans! He & my mom grew up in Brooklyn, teens in the 50s.
A True Friend. Taken In A New York Bus Terminal Just Before They Left For The Worsening Situation In The Pacific, 1941
So, what are your thoughts on any of this? Has history changed you, and if so how? Or mayhaps you have an interesting historical story to tell that might fit this listicle. Whatever the case, share your takes and commentary in the comment section below!
And there’s plenty more historical content where that came from.
A Us Marine Gives A Cigarette To A Japanese Soldier Buried In The Sand. Iwo Jima, 1945
An Undercover Police Officer Apprehends A Mugger On The New York Subway, 1985. Photo By Bruce Davidson
Northumbrian Miner Sits Down To Eat His Evening Meal, 1937
My grandfather was a coal miner. He died of black lung when Mom was 11.
In 1963, Wives Say Goodbye To Their Loved Ones In The Navy
Navajo Youth Tom Torlino As He Entered The Carlisle Indian Industrial School In 1882, And Again 3 Years Later
Those schools are easily one of the worst parts of history. [Audible shudder]
View Of Boston, The Oldest Surviving Aerial Photograph Ever Taken. October 13th, 1860
Hot air balloons were used by both Union and Confederate troops during the Civil War. It must have made for a very interesting sight!
The Microsoft Staff, 1978
Last Four Couples In A Dance Marathon, Chicago, Circa 1930
The Rarely Seen Back Of The Hoover Dam Before It Was Filled With Water, 1936
Former Beauty Queen, Miss Wyoming Winner Joyce Mckinney Being Arrested By Police
After kidnapping Mormon missionary Kirk Anderson from his church, forcing him to be her sex slave for 3 days. 1977
An Unknown Woman Stands Close To A Tornado To Take A Photo, 1989
You live in the middle of the US, you get a little desensitized. Like tornado sirens go off, you go out on the lawn and look for it. On a clear day, with so visible a tornado, my guess is they knew how far off it actually was and snapped a quick picture before standing on their porch or the opening of a cellar to see if they'd need to go in and close the door.
Soviet Peasants Listen To The Radio For The First Time, 1928
What Is Now The Fully Developed Las Vegas Strip, 1955
Vegas was once a desert and I'm fairly certain that it will be a desert again someday.
Photo From The Restaurant Windows On The World, Which Sat Atop New York City's World Trade Center's North Tower, 1976
A Young Private Waits On The Beach During The Marine Landing At Da Nang, 1965
The Storyville Jazz Club, Copenhagen, Denmark, 1952
Lenin After His Third Stroke, 1923. This Picture Was Prohibited In Ussr At The Time
Looks like Manson in a snuggie. Crazy eyes (unless the photo was touched up for his eyes, but I don't think so).
Women In Bathing Suits Posing With A Prize Bull, Vancouver, 1927
OK I grew up on a cattle ranch and that is a BIG EFFING BULL!!! That thing is huge! I have honestly never seen one so big.
Anti British Propaganda, Japan 1941
Ironically, with the level of cigar smoking and whisky drinking going on, he would definitely have smelled highly offensive to the modern person.
A Soldier And His Two Girl Friends, Us, 1940s
Thats my grandmother on the left. That wasn't her boyfriend, or girlfriend. Haha
Depression-Era Portrait Of A Working-Class Couple, 1930s
Protester Guy Burmieux Encounters His Childhood Friend, Policeman Jean-Yvon Antignac, On April 6, 1972
Major League Baseball’s All-Star Game In San Diego, 1992
A Salesman Has His Motorized Roller Skates Refueled. Connecticut, 1961
Dang it, I was hoping it was a jetpack (and the wheels were landing gear) before I read the caption. Shoot.
Mickey The Shoeshine Boy, New York, 1947. Photograph By Stanley Kubrick
At 4:31 Am, An Unauthorized Photo Taken Of Stalin Inside Of The Kremlin Shows The Very Moment He Was Informed That Germany Had Began Their Invasion Of The Soviet Union. June 22, 1941
A Hippie Girl Selling Roadside Flowers In Oklahoma, 1973
She's selling flowers, but the guys buying them see something they want a lot more more than flowers. I think the kids these days call it a "Thirst Trap".
Hanging Out On A Californian Beach, 1965
Circus Performer Jimmy Armstrong Having A Smoke Break. 1958
One Of The Last Photos Taken On The Titanic, 1912
James Cameron actually recreated this iconic photo in his movie. It's the beginning of the scene where ride 8 looks at Jack's sketches
Mickey And Minnie Mouse Costumes, 1930s
Mother Hides Her Face In Shame After Putting Her Children Up For Sale, Chicago, 1948
It’s a shame that BP doesn’t save the info from when this photo has done the rounds before, as iirc someone posted that the mother when spoken about it later on didn’t care she sold her four children, and later the one she was pregnant with. Then went onto have another 4 children.
In 1945 A B-25 Bomber Got Lost In The Fog And Crashed Into The 79th Floor Of The Empire State Building. 14 People Died In The Accident
Before anyone goes Loose Change, a B-25 is much much smaller than a Boeing 767. I've already heard that 9-11 truther argument.
A German Orphan Trying To Sell His Father's Iron Cross For Cigarettes In Berlin, 1945
Tattooed Lady At The 1939 New York World’s Fair
Oh Lydia, oh, Lydia, say have you met Lydia Oh, Lydia, the tattooed lady She has eyes that folks adore so And a torso even more so Lydia, oh, Lydia, that encyclopedia
Two Men In A Pillory At The State Prison Of Bibb County, Georgia, 1937
"If A Woman Needs It, Should She Be Spanked?" News Clipping From The New York Daily Mirror, C. 1950s
Drug Store, Detroit. 1955. Photo By Robert Frank
People Stand By A Car Accident In Washington, D.c., 1921
Driving home from the speakeasy. Prohibition in the US, 1920-1933.
French Girl Being Having Her Head Shaved For Having Sex With A German, Montélimar, France, 1944. Photograph By Smith
From my dad's recounting of what happened after the war, I know of 2 women in our very small village who got this treatment without deserving it. Active underground resistance women, who 'infiltrated' and did some good resistance work but because noone knew, they were shaven anyway. If that happened in a small village, you can imagine this happened all over the place. While understandable, people taking the law in their own hand is never a good idea.
A Customer On The Internet At Burger King, 1998
Fittingly enough that's roughly the colour of stale frying grease. Coincidence? I think not.
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American Physicist Harold Agnew Holding The Core Of The Atomic Bomb They Killed 80,000 People In Nagasaki 1945
Jack Wilson, The Most Obese Man In The World Plays A Chess Game Against A Skinny Man, 1932
Children In Front Of The World’s Largest Log Cabin In Portland, Oregon, Us, 1938. Built In 1905 Burned, Down In 1964
Jfk's Funeral At The Capitol. November 1963
The Hole Left By Flight 11 Crashing Into The North Tower Of The Wtc, 9/11/2001
Princeton Sophomores Pose After A Brutal Snowball Fight, 1893
The Highway Of Death, Officially Known As Highway 80. This Is The Result Of Us Forces Bombing Iraqi Forces, 1991
If the yanks hadn't armed and supported the overthrow of the stable and popular Iraqi government in 1958, that would not have happened. They did it because ... drum roll please ... they wanted cheap oil, and negotiating with a dictator is easier than a parliament. That overthrow led from one fascist dictator to another until Hussein took power.
Cigarettes Were Promoted As Being Good For Health, Till Early 1950s
Camel is carefully NOT stating they are healthy or good for you in any way. By using doctors, of course, they are allowing the public to 'make the link in their mind' Tobacco producers knew by this time that cigarettes were carcinogenic and the public was well aware of 'smoker's cough' hence the reference to 'T Zone'
An Extremely Happy Customer For The Release Of Windows '95
What I mostly come away with from this post...most of the BP commenters illustrate how ugly, ignorant, and divisive people are. My faith in humanity is abysmally low.
These pictures, some of them are so historically important and are supposed to show the progress (and in some cases, subsequent regression) we've made with regards basic human rights for minority groups, women etc. I don't understand how people can refute, ignore or downright deny these things happened or worse still, advocate for a return to a time when rights were afforded to very few people. Photographs tell stories. Humanity needs to listen a lot more.
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What I mostly come away with from this post...most of the BP commenters illustrate how ugly, ignorant, and divisive people are. My faith in humanity is abysmally low.
These pictures, some of them are so historically important and are supposed to show the progress (and in some cases, subsequent regression) we've made with regards basic human rights for minority groups, women etc. I don't understand how people can refute, ignore or downright deny these things happened or worse still, advocate for a return to a time when rights were afforded to very few people. Photographs tell stories. Humanity needs to listen a lot more.
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