Cowry shell coins: an ancient monetary system based on sea shells used on almost every continent
Golden Girl Bea Arthur was a truck-driving Marine during WWII
Hattie McDaniel, the first African-American to win an Oscar for her role in ‘Gone with the Wind’, was requested to sit at a segregated table during the award ceremony
The Bath House: One of the best-preserved Roman remains in the world
The 3,200-year-old President Tree is so big it has rarely been captured in one photo
The Louisiana Purchase: Napoleon, eager for money to wage war on Britain, sold the land to U.S.–and a British bank financed the sale
Musicians’ outcry: 17th century viol worth $200,000 severely damaged during a flight
Born a slave, James Beckwourth became not only a mountain man but a chief of the Crow Nation
The Lost Gardens of Heligan in Cornwall, restored after decades of neglect
What happened at the crossroads: Blues legend Robert Johnson and his deal with the Devil
