Articles by Stuff You Missed in History Class

The framers of the Constitution put the electoral college in place as a compromise, and ever since voters have wondered if their vote counts. Check [Read more]

Alcatraz was one of the United States’ most notorious prisons — isolated on an island and surrounded by sharks. Check out this HowStuffWorks podcast to [Read more]

In the United States, the presidential debate is a time-honored institution. Check out this HowStuffWorks podcast to as our staff writers trace the fact and [Read more]

Marie Antoinette was only ten when Rousseau published the famous ‘let them eat cake’ quote. Check out our HowStuffWorks podcast to learn more about what [Read more]

A donkey and an elephant are the symbols of the U.S. Democratic and Republican parties, but how were these symbols chosen? Check out our HowStuffWorks [Read more]

The Beijing underground city may sound like the stuff of legends, but it’s a real place built to escape Soviets. Check out our HowStuffWorks article [Read more]

Thomas Jefferson’s life was peppered with accomplishments — but what about the disparity between his public image and private life? Check out our HowStuffWorks article [Read more]

John Billington was one of the signers of the Mayflower Compact — he was also the first American murder. Check out our HowStuffWorks article to [Read more]

Versions of the Great Flood float around in nearly every human culture, and Christianity, Islam and Judaism share the overarching plot points of a man, [Read more]

Rasputin, mystic and advisor to the Romanov family in Russia, was distrusted and seemingly immuned to death. How did Rasputin finally die? Check out this [Read more]