20 Not-Well-Known Historical Facts You Won't Learn in School

Carly Tennes Published 09/05/2024 in wow

Of all the things we've learned in our school history classes — that in 1492, Columbus sailed the ocean blue, how a stitch in time saved nine, and whatever the heck there is to know about the Teapot Dome Scandal — more than a few important tidbits fell by the wayside.

For example, did you know that we live closer in time to the T-Rex than the T-Rex did to the Stegosaurus? Or that bats almost played an integral role in World War II bombings?

From Annie Oakley's side hustle to the woman who is widely considered to be the first female president of the United States, here are 20 shocking facts you most certainly did not learn in history class.

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1.
“Sharks are older than the rings on Saturn.”
2.
“The fax machine is older than the doorknob.”
3.
“You may not want to visit the shore town of Sheerness in England; what with all the unexploded ordinance right off the coast that someday *might* become the largest non-nuclear explosion made by man…”
4.
“The Great Papago Escape. The Allies had POW camps for German soldiers. One of those camps was in Arizona. On the night of December 23, 1944, twenty-five Germans tunneled out of Camp Papago Park, near Phoenix, Arizona, and fled into the surrounding desert. The German plan was to escape by rafts on a nearby river. They dragged their rafts with them and escaped into the desert only to find the map was showing waterways that only existed during the monsoons. They had to walk back to the camp to avoid dying in the desert. Today Papago Park is a popular tourist attraction but there is no sign of the camp or tunnels.”
5.
“Nelson Mandela was listed as a terrorist threat (and remained on the terrorist watch-list) in the USA up until 2008.”
6.
“The British pet massacre. In 1939, about 400,000 cats and dogs were killed in order to prepare for World War II food shortages. This was approximately 1/4 of the pets in England.”
7.
“The name Tiffany has been in use since the 1600s.”
8.
“During World War II, the United States military developed a plan to use bats as bombs. The idea was to attach small incendiary devices to bats and release them over Japanese cities at night. The bats would then roost in buildings, and when the devices detonated, they would start fires, causing chaos and destruction. While the project, known as "Project X-Ray," never saw combat, it's a bizarre example of the lengths to which military strategists were willing to go during the war.”
9.
“The ancient Greeks, inventors of democracy, would elect their officials to one year terms. Each officials' finances were audited at the beginning and end of their term. If anything was amiss, they would be tried and executed.”
10.
“We put man on the moon before wheels on suitcases.”
11.
“Woodrow Wilson was mentally and emotionally incapacitated by a massive stroke in October 1919, and his wife and doctors essentially ran the country until Harding took office in 1921. Some historians refer to Edith Wilson as ‘the first female president.’”
12.
“The last use of the guillotine in France and the release of the first Star Wars movie occurred in the same year - 1977.”
13.
"The United States government intentionally poisoned 10,000 people by spiking the alcohol they drank during prohibition."
14.
“The year 536 was deemed the worst year to be alive. Volcanic eruptions caused prolonged dark sky for up to 18 months. This then caused a mini ice age, crop failures and plague over the next 10 years killing millions.” [statue]
15.
“The first person to attend an integrated school only qualified for full Social Security benefits two years ago.”
16.
“Sharpshooter Annie Oakley had a stage act where she would shoot a cigarette out of someone's mouth. While she was touring Europe, Kaiser Wilhelm Il of Germany surprised everyone on a whim and insisted on holding the cigarette. Ever the professional, Oakley shot the cigarette without harming the Kaiser. Several years later WWI is underway and the US goes to war against Germany. Oakley wrote a letter to Kaiser Wilhelm asking if she could have another try at that shot. He didn't reply.”
17.
“It took about 4 times longer to get from copper swords to steel swords, than it took from steel swords to atomic bombs.”
18.
“We are closer to the time of the T-Rex than the T-Rex is to the time of the Stegosaurus.”
19.
"Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes (1841-1935) lived long enough to shake hands with both John Quincy Adams and John F. Kennedy."
20.
“Picasso, Bruce Lee and JRR Tolkien all died the same year.”

1.
“Sharks are older than the rings on Saturn.”
2.
“The fax machine is older than the doorknob.”
3.
“You may not want to visit the shore town of Sheerness in England; what with all the unexploded ordinance right off the coast that someday *might* become the largest non-nuclear explosion made by man…”
4.
“The Great Papago Escape. The Allies had POW camps for German soldiers. One of those camps was in Arizona. On the night of December 23, 1944, twenty-five Germans tunneled out of Camp Papago Park, near Phoenix, Arizona, and fled into the surrounding desert. The German plan was to escape by rafts on a nearby river. They dragged their rafts with them and escaped into the desert only to find the map was showing waterways that only existed during the monsoons. They had to walk back to the camp to avoid dying in the desert. Today Papago Park is a popular tourist attraction but there is no sign of the camp or tunnels.”
5.
“Nelson Mandela was listed as a terrorist threat (and remained on the terrorist watch-list) in the USA up until 2008.”
6.
“The British pet massacre. In 1939, about 400,000 cats and dogs were killed in order to prepare for World War II food shortages. This was approximately 1/4 of the pets in England.”
7.
“The name Tiffany has been in use since the 1600s.”
8.
“During World War II, the United States military developed a plan to use bats as bombs. The idea was to attach small incendiary devices to bats and release them over Japanese cities at night. The bats would then roost in buildings, and when the devices detonated, they would start fires, causing chaos and destruction. While the project, known as "Project X-Ray," never saw combat, it's a bizarre example of the lengths to which military strategists were willing to go during the war.”
9.
“The ancient Greeks, inventors of democracy, would elect their officials to one year terms. Each officials' finances were audited at the beginning and end of their term. If anything was amiss, they would be tried and executed.”
10.
“We put man on the moon before wheels on suitcases.”
11.
“Woodrow Wilson was mentally and emotionally incapacitated by a massive stroke in October 1919, and his wife and doctors essentially ran the country until Harding took office in 1921. Some historians refer to Edith Wilson as ‘the first female president.’”
12.
“The last use of the guillotine in France and the release of the first Star Wars movie occurred in the same year - 1977.”
13.
"The United States government intentionally poisoned 10,000 people by spiking the alcohol they drank during prohibition."
14.
“The year 536 was deemed the worst year to be alive. Volcanic eruptions caused prolonged dark sky for up to 18 months. This then caused a mini ice age, crop failures and plague over the next 10 years killing millions.” [statue]
15.
“The first person to attend an integrated school only qualified for full Social Security benefits two years ago.”
16.
“Sharpshooter Annie Oakley had a stage act where she would shoot a cigarette out of someone's mouth. While she was touring Europe, Kaiser Wilhelm Il of Germany surprised everyone on a whim and insisted on holding the cigarette. Ever the professional, Oakley shot the cigarette without harming the Kaiser. Several years later WWI is underway and the US goes to war against Germany. Oakley wrote a letter to Kaiser Wilhelm asking if she could have another try at that shot. He didn't reply.”
17.
“It took about 4 times longer to get from copper swords to steel swords, than it took from steel swords to atomic bombs.”
18.
“We are closer to the time of the T-Rex than the T-Rex is to the time of the Stegosaurus.”
19.
"Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes (1841-1935) lived long enough to shake hands with both John Quincy Adams and John F. Kennedy."
20.
“Picasso, Bruce Lee and JRR Tolkien all died the same year.”

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1. “Sharks are older than the rings on Saturn.”

2. “The fax machine is older than the doorknob.”

3. “You may not want to visit the shore town of Sheerness in England; what with all the unexploded ordinance right off the coast that someday *might* become the largest non-nuclear explosion made by man…”

5. “Nelson Mandela was listed as a terrorist threat (and remained on the terrorist watch-list) in the USA up until 2008.”

6. “The British pet massacre. In 1939, about 400,000 cats and dogs were killed in order to prepare for World War II food shortages. This was approximately 1/4 of the pets in England.”

7. “The name Tiffany has been in use since the 1600s.”

9. “The ancient Greeks, inventors of democracy, would elect their officials to one year terms. Each officials' finances were audited at the beginning and end of their term. If anything was amiss, they would be tried and executed.”

10. “We put man on the moon before wheels on suitcases.”

11. “Woodrow Wilson was mentally and emotionally incapacitated by a massive stroke in October 1919, and his wife and doctors essentially ran the country until Harding took office in 1921. Some historians refer to Edith Wilson as ‘the first female president.’”

12. “The last use of the guillotine in France and the release of the first Star Wars movie occurred in the same year - 1977.”

13. "The United States government intentionally poisoned 10,000 people by spiking the alcohol they drank during prohibition."

14. “The year 536 was deemed the worst year to be alive. Volcanic eruptions caused prolonged dark sky for up to 18 months. This then caused a mini ice age, crop failures and plague over the next 10 years killing millions.” [statue]

15. “The first person to attend an integrated school only qualified for full Social Security benefits two years ago.”

17. “It took about 4 times longer to get from copper swords to steel swords, than it took from steel swords to atomic bombs.”

18. “We are closer to the time of the T-Rex than the T-Rex is to the time of the Stegosaurus.”

19. "Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes (1841-1935) lived long enough to shake hands with both John Quincy Adams and John F. Kennedy."

20. “Picasso, Bruce Lee and JRR Tolkien all died the same year.”

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eBaum's Picks

1.
“Sharks are older than the rings on Saturn.”

2.
“The fax machine is older than the doorknob.”

3.
“You may not want to visit the shore town of Sheerness in England; what with all the unexploded ordinance right off the coast that someday might become the largest non-nuclear explosion made by man…”

5.
“Nelson Mandela was listed as a terrorist threat (and remained on the terrorist watch-list) in the USA up until 2008.”

6.
“The British pet massacre. In 1939, about 400,000 cats and dogs were killed in order to prepare for World War II food shortages. This was approximately 1/4 of the pets in England.”

7.
“The name Tiffany has been in use since the 1600s.”

9.
“The ancient Greeks, inventors of democracy, would elect their officials to one year terms. Each officials' finances were audited at the beginning and end of their term. If anything was amiss, they would be tried and executed.”

10.
“We put man on the moon before wheels on suitcases.”

11.
“Woodrow Wilson was mentally and emotionally incapacitated by a massive stroke in October 1919, and his wife and doctors essentially ran the country until Harding took office in 1921. Some historians refer to Edith Wilson as ‘the first female president.’”

12.
“The last use of the guillotine in France and the release of the first Star Wars movie occurred in the same year - 1977.”

13.
"The United States government intentionally poisoned 10,000 people by spiking the alcohol they drank during prohibition."

14.
“The year 536 was deemed the worst year to be alive. Volcanic eruptions caused prolonged dark sky for up to 18 months. This then caused a mini ice age, crop failures and plague over the next 10 years killing millions.” [statue]

15.
“The first person to attend an integrated school only qualified for full Social Security benefits two years ago.”

17.
“It took about 4 times longer to get from copper swords to steel swords, than it took from steel swords to atomic bombs.”

18.
“We are closer to the time of the T-Rex than the T-Rex is to the time of the Stegosaurus.”

19.
"Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes (1841-1935) lived long enough to shake hands with both John Quincy Adams and John F. Kennedy."

20.
“Picasso, Bruce Lee and JRR Tolkien all died the same year.”