When we look back at real moments from the past, we feel this endless curiosity, we want to know what happened, who were the people in the photographs, and what was going on. You usually get to see the people, the places and situations, but we rarely get to read about their stories.
These photos show us those stories we didn’t know about, from meaningful moments in history to just simple everyday events, each photograph offers a glimpse into the world that came before us, making it easier to understand where we come from and how far the road is ahead.
1
Radium girls in a factory, 1922
These women worked painting with radium-based paint, unaware of the severe radiation poisoning that was happening.
2
Babe Ruth’s farewell at Yankee Stadium, 1948
Giving his final salute, and bringing to life one of the most emotional moments in baseball history.
3
Las Vegas in 1947
Before the Strip emerged, Las Vegas was a desert town with only little casinos and hotels.
4
A 102-year-pld Man with his 1928 Rolls-Royce
This man kept and drove the same car for more than eight decades.
5
The Monaco Grand Prix, 1958
This event marked Maurice Trintignant's second win in Monaco.
6
First photo taken underwater, 1899
This photo marked a major step toward underwater exploration.
7
Excavation of the Oseberg ship, 1904
Archaeologist uncovering one of the most well-preserved Viking ships ever found.
8
The elephant’s foot at Chernobyl, 1996
This is the highly radioactive mass formed after the incident. Exposure in the area was so deadly, very few pics exist.
9
The big three at the Tehran conference, 1943
Joseph Stalin, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Winston Churchill meet to plan Allied strategy in WWII.
10
Nurses carrying babies in gas drills, 1940
During WWII, Britain prepared heavily for chemical attacks and they trained staff to protect the infants using this special masks.
11
Māori Battalion performing a Haka, WWII
During training in North Africa. The unit became one of the most celebrated in the New Zealand forces.
12
Painters on the Brooklyn Bridge, 1914
Workers sit casually on the suspension cables while they paint the bridge. Showing how unsafe work was at the time.
13
Opening ceremony at Woodstock, 1969
The legendary music festival began with a massive crowd where you couldn't distinguish any faces.
14
Inside a commercial airplane, 1930
Passenger flights at this time offered an experimental experience.
15
Grace Kelly and Audrey Hepburn backstage, 1950s
The most iconic figures of Hollywood wait backstage at the Academy Awards.
16
Girls delivering ice, 1918
Before refrigerators, blocks of ice had to be delivered daily and these girls were part of that work.
17
Dorothy Counts facing a mob, 1957
At just 15, she just walked into an all-white school in North Carolina. Her courage became a respected image for desegregation.
18
Flower-print flour sacks, 1939
When flour companies learned that struggling families reused sacks as clothing fabric, they began printing patterns to give to the people.
19
Soldier defecting to West Berlin, 1961
Captured at the moment the Berlin Wall was forming, this soldier jumps to escape before the border was sealed.
20
A mother searching for her son, 1947
After the war, families searched for missing loved ones in postwar Europe.
