Historical Files

Historical Files Journey through the wonders of prehistory and ancient times.

Before modern plastics and high-tech foams, the first bike helmets were simple leather caps packed with sawdust. This ba...
01/06/2026

Before modern plastics and high-tech foams, the first bike helmets were simple leather caps packed with sawdust. This basic design was born in the 1890s for daredevils riding dangerous 'penny-farthing' bikes with giant front wheels.

Forged in the frozen hell of Soviet gulags, an army of Polish exiles fought their way to freedom, only to face the blood...
01/06/2026

Forged in the frozen hell of Soviet gulags, an army of Polish exiles fought their way to freedom, only to face the bloody slopes of Monte Cassino. They captured the iconic monastery in May 1944, a symbol of faith and perseverance against both N**i and Communist tyranny.

Some say prisons are only for punishment, but a quiet program in facilities across the U.S. is saving two lives at once....
01/05/2026

Some say prisons are only for punishment, but a quiet program in facilities across the U.S. is saving two lives at once. Inmates chosen for this work care for and socialize cats that were once scheduled for euthanasia at high-kill shelters, building their first bonds of unconditional love.

A lion's roar isn't just heard; it's felt across continents. Clocking in at ~114 decibels, it's as loud as a chainsaw an...
01/05/2026

A lion's roar isn't just heard; it's felt across continents. Clocking in at ~114 decibels, it's as loud as a chainsaw and can travel over five miles of open savannah.

Japan has over 9 million empty homes in what should be one of the most crowded nations on Earth. Entire rural villages a...
01/04/2026

Japan has over 9 million empty homes in what should be one of the most crowded nations on Earth. Entire rural villages are being left to rot, creating a 'ghost house' crisis of immense scale.

A 16th-century Dominican nun named Plautilla Nelli ran a thriving art workshop in Florence and painted Europe's first-kn...
01/04/2026

A 16th-century Dominican nun named Plautilla Nelli ran a thriving art workshop in Florence and painted Europe's first-known female-painted *Last Supper*. Despite praise in her lifetime, the monumental work was lost in convent storage for 450 years.

The Perseid meteor shower, sometimes called the 'tears of St. Lawrence,' was first recorded in 36 AD. This August, it pe...
01/03/2026

The Perseid meteor shower, sometimes called the 'tears of St. Lawrence,' was first recorded in 36 AD. This August, it peaks August 12-13, lighting up the sky with up to 100 shooting stars per hour.

In 1979, two friends invented a game while playing Scrabble. Rejected by every major game company and forced to sell the...
01/03/2026

In 1979, two friends invented a game while playing Scrabble. Rejected by every major game company and forced to sell their creation at a loss, they kept the faith.

In 1821, exiled on the remote island of St. Helena, Napoleon Bonaparte died. While doctors officially declared stomach c...
01/02/2026

In 1821, exiled on the remote island of St. Helena, Napoleon Bonaparte died. While doctors officially declared stomach cancer, whispers of arsenic poisoning have persisted for over two centuries, fueled by questionable evidence and passionate theorists.

In 1916, a five-ton circus elephant named Mary was found guilty by public opinion. To save his business, her owner compl...
01/02/2026

In 1916, a five-ton circus elephant named Mary was found guilty by public opinion. To save his business, her owner complied with demands for a brutal ex*****on. The town of Erwin, Tennessee, orchestrated a hanging using a 100-ton railroad crane, witnessed by 2,000 people.

For centuries, captains were baffled when their ships suddenly stopped moving in calm waters, trapped by an invisible fo...
12/31/2025

For centuries, captains were baffled when their ships suddenly stopped moving in calm waters, trapped by an invisible force they called 'dead water.' New research suggests this strange phenomenon may have actually doomed Cleopatra's fleet during the Battle of Actium in 31 BC.

In September 2007, the European Space Agency launched a capsule of microscopic tardigrades into orbit to test their resi...
12/30/2025

In September 2007, the European Space Agency launched a capsule of microscopic tardigrades into orbit to test their resistance to the vacuum of space. After ten days of exposure to cosmic radiation and extreme cold, these "water bears" were rehydrated back on Earth where they successfully reproduced.

Address

1942 Broadway
Boulder, CO
80302

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Historical Files posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Shortcuts

Share