Almanac
Phil Edwards explains the world through its footnotes. Read more below or watch Almanac on Vox’s YouTube channel.
This tree shows how American history has grown. Now follow the branches through time.
“Big Bird is never just a puppet”: Carroll Spinney has a lot to say about being the world’s most famous bird.
This is how Caligula, Nero, and more of Rome’s most unusual emperors found power.
Pigeons can do a lot more than deface statues.
Why Orson Welles worked obsessively all his life, even once his star had faded.
She was a world traveler, chorus girl, baby buyer, and journalistic hero.
Every wonder what the difference between each color is? It turns out there’s an answer.
Bartolomeo Cristofori’s legacy teaches us a lot about genius in the 18th century.
This is Ultron’s place in the surprisingly long history of the singularity.
6 key moments that made burritos a superstar food.
This is why an obsessed scholar created the most famous map of Atlantis.
Who needs drones when you have a camera and a sense of adventure?
Art is connected. This gorgeous tree shows its many roots and branches.
Kids have been playing with paper for a lot longer than you’d think.
How “Hooker’s Division” gave Washington, DC, its own red-light district.
This is how rock climbers, Eisenhower, and Swiss kids forced you to do pullups.
Some Swedes sent a doughnut to space and then ate it.
New Coke passed 200,000 taste tests. This is why it was still a flop.
A good mainframe could last for decades. This party video shows how its users said goodbye.
In late 1970 and early 1971, Elvis had an ambitious goal: getting the government to fear the Beatles.
These 63 events changed the course of the country. Your state’s key moment may not be what you expect.
You may not even recognize Dick Cheney, Winston Churchill, and Vladimir Lenin with their hair.
Samuel Seymour was 5 when he saw Lincoln get shot. 91 years later, he talked about it on camera.
Lincoln’s death inspired countless responses. Some were the opposite of what you’d expect.
This is what we know — and don’t — about killing Lincoln.
The Titanic was always sold on size. This chart shows the arrogance that doomed it.
The Pony Express only lasted 18 months, but it’s still legendary. This is why.
One thing made America’s first female private eye uniquely qualified.
Jefferson believed mastodons roamed the Wild West, and he brought their bones to the White House. This is why.
Those widgets on the side of the watch are called “complications.” It’s a term with a long history.
When it made its debut, The Great Gatsby was just one book among many. This very small ad proves it.
In the absence of war photography, these sketches are our only images of the Confederate surrender at Appomattox.
This quiz will decide: can you tell political quotes and pro wrestling quotes apart?
94,526 paintings, in one visualization.
These maps show countries as people — and reveal something about their history at the same time.
Cigarettes were a niche product — until a new machine made them a phenomenon.
One unusual law led to the beloved annual tradition.
Kermit the Frog gave a speech about creativity, destroying your childhood in the process.
These maps show that Prohibition wasn’t a flip of a switch — it was a century-long movement.
It’s a throwback, sure, but the illustrations and the knowledge Hughes imparts are timeless.