If you need a book, you used to need to look for the most important item in the library — the vintage card catalog.
Old cities and places
On May 18, 1980, an earthquake shook beneath Mount St. Helens in Washington, and triggered an enormous volcanic eruption. Here’s a look back.
If you were alive in the ’70s & ’80s, you know that Vintage 7-Eleven stores weren’t just a place to shop – they were the corner grocery & a place for kids to hang out.
Here are two views of old Rochester, New York – an overhead view from a new-style camera in the ’20s, and also birds-eye views of the city in 1853 and 1961.
When President John Fitzgerald Kennedy was shot and killed in Dallas in 1963, grief was felt all around the globe, and the question of motive has never been definitively answered.
Biltmore is a huge private estate and tourist destination in Asheville, North Carolina with 250 rooms spread over four acres of floor area, and it has 43 bathrooms and 35 bedrooms. See it here!
The founder of Kodak built the George Eastman House, a 50-room Colonial Revival mansion in upstate New York. Now a museum, here’s what it looks like.
As these pictures of old post office buildings show, a lot of architecture from around 1900 was beautiful, ornate and built on a grand scale. Take a look!
A multi-million-dollar family amusement park – Six Flags Over Texas – has brought millions of people to a former strip of pasture.
Look back at Hawaii during the huge tourist boom of the ’60s, which helped thousands fall in love with the state – but also forever changed the islands’ landscape.
Vintage diners descended from the railroad dining car, and often sport shiny metal on the outside and a long counter with stools on the inside. Take a ride back in time to see 40 examples!
When you look back at these old photos of skyscraper construction, you’ll see men way up high without harnesses, walking along beams suspended hundreds of feet above the street, and swinging on cables.
Find out what set in motion the deadly chain of events that led to General Custer’s troops being overwhelmed by Sitting Bull’s force of 8,000 Lakota & Cheyenne during The Battle of Little Bighorn.
In a case study of terrible timing, the huge Habana Hilton hotel in Havana, Cuba, wasn’t even open for a year when it was taken over. Find out more here!
‘Man-eating shark attacks’ made the headlines back in 1916 after there were several attacks and deaths from sharks off the coast of New Jersey and New York. Find out what happened here!
Even before Hawaii became a state in 1959, it was a top tourist destination – and for good reason. See how the tropical islands looked back in the fifties!
In 1971, the latest and greatest addition to Walt Disney’s empire of imagination opened: Disney World. See what the theme park originally looked like here!
The World Trade Center architect talks about how the towers were originally built, and see a collection of photos taken by visitors to NYC during the months and years before they fell.
What were early motorcycles like? Check out 17 of the top models from 1909, plus see how popular they were at the huge Los Angeles motorcycle meet!
A look back at some of Florida’s historic hotels — the most magnificent resort hotels of the Victorian era, and where — and if — they stand now.
See scenes from the San Diego’s World’s Fair – a venue with gorgeous scenic beauty in a matchless climate – that took place from 1915 to 1917.
Up in Wyoming, the Cheyenne’s Frontier Days festival featured bronco riding, a wild horse race, stage hold-up, hanging bee, cow-pony races, etc. and other rodeo events.
Woodstock was supposed to be ‘3 days of peace and music’ – but as these stories from right after the concert describe, it didn’t exactly end up that way.
So this is Hollywood! (1922) If they hadn’t improved on the 1890 model bathing suit, Mack Sennet wouldn’t be where he is today. But if
Nestled between the spectacular Maui coastline and the rolling green hills of a lush pineapple plantation is Maui’s luxurious Kapalua resort. Take a look back!
As you can see from these Vintage Coney Island photos & postcards, This beach area just outside New York City was one of the most popular resorts in the United States.
With these vintage Disneyland tickets, visitors could enjoy their choice of dozens of Disneyland rides and attractions in Fantasyland, Tomorrowland, Frontierland and Adventureland.
On the inside of the pedestal of the world-famous New York landmark is the Statue of Liberty poem, written by Emma Lazarus to welcome immigrants and visitors to America.
Son the crooks and turnings and devious wanderings of Old Boston landmarks and byways would be nothing more than a memory of the past.
Before air conditioning and refrigerators existed, here’s how peolple managed to stay cool during the great New York heat wave of 1911.
How did the great Gold Rush of 1849 get started? Find out its history, how it made people rich and poor – and helped make California what it is today.
The Boston Tea Party resulted from at least four important historical factors, and was, in fact, the catalyst for the Revolutionary war for independence.
See damage caused by the St Louis tornado in May 1896 – considered one of the deadliest on record with at least 255 lives lost – and get the whole story.
Here’s a look back at vintage Las Vegas in its ’60s & ’70s heyday – plus scenes of the new city before then, and a surprising history of the Nevada desert locale.
Find out more about World War II’s important military offensive, the Battle of the Bulge, and see several pictures from the snowy scene.
Take a little 60-year leap back in time, and see how San Francisco looked back in 1955 in this video homage to the city by the bay.
New York City has provided entertainment to millions over the years. See vintage seating charts from some of the city’s most famous theaters!
Dive back into the past with these 16 views of beautiful San Francisco in the ’70s – from the skyscrapers to the bridges and everything in between.
See inside an old general store in Oregon that sold everything pioneers needed — from food to tools, shoes to stoves.
Take a look back at ten old roller coasters from the early 1900s, and admire the courage of the riders who sat down in those rickety little cars and sped off into the wild blue yonder.
The Great Blizzard of 1888 lasted from March 11 through March 14, 1888, and is considered to be one of the most severe recorded blizzards in American history.
In 1922, Washington DC had their biggest snowstorm in 34 years, and in many ways, it brought the city to a halt. Here’s a look at the nation’s capital covered in snow so long ago.
Here’s what it was like to vacation in Texas 100 years ago – there were wide-open spaces, small cities, and lots of ranches.
The golden poppy was named California’s official State flower in 1903, and the orange blossom is now popularly known as the California Poppy.
Without the kind of winter weather equipment we take for granted, removing snow from city streets and sidewalks was a huge undertaking. Here’s a look!
Find out about the movie Breakfast at Tiffany’s, get some behind-the-scenes from the actual jewelry store, and hear from Audrey Hepburn herself in this collection of articles from the 1960s.
In bright and beautiful color, see some of the most beautiful sights in and around Utah’s Salt Lake City in 1900 – including the Mormon Temple, the Tabernacle, the Salt Palace, and the impressive Victorian Saltair Pavilion!
How did America get its name? The man from whom the continents got their names was an especially fascinating character of the late 15th century.
Armsmear, the Connecticut mansion also known as the Samuel Colt House, was built on a huge plot of land owned by the inventor of the famous firearm. See what this grand and spacious Victorian home was like in its heyday!
At the start of the Watts Riots, rumors of police brutality during an arrest quickly spread, and a crowd began to form. It was the flashpoint for rioting and rebellion that had been simmering under the surface of Los Angeles that summer.
To this day, the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire in New York on March 25, 1911, remains the deadliest industrial disaster in the city’s history,
When long-distance travel was a novelty, travelers were sure to send plenty of postcards to the folks back home, Here, see 15 different postcards views of Portland, Oregon, as it appeared in the the late ’30s and early ’40s.
