Back in the 1920s, footwear manufacturers and merchants decided that X-ray shoe fittings could bring in lots of customers – people who would be thrilled to let a recent scientific advance help them find the perfect shoe. There was just a little problem…
The basic concept hasn’t changed much in 100 years, but vintage Erector Sets like these are still popular, still inspiring creativity, and still being used to build everything from mini roller coasters to motorized robots.
Here, see what experts then were saying a century ago about how the height of women has changed over the years. They suggested that women were indeed growing taller – and modern data backs that up.
Who invented television? Unfortunately for anyone looking for a quick answer, the first TV sets weren’t made by one single person — there were several inventors who were incredibly important to its creation and evolution. Here’s a look!
When you look back at how people talked about and used computers in the 1960s, it’s easy to get a feel for how exciting the technological advances were at the time. It was a whole new wild frontier.
Back in 1920, lots of people – including media and leading scientists – thought there was an active society on Mars, and that the Martians wanted to talk to us. Find out why they believe that here.
Even astronomers were wondering if Halley Comet in 1910 would live up to the spectacular sky shows it had given on its previous 75-year cycles. They weren’t disappointed.
The measles vaccine was invented because it was a common but dangerous disease that could cause inflammation of the brain – and could also be fatal.
Look years back at teachers, students and old school classrooms from more than a century ago, and see what education was like back then.
The insights and inventions of Dr George Washington Carver – which he gave freely to the world – revolutionized the South, and helped millions out of poverty.
For years, curious kids have loved experimenting with vintage chemistry sets and science kits like these with countless things to explore!
Nikola Tesla’s life story is notable, as he saw the world of the covered wagon turn into today’s world of electricity & electronics – and he was a big part of how that happened.
Albert Einstein was a man whose life, philosophies, discoveries and theories changed the way we looked at the world, and at life itself. Find out about him here.
Imagine getting paid to think up the wildest retro-futuristic space-age inventions. Back in the ’50s-’60s, that’s what commercial artist Arthur Radebaugh got to do.
Clyde Tombaugh, a Kansas farmer, loved astronomy, and cemented his name in history by discovering Pluto. Here’s how he found it.
Find out how X-rays were discovered, see the earliest X-rays, learn where the name came from, and meet Wilhelm Röntgen – the man behind the innovation.
Jack Swigert, the emergency substitute member of the Apollo 13 crew, is a swinging bachelor with a playboy-type pad — but he would rather fly than play.
Have you ever wondered where products like Formula 409, 7-Up, WD-40 and Preparation H got those famous vintage brand names? Find out here.
Radium earned Marie Curie worldwide fame, and changed the face of medicine. Here, she describes how this historic scientific discovery was made.
Through observation, experimentation and genius, scientist Louis Pasteur was able to create the first rabies vaccine – even though he didn’t exactly know what caused the disease.
Although penicillin was discovered in 1928 by Alexander Fleming, real research and production started in earnest in mid-1941, thanks to World War II.
‘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!
On the way to today’s super-simple, pregnancy test sticks that give results in minutes, women had to use these chemistry set-style vintage home pregnancy test kits, then wait hours for a result.
How the Salk vaccine works to fight polio (from 1955) By Herman N Bundesen, MD – The Plain Speaker (Hazleton, Pennsylvania) May 13, 1955 The
Back in the ’70s, this ‘New Facts About Marijuana’ pamphlet alarmed parents nationwide, telling them ‘Never have so many turned on with drugs and dropped out of society.’
Advance easy-to-read Colorstick pregnancy test sticks (1987) Now you can be positive… even if it’s negative. Easy-to-read Colorstick Only Advance has an easy-to-read Colorstick that
A rancher sparked the Roswell UFO conspiracy theory when he saw flying discs that disappeared and reappeared. Before long, UFO-mania took over the country.
In the ’50s, doctors started testing Thorzaine on patients – a drug capable of powerful, sweeping effects on the emotions, used for schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.
Albert Einstein’s wife, Elsa, may not have been a scientist – but she understood her husband, at least.
Never having to come up from underground? Cars routinely going 130 MPH? Completely automated cleaning? Solar power dominant? See these and many more predictions from 1906!
A confused and stunned nation searched for answers to what caused the catastrophic explosion of the space shuttle Challenger that sent schoolteacher Christa McAuliffe and six other astronauts to a fiery death 74 seconds after liftoff Tuesday.
Back when radium was first discovered, people loved that it was new and cool and it glowed… so companies decided to put it into a variety of products, like this radioactive X-radium cookware. Yeah, that was a bad idea.
Every year, hundreds of children were stricken with polio. Before testing iron lung machines on humans, two dozen cats had to die under anesthetic.
‘Just add water and you’ve got instant life!’ they said. ‘Over 150 amazing Sea-Monkeys born ALIVE before YOUR eyes!’ But, oh, the disappointment when the critters didn’t look anything like the pictures on the package.
The way life is carried on now seems near discovery By Watson Davis, Director, Science Service Washington — One of the fundamental problems of living
Free electricity for everyone? Here’s a look at some predictions from Nikola Tesla from a century ago – some we have seen, others… well, not yet.
Benjamin Franklin dies at 85: Upon the death of a prominent American, we are favored with the following short account of Franklin’s last illness, by his friend and physician, Dr Jones.
World speculates on historic words SPACE CENTER, Houston — The first words Neil Armstrong utters from the moon’s surface this weekend will go down in
Radioactivity. It’s been in the family for generations. In fact, scientists can tell us just how our remote ancestors are by measuring the radioactivity still
For almost 2,500 years, man was wrong. From the time of Socrates, he had thought of atoms as the smallest particles of matter. In the
The flight of the Space Shuttle Columbia marked the first time a vehicle would be flown into space, returned — and refurbished and used again.
hen the last upheaval came, the whole bottom of the ocean was lifted skyward, and naturally the remains of all kinds of fish, etc., were taken along and left miles and miles inland from the water.
Professor Alexander Graham Bell, the inventor of the telephone, has witnessed the trial flights of the machine devised by Professor Samuel P Langley, formerly of Pittsburg. Mr Bell makes the following statement…
Nikola Tesla filed a US Patent for his improvements on Ben Franklin’s almost 200-year-old lightning rod design.
The Shrinkage of the Planet An essay by Jack London What a tremendous affair it was, the world of Homer, with its indeterminate boundaries, vast
Inventions that changed the world – Famous inventions trading cards Marconi transmitting apparatus Edison’s first phonograph The invention of the Electric tram Modern lighthouse lantern Pratt’s
With more than half a billion people watching on television, Neil Armstrong climbs down the ladder and proclaims, “That’s one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind.”
A scientist announced Saturday that he had positively identified the chemical makeup of genes, the tiny cells that govern heredity, despite Russian claims that the gene is a “figment of the imagination.”
The wonderful X-ray is about to become a back number because of the potency shown by a newly discovered element known as “radium.”
About dental caries Of all the tissues of the body, the dense, glistening enamel which coats the crowns of the teeth is the hardest and
Holiday amusements Instantaneous freezing: During frosty weather, let a vessel be half filled with water, cover it closely, and place it in the open air,
Astronauts of Apollo 9 Astronauts of the Apollo 9 Earth-orbital space mission, left to right: Russell L Schweickart, lunar module pilot; David R Scott, command
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Note: ClickAmericana.com features authentic historical information, and is not intended to represent current best practices on any topic, particularly with regard to health and safety. Material on this site is provided for education, criticism, commentary, cultural reporting, entertainment, historical reference, and news reporting/analysis. Now that you know, have fun looking around!