History Facts

    Random History Facts

    There are 163 History Facts!

    Knocker-Up
    Knocker-Up
    Until the 1920s, there was a profession called 'knocker-up', which involved going from client to client and tapping on their windows (or banging on their doors) with long sticks until they woke up.
    46
    When Charles Darwin first discovered the Galapagos Tortoises, he tried to ride them!
    18
    Lincoln and Darwin Birthday
    Lincoln and Darwin Birthday
    Charles Darwin and Abraham Lincoln were born on the same day.
    32
    Scientists are excavating the ruins of a major civilization which pre-dates both the pyramids and Stonehenge by over 7,000 years. In 15 years, they have uncovered only about 5% of the site.
    21
    Tablecloths were originally meant to serve as towels with which guests could wipe their hands and faces after dinner.
    78
    Clocks made before 1660 had only one hand - an hour hand.
    41
    Alexander Selkirk
    Alexander Selkirk
    Alexander Selkirk, a Scottish sailor, was left stranded on a deserted island in 1704, but survived for over 4 years, partly by using feral cats to protect him from ravenous rats that attacked during the night.
    49
    A monk had once written over a book that contained information about calculus that was written by Archimedes in ancient Greece that could have made us 100 or even 1000 years more mathematically and technologically advanced.
    13