The Private Magic of Treehouses

Readers share what makes their favorite treetop hideaways so special. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

The Warlike Origins of ‘Going Dutch’

The term for splitting the bill has its roots in a bitter international rivalry. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

At the Newark Public Library, Shopping Bags Carry Local History

The New Jersey institution is home to a collection of more than 2,000 of these often overlooked items. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

One Family's Hidden Museum of Retro-Future Artifacts

Meet the Kleemans and their vast collection of space-age toys and ephemera. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

The Donkey Refuge Where Burros Become Coyote-Kicking Livestock Guardians

With the right training, feral donkeys go from zero to hero. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

Striking Satellite Images of Cities on the Brink

A fresh perspective on the fragility and resilience or our world. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

Freedom Statue: Based on a real event

Based on a real event, the statue is dedicated to those who fought and died for Zambia's independence. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

Visitors Can Touch Human Brains at This Indian Neuroscience Institute

It's like a petting zoo for organs. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

Women Built London’s Waterloo Bridge, but It Took These Photos to Prove It

Uncovering evidence of a long-forgotten history. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

After Five Years of Living in Trees, a Protest Community Is Being Evicted

They've been trying to stop coal mining in Germany's Hambach Forest. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

Found: A Pescatarian Praying Mantis

Go big or go home. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

Saving the Prized Chile That Grows Only in Oaxaca’s Mountains

Farmers growing the smoky pepper had no idea chefs were paying top dollar for it. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

Nikola Tesla Built a Giant Tower to Send Wireless Electricity Around the World

Ultimately, things didn't go as he had planned. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

Why Helicopters Are Flying Mountain Goats Over Washington State

The salt-loving, tourist-stalking goats of Olympic National Park are moving out. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

Creating Disneyland Was Like Building a Brand New City

Even Magic Kingdoms need urban planners. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

Location of the First Gas Street Lamp

A single light illuminates one man's overshadowed contributions to street lamp history. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

Lifeguard: energy drink with controversial bee secretion

This Japanese energy drink contains a controversial bee secretion. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

Brazil Nuts Are Brought to You by Rodents

The snack wouldn’t exist without the help of one furry critter and its unusually sharp teeth. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

Tasting the History of Puebla’s Calle de Los Dulces

One of Mexico's most fascinating streets for candies has ties to Emiliano Zapata. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

What a South Carolina Ghost Story Says About Hurricanes and History

The Gray Man was a warning that it was time to leave. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

Before Food Trucks, Americans Ate ‘Night Lunch’ from Beautiful Wagons

They were the ancestors of the modern diner. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

Before Food Trucks, Americans Ate 'Night Lunch' from Beautiful Wagons

They were the ancestors of the modern diner. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

From the Frying Pan Tower, a Front-Row Seat to Hurricane Florence

A camera is live-streaming the storm. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

A Pair of WWII Bunkers in New Orleans Contains 7M Fish

Meet the Royal D. Suttkus Collection. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

Lost: Rings Holding the Hair of Philosopher Jeremy Bentham

Among the elaborate plans for his death were 26 Victorian mourning rings. What happened to them? | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

What Water Shortages in the Western U.S. Would Mean for Craft Beer

Colorado is in the midst of its worst drought since the Dust Bowl in the 1930s. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

A Visit to the Forgotten Apartment in Manhattan's Fort Washington Library

Dwellings like these were originally designed for workers and their families. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

The British Couldn’t Take India's Heat, So They Imported Ice from New England

Sailing frozen lake water across the world was big business. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

Inside a 17th-Century 'Barbarian' Cookbook from Japan

It included Portuguese and Japanese recipes for caramel, cake, and an early tempura. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

Tell Us About Amazing Foods Made by Monasteries and Convents

What heavenly sweet, cheese, or beer have you tried? | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

Descend into England’s Network of Secret Nuclear Bunkers

And meet the determined enthusiast bringing them back to life. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

What Happens When Your Country's Tallest Mountain Peak Shrinks?

The southern summit of Kebnekaise was the highest point in Sweden. Then it melted. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

Winnipeg Doesn’t Know Who Erected This Amazing Sign on a Landfill-Turned-Park

It looked like the Hollywood Sign in Los Angeles. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

Here’s What the Watermelon Was Up to Before It Tasted Good

Wild watermelons weren't sweet, but they were incredibly useful. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

The Chair That Grew – Clintonville, Wisconsin

A 100-year-old chair with joints "cemented by nature." | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

In 1900, Photographing an Entire Train Required the World’s Biggest Camera

With bellows big enough to stand in. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

Le Corbusier’s Special Measuring Tape Is Making a Comeback

The architect thought his unique measurement system was revolutionary, but no one really used it besides him. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

For Sale: Writing Advice from Mark Twain

The famed author didn't think much of young writers (unless they experienced great personal tragedy). | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

How Escaped Pets Took Over Florida

When store-bought animals are released, they may go from pet to pest. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

Decoding the Unusual Shape of the Nepali Flag

Where did all those angles come from? | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

After a 33-Year Absence, a Lost Beach Returns to Ireland

One researcher thinks mollusks called chitons are more complex than they seem. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

All It Takes to Create a Ghost Is a Good Story

A tale of two bars in Portland, Oregon. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

How Two Thieves Stole Thousands of Prints from University Libraries

They almost got away with it. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

The Communist Cookbook That Defined Prague’s Cuisine

For years, one book dictated how and what people could eat. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

The Cowboy Cartographer Who Loved California

Jo Mora poured the state's whole history—and his own life—into his incredibly detailed, whimsical maps. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

Beneath a layer of spines, this cactus sprouts asparagus-flavored buds

The Tohono O'odham have feasted on the plant for hundreds, if not thousands, of years. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

What lives inside fog water droplets

From the Namib Desert to Maine, fog is teeming with life. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago

The Wild Alaskan Island That Inspired a Lost Classic

A century later, “Quiet Adventure in Alaska” still sounds pretty good. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 7 years ago