Oh, the good old camera. This device has forever changed how we preserve our history, an event, or a special moment. Imagine going back in time and meeting the people who made society as we know it. Or even seeing them in their everyday lives without the pomp and circumstance of a world-changing event.
That’s what we’ve done with our collection of rare shots of historical figures photographed in both ordinary and extraordinary moments. Step aside, boring history textbooks — it’s time to get a fresh look at the past with these rare photos! From presidents to poets, revolutionaries to royalty, we’ve dug up some snaps you won’t find in your average history class. These images offer a unique glimpse into the lives of some of the most famous (and infamous) figures of all time, showing them in a different light.
Take a look at a young Abraham Lincoln, fresh-faced and determined, still unaware he would have soon begun his journey toward the presidency. See the iconic Marie Curie, contemplative as she unravels the mysteries of physics and chemistry. Witness the strength and resilience of Rosa Parks, standing firm in her conviction as she gives new life to the movement for civil rights.
This is a true exploration of the annals of history as we bring you these never-before-seen pictures from the 1700s, 1800s, and 1900s. Get ready to be amazed, astonished, and (dare we say it?) even entertained as we uncover some truly stunning shots of the people who shaped the world we know today.
#1 Harriet Tubman
Meet Harriet Tubman, the unstoppable abolitionist born Araminta Ross in 1822. She’s the woman behind the Underground Railroad operations, which helped enslaved people reach freedom in the free U.S. states and Canada. This photo was snapped around 1885.
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129points
#2 Henry Johnson And Needham Roberts
Henry Johnson was an American soldier who became famous for his bravery in World War I. While on watch in the Argonne Forest, he fought off a German attack and saved a fellow soldier despite suffering 21 injuries. His heroism made headlines in the New York World and The Saturday Evening Post, and in 2015, he was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor by President Barack Obama. Here he is pictured with Needham Roberts, a fellow soldier and member of the Harlem Hellfighters, who received the Purple Heart and the Croix de Guerre for his bravery in the war.
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119points
#3 Vincent Van Gogh
Who knew the man behind the iconic paintings actually had photographs of himself? Van Gogh may have been ahead of his time as a post-impressionist painter, but unfortunately, he didn’t receive much recognition during his lifetime. However, his sister-in-law made sure his talent didn’t go to waste by loaning out his art after his death at 37. This photo was snapped when the artist was only 19, and we’re positive it’s one of those rare historical photos everyone should see.
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111points
#4 Geronimo
Goyaałé, best known as Geronimo, was an Apache medicine man, regarded as the last Native leader to formally surrender to the military. Despite his bravery and determination, he was eventually captured. He spent the last portion of his life as a prisoner of war, admitting on his deathbed how much he regretted surrendering. This picture here is from 1887.
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108points
#5 Marie Curie
Marie Curie was a groundbreaking scientist born in Poland in 1867. She was the first woman to win a Nobel Prize, and she also won it twice, first for Physics and then for Chemistry. This photo of her was taken around 1920 when she was already a well-known and respected scientist.
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105points
#6 Chief Seattle
Chief Seattle was a man of outstanding leadership and diplomacy, serving as the head honcho for the Suquamish and Duwamish people in Washington State. His efforts to establish peaceful relations with the white settlers in the Pacific Northwest were admirable, and it’s no wonder that the city of Seattle was named after him. This snap was taken back in 1864.
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100points
#7 Harriet Beecher Stowe
Born in 1811, Harriet Beecher Stowe was a fervent abolitionist and writer. She’s famous for penning the novel Uncle Tom’s Cabin, which she released in 1852. Despite society not really encouraging women to speak in public, she still took the stage to discuss her book and her anti-slavery beliefs. Sometimes, her husband or brothers would speak on her behalf when women weren’t allowed to speak. This picture of her was taken in 1870.
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97points
#8 Claude Monet
Claude Monet, the iconic French impressionist painter, spotted with a visitor on a bridge in his beautiful Giverny garden in 1922.
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97points
#9 Frederick Douglass
Frederick Douglass, whose stern expression is captured in this photograph taken between 1847 and 1852, was a prominent figure in the abolitionist movement during the 1800s. He had escaped slavery in Maryland and was known for his strong, fierce persona. Douglass reportedly paid attention to his public image and wanted to present himself as a determined and intense individual. Elizabeth Cady Stanton, a well-known feminist from the 19th century, referred to Douglass as “majestic in his wrath.”
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91points
#10 Rosa Parks
In February 1956, 73 people were indicted as leaders of the Montgomery bus boycott, the same event for which Rosa Parks was later recognized as the mother of the civil rights movement. Here, Lieutenant D. H. Lackey is fingerprinting Parks as deputies arrest all of them. A grand jury had previously charged 113 African Americans for organizing the boycott.
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89points
#11 Emmeline Pankhurst
Emmeline Pankhurst, leader of the suffragette movement, taken away from Buckingham Palace in London after being arrested for trying to present a petition to King George V on May 21, 1914.
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89points
#12 Emily Dickinson
Despite her current insane fame as a poet, Emily Dickinson was not well-known during her lifetime. She wrote around 1,800 poems, but only a few were published before her death in 1886. The only known photo of her as an adult is the one shown above, taken in 1847.
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87points
#13 Abraham Lincoln
Born in 1809, the 16th president of the United States is renowned as a highly respected political figure in American history. This photograph of Lincoln was taken when he was 37 years old and working as a lawyer and congressman-elect. It’s the oldest photograph known of him.
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85points
#14 Annie Oakley
Annie Oakley, the badass sharpshooter protagonist of Annie Get Your Gun, was a huge celebrity in the late 1800s thanks to her appearances in popular literature and her sharpshooting skills in Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show. Because of her fame, Oakley was snapped way more than anyone born in 1860 probably would have been.
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77points
#15 Johnny Appleseed
Remember the stories of Johnny Appleseed from when you were a kid? His real name was John Chapman, born in 1774 in Massachusetts. He was famous for being a pioneer nurseryman and bringing apple trees to several states. Despite his rugged appearance in this photo from the 1840s, he was known for his incredible kindness.
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74points
#16 Lev Tolstoy
Lev Tolstoy, the Russian writer whose fame stems from his novels War and Peace and Anna Karenina. Although he was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature every year from 1902 to 1906, it’s still seen as a mystery why he never received the Nobel Peace Prize. Despite this, Tolstoy is still considered one of the greatest writers of all time. This photo shows him at age 80 in 1908.
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73points
#17 Butch Cassidy
Butch Cassidy, whose real name was Robert LeRoy Parker, was a notorious outlaw in the Wild West. He and his gang, the Wild Bunch, would rob trains and banks. After about 10 years of criminal activity, Butch, his partner Sundance Kid, and Sundance’s girlfriend Etta Place fled to Argentina to avoid being caught by the law. This photo was taken in 1900.
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73points
#18 Wright Brothers
The Wright brothers, Orville and Wilbur, were two American aviation geniuses who created, built, and flew the first successful motor-powered airplane. In this photo, Wilbur and Orville are sitting on the porch steps of their Dayton home in June 1909.
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70points
#19 Calamity Jane
Martha Jane Cannary, also known as Calamity Jane, was a wild woman of the frontier born in 1852. Over the years, there have been so many myths and legends about her it’s hard to know what’s real and what’s not. This photo was taken in the 1880s.
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66points
#20 John Brown
John Brown was a fierce abolitionist born in 1800. He led a daring raid on Harpers Ferry in West Virginia, which unfortunately didn’t go as planned. He was put to death a few months later. African American photographer Augustus Washington snapped this photo of him around 1846 or 1847.
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65points