30 Moments In History That Got Ghosted By Humanity

Elon Musk didn't found PayPal or Tesla and has made no significant intellectual contribution to any field of programming or engineering.

I know it's recent history but still, not enough people want to talk about it.

There was a huge fight about African Americans using the public pool in Mr. Roger's actual neighborhood so he made a episode on his show where he and a African American guest were sharing a kiddy pool and talking about being nice to people even if they look or sound different. He taught a whole generation that racism isn't fair or right.

That doing laundry was hard, dull work. Very little glamour, not hugely interesting, it was smelly and the women that did it were often unfairly depicted as whores because it was some of the best money they could make.

Thank god for washing machines now.
I have a distinct memory of when I was younger, I was really interested in great inventions and inventors and such.

I asked my grandmother what she thought was the most important invention of her life, of the twentieth century, expecting her to answer something like the airplane, or the car, or the moonlanding or the television.

She said it was the washing machine, which I thought was really stupid as a child. The television is so much cooler than a stupid household item like a washing machine!

Now that I'm an adult I realize the washing machine saved hours and hours of labour for 50% of the population. My grandmother was a farmer. She had 11 children.

Probably the washing machine has done more for the emancipation of women than universal suffrage and the last 25 years of feminist writing combined.

During the Irish Potato Famine in 1847, the Choctaw Nation in the United States, despite their own struggles, raised money to send aid to the starving Irish. Although the amount was small by today's standards, this act of solidarity was profoundly impactful. In response, during the COVID-19 pandemic, many Irish people returned the favor by donating money to help the Navajo Nation in the U.S., who were struggling with the virus. A statue in County Cork, Ireland, commemorates the Choctaw's generosity, symbolizing the lasting bond of empathy between the two communities.

The ancient Greeks, inventors of democracy, would elect their officials to one year terms. Each officials' finances were audited at the beginning and end of their term. If they were found guilty of corruption, they could face severe punishments, including fines or exile, though e*******n was not a common outcome for most officials.

Richard Nixon conspired with Saigon to win the 1968 presidential election. He interfered with the Johnson administration’s attempt at a peace treaty. This was literal treason and I feel that very few people know about it. The NYT wrote a piece about it in 2017.

The Candy Bomber. After World War II, when Berlin was divided, the US and UK airlifted supplies into West Berlin to counter the Soviet blockade. One pilot, Gail Halvorsen, started dropping candy to children, tying small parachutes to the sweets. To let them know it was his plane, he would "wiggle" the wings before the drop. This act of kindness grew into "Operation Little Vittles," inspiring other pilots to join in. The campaign became a symbol of American goodwill and helped shift public perception of aid efforts in post-war Europe.

The 'Spanish Flu' actually likely got its start in Kansas, USA.

It's only called the Spanish Flu because most countries involved in WWI had a near-universal propaganda machine that only allowed good news to be published. Spain, which was neutral during the war, had one of the only 'free presses' in the world. They then were the only ones reporting on the massive deaths caused by the flu, leading the rest of the world to believe that they were the source or the most affected. In fact, the death rate was near-universal and destroyed some entire cities/communities in the US and Canada, specifically those of Inuit and First Nations communities.

The US secretly injecting people (typically poor / minorities, including children and pregnant women) with plutonium and other radioactive materials, and then studying them for decades. When they finally admitted it, the report was released at the same time of the OJ verdict to bury the story.

Humans developed agriculture around 12000 years ago. By storing grain, huge numbers of rodents flourished. Cats showed up to eat the rodents, and humans learned that if they took care of the cats, the cats would control the rodents. Therefore, it was the invention of agriculture that led to the domestication of the house cat.

Norway Knighted a Penguin. His plaque officially states he's the Colonel-in-Chief of their King's Guard.

The Great Stink of London in 1858.

One summer the heat dried up the River Thames (where all the human waste went) and an unbearable smell pervaded throughout the entire city. All Parliament representatives were eventually coerced out of their homes outside of London to convene and solve the issue. Much to the citizens’ glee, Parliament was held in their building on the bank of the River Thames, resulting in one of the fastest Parliament decisions ever made to reform the London sewer system.

In 2006, while the Ivory Coast was in the midst of a civil war, the opposing sides agreed to a ceasefire so that they could all watch the World Cup. The break in fighting paved the way for a peace agreement a year later.

Woodrow Wilson was mentally and emotionally incapacitated by a massive stroke in October 1919, and his wife and doctors essentially ran the country until Harding took office in 1921. Some historians refer to Edith Wilson as "the first female president."

The 2nd Congo War. This was the deadliest conflict since World War 2 with over 5 million people killed. Most people have never heard of it despite it ending less than 20 years ago.

On February 11, 1985, the Soviet space station Salyut 7 lost contact with mission control, leaving it adrift and unpowered. A daring rescue mission was launched, led by cosmonauts Vladimir Dzhanibekov and Viktor Savinykh. After docking with the station, they discovered all systems were shut down and the interior was freezing cold. Wearing fur-lined winter clothing, they restored power and repaired the station, successfully bringing it back online. This remains one of the most remarkable space rescues in history.

Cleopatra wasn’t just a political mastermind—she was also a linguistic prodigy, speaking nine languages, including Egyptian, making her the first ruler of her Greek family to do so. But here’s the truly overlooked bit of history: when Julius Caesar was trapped in Alexandria, Cleopatra didn’t just wait around for help. In a bold move, she had herself smuggled into his presence wrapped in a carpet (or some versions say a sack). Her servant, fluent in Latin, got them past the Roman guards, and when the carpet was unrolled, Cleopatra emerged, cleverly catching Caesar by surprise. This dramatic entrance wasn’t just about a queen’s charm; it was a calculated risk that helped secure her future—and it worked. Despite not having bathed in days, she managed to win over Caesar with her sharp intellect and undeniable presence. It’s a moment that shows just how far Cleopatra was willing to go to maintain power and influence in a male-dominated world.

Many people know about the Suffragettes who won the vote for some UK women in 1918. However, many people don’t realize that before 1918, not all men had the right to vote either. While voting had been gradually expanded over the previous 80 years, it was still restricted by property ownership and wealth. The 1918 Representation of the People Act granted the vote to all men over 21, as well as women over 30 who met property qualifications. This was a significant step toward universal suffrage in the UK, though full equal voting rights for men and women were only achieved in 1928.

While educated people, including ancient Greeks, knew the Earth was round by at least the 5th century BCE, the idea of a flat Earth was never widely held in medieval Europe. Throughout the Middle Ages, most scholars and educated figures understood that the Earth was spherical. The notion that medieval Europeans believed in a flat Earth is a misconception largely created in the 19th century.

During Argentina’s military dictatorship in the 1970s and 80s, approximately 30,000 people were forcibly disappeared by the government. These individuals, mostly political dissidents, were taken from their homes, tortured, and often thrown out of planes into the Atlantic Ocean after being drugged. This horrific practice was part of what became known as the "Dirty War".
Among the victims were pregnant women, who were allowed to give birth before being killed. Their babies were forcibly taken and given to military families for adoption, with the truth of their origins kept hidden. For decades, these children were unaware of their true identities, and many are still learning the truth today.
The Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo, a group of mothers whose children were among the disappeared, began holding regular protests in the Plaza de Mayo in Buenos Aires to demand justice and answers. Their efforts played a key role in exposing the atrocities of the dictatorship, and they still continue to meet, advocating for human rights and for the return of lost identities.