› added 1 year ago

67

TIL 40% of Americans trace their ancestry through Ellis Island.

Read more nps.gov

via reddit.com

rRdv0 TIL In Ancient Egypt, elite dined off meat, fruit, vegetables, and honey-sweetened cakes enhanced by the finest of wines, but the poor were limited to a more monotonous diet of bread, fish, beans, onions and garlic washed down with a sweet, soupy beer
dDaX9 TIL that the first patent for the invention of the fire hydrant was destroyed in a fire.
WkZ9X TIL the Five Civilized Tribes were deeply committed to slavery, had their own black codes, immediately reestablished slavery when they arrived in Indian territory, rebuilt their nations with slave labor, crushed slave rebellions, and enthusiastically sided with the Confederacy in the Civil War.
MJe8 TIL that there is evidence to suggest that Vincent Van Gogh didn’t kill himself, as is widely believed, but was accidentally shot by kids.
Vg1Z TIL I learned that a young twenty-something year old CEO took over a $9M company, fired 2/3rd of all managers and gave the power to the employees. Now it has a turnover of over $200m.