/r/askhistorians

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It's some time between 1830-1860 and I'm a white male who wants to travel alone with my horse throughout the American west. How truly dangerous would my travels be?

817 upvotes • -TheLoneRangers-

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Did Abraham Lincoln actually violate the constitution before or during the Civil War?

816 upvotes • heretik

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Considering the modern day ubiquity of dick pics, it seems like men have a deep seated need to take pictures of their penis and distribute them. Were there ever dick daguerreotypes? NSFW

816 upvotes • vosemdesyatvosem

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During the 1950's, men were expected to be the sole wage earners of the household. By that logic, single men of that era must have had a huge amount of disposable income. What did they spend it on?

816 upvotes • hanjo_main

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Were lowborns and low-ranking knights generally punished or rewarded for killing high-ranking nobility in battle?

815 upvotes • MechaGodzillaSS

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In 1956 Malta voted to join the United Kingdom. It did not join the United Kingdom.

815 upvotes • ZakCasey23

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I heard that the misconception of being able to catch an STD/STI from toilet seats arose from doctors not wanting to consider sexual assault/incest as a possibility. Is there any truth to this?

814 upvotes • nchammer326

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"Motherf**ker" is, when you think about it, a rather bizarre insult. When and where did it begin to be used in English, and why did it become so popular?

814 upvotes • TheJucheisLoose

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Why does the U.S. have a "Surgeon General"? Specifically, why are they a surgeon?

814 upvotes • aztr3onam

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Why are "eastern" swords generally depicted as curved, and "western" as straight? And does this have any basis in historical reality?

813 upvotes • ObsidianOrangutan

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Title	Upvotes	Author	Mark as read	Favorited	Rating	Add to a list
It's some time between 1830-1860 and I'm a white male who wants to travel alone with my horse throughout the American west. How truly dangerous would my travels be?	817	-TheLoneRangers-
Did Abraham Lincoln actually violate the constitution before or during the Civil War?	816	heretik
Considering the modern day ubiquity of dick pics, it seems like men have a deep seated need to take pictures of their penis and distribute them. Were there ever dick daguerreotypes? NSFW	816	vosemdesyatvosem
During the 1950's, men were expected to be the sole wage earners of the household. By that logic, single men of that era must have had a huge amount of disposable income. What did they spend it on?	816	hanjo_main
Were lowborns and low-ranking knights generally punished or rewarded for killing high-ranking nobility in battle?	815	MechaGodzillaSS
In 1956 Malta voted to join the United Kingdom. It did not join the United Kingdom.	815	ZakCasey23
I heard that the misconception of being able to catch an STD/STI from toilet seats arose from doctors not wanting to consider sexual assault/incest as a possibility. Is there any truth to this?	814	nchammer326
"Motherf**ker" is, when you think about it, a rather bizarre insult. When and where did it begin to be used in English, and why did it become so popular?	814	TheJucheisLoose
Why does the U.S. have a "Surgeon General"? Specifically, why are they a surgeon?	814	aztr3onam
Why are "eastern" swords generally depicted as curved, and "western" as straight? And does this have any basis in historical reality?	813	ObsidianOrangutan