Stuff You Missed in History Class

This installment of eponymous food stories is entirely about fruits. We’ve got a berry, a pome, and a citrus, all with varying degrees of documentation.

Research:

• “A Guide to the United States’ History of Recognition, Diplomatic, and Consular Relations, by Country, since 1776: Algeria.” Office of the Historian. U.S. Department of State. https://history.state.gov/countries/algeria#:~:text=Algeria%20under...

After struggling to raise her siblings and start an art career, Wanda Gág’s life changed almost instantly with the publication of her first children’s book. Part two of her story looks at how her books sustained her financially so she could also make the art she wanted.

Research:

• Anderson, Phil. "Gág, Wanda (1893–1946)." MNopedia, Minnesota Historical Society. http://www.mnopedia.org/person/g-g-...

As an artist and writer Wanda Gág is well known for her children’s books. But this first of two parts about her life covers her own unusual childhood, which went from quirky fun to intense hardship when her father died.

Research:

• Anderson, Phil. "Gág, Wanda (1893–1946)." MNopedia, Minnesota Historical Society. http://www.mnopedia.org/person/g-g-wanda-1893-1946
• Cox, Richard W. “Wanda Gág T...

Part two of the spring 2025 installment of Unearthed! features the potpourri category, plus drones/radar/lidar, books and letters, animals, edibles and potables, shipwrecks, swords (sort of) and cats. 

Research:

• Roque, Nika. “Maria Orosa, fellow World War II heroes laid to rest at San Agustin Church.” GMA Integrated News. 2/14/2025. https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/topstories/nation/936107/maria-orosa-fellow-wo...

The first part of our springtime edition of Unearthed! for 2025 features so many updates! There are also finds related to Egypt and artwork. 

Research:

• Roque, Nika. “Maria Orosa, fellow World War II heroes laid to rest at San Agustin Church.” GMA Integrated News. 2/14/2025. https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/topstories/nation/936107/maria-orosa-fellow-world-war-ii-heroes-laid-to-rest-at-san-agustin-church/story/
• ...

Vandalism at draft board offices as U.S. involvement in Vietnam was escalating was deeply divisive. Opponents of the war were stereotyped as dirty hippies and sanctimonious white college kids, but the anti-Vietnam-war movement in the U.S. was really broad.

Research:

• "Statement: the Boston Eight" Newsletter. ULS Digital Collections. https://digital.library.pitt.edu/islandora/object/pitt%3A31735058194170
• “Draftees ‘L...

The draft board raids were part of an antiwar movement, largely grounded in Catholic religious convictions, that spanned almost four years. Part one covers the basic context of the Vietnam War and why the U.S. was involved in the first place, and the earliest raids on draft boards.

Research:

• "Statement: the Boston Eight" Newsletter. ULS Digital Collections. https://digital.library.pitt.edu/islandora/object/pitt%3A3173505819417...

The story of how strawberries went from small forage item to one of the world’s most popular fruits – though they're technically not a true fruit – involves lots of crossbreeding experimentation, as you might expect, but also a bit of spy craft.

Research:

• “A Transatlantic Tango: The Story of the Strawberry. Royal Horticultural Society. https://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/grow-your-own/features/history-of-the-...

Dorothy Arzner wasn’t the first female film director in the U.S., but she was really the only one working in the studio system during most of the period that’s known as the Hollywood Golden Age. Her short career was still incredibly prolific.

Research:

• "Dorothy Arzner." Encyclopedia of World Biography Online, Gale, 2022. Gale In Context: U.S. History, link.gale.com/apps/doc/K1631009688/GPS?u=mlin_n_melpub&sid=b...