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Venice’s Poveglia Island was a quarantine center and mass grave for victims of bubonic plague, earning it the nickname the “Island of Ghosts.” In the Venetian lagoon sits Poveglia Island, a small, unpopulated landmass cut down the middle by a canal. For all its unassuming appearance, however, it has a dark history and is said to be one of the most haunted places in Europe, a continent saturated with tales of ghosts and the paranormal....

In the early 1970s, the Alphabet Murderer stalked Rochester, New York, killing girls who had the same first and last initial – and these horrific crimes remain unsolved to this day. On the afternoon of November 16, 1971, a young girl ran down the side of a highway in upstate New York. The child waved her arms as she fled a car backing toward her in the shoulder. She was wearing nothing from the waist down....

Up until 1992, Albania was ruled under a merciless communist regime. But in 2000, the mayor of the nation’s capital launched a city-wide beautification program — to stunning results. Like this gallery?Share it: Share Flipboard Email And if you liked this post, be sure to check out these popular posts: 33 Photos Inside The Liberation Of Paris, When The French Capital Was Freed Of Nazi Control 25 Bizarre But Beautiful Communist-Era Posters For Oscar-Worthy Hollywood Movies...

While some may think of Italy as the epicenter of the world’s coffee addiction, the world’s most popular drug arrived to Europe fairly late in history. In fact, coffee was born in Ethiopia. Both the arabica and robusta varieties have their origins there. Today, around 5,000 varieties of arabica grow in Ethiopia, more than in any other country on earth. One of the most charming stories of the human discovery of the caffeine-rich beans originates from Ethiopia, too....

The 1950s and 1960s tested the will of many who lived through them. As Cold War fears expanded the United States’ presence overseas, millions at home demanded the expansion of basic civil rights to all Americans. One of the key figures behind the domestic agitation was Malcolm X. In his brief life (he was killed at age 39), Malcolm X — née Malcolm Little — spearheaded a civil rights movement that challenged mainstream movements championed by Martin Luther King Jr....

In spite of Jasper Maskelyne’s hair-raising tales of magical ingenuity and vanishing acts on the North African front, many of his adventures were later revealed to be nothing but smoke and mirrors. Wikimedia Commons Famed stage magician Jasper Maskelyne (1902-1973), claimed to have helped win World War II. After the end of World War II, the triumphant Allied countries enjoyed nothing more than a good war story — and the more daring and clever, the better....

“Flying Man” Otto Lilienthal soared against the clouds, captivating the imaginations of people all over the globe and inspiring a future generation of engineers and inventors. FlickrOtto Lilienthal soars over spectators in one of his gliders. Mankind’s desire to fly is as old as recorded history: from the blueprints of Da Vinci to the fabled wax wings of Icarus, ideas for reaching the heavens have popped up throughout the centuries. However, actual instances of flight remained elusive until very recently....

In December 2011, Pam Hupp brutally stabbed her best friend Betsy Faria to death inside her Missouri home — then succeeded in getting her husband Russ Faria convicted for the murder. O’Fallon Missouri Police Department; Russ FariaPamela Hupp (left) got away with murdering Betsy Faria (right) for nearly six years before she was finally considered a suspect. When Russ Faria walked in the door of his home in Troy, Missouri, on the evening of Dec....

Michigan State University employee Joseph Hattey could face up to 15 years in prison if convicted of these “crimes against nature.” His arrest warrant said that he’d committed a crime against nature — and there’s really no way to disagree. On June 21, Michigan State University Health Physicist Joseph Hattey appeared in court for a preliminary hearing regarding two bestiality charges he was accused of earlier in the month. During the hearing, a witness, Maxx Rapp, testified that he met Hattey after posting an ad on Craigslist seeking to have sex with an animal....

In what is now considered the largest intelligence breach in FBI history, Robert Hanssen’s scandal made him millions in diamonds and cash, but cost the FBI $7 million — and the lives of three informants. Wikimedia CommonsRobert Hanssen made over $1 million spying for the Soviets until he was caught in 2001. To the residents of the quiet suburb of Vienna, Virginia, Robert Hanssen was the perfect neighbor. A devout Catholic, a loving father, and a dedicated employee of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, hardly anyone could have imagined the gentle 56-year-old being anything other than Bob, the all-American guy next door....

Bloodletting was used to draw “tainted” blood from a patient, in the hopes that the disease or infection would be extracted out with it. On December 14, 1799, a doctor was called to Mount Vernon, the home of George Washington. The former president had fallen ill, was suffering from a fever and a sore throat, and had difficulty breathing. Immediately the doctor jumped into action, knowing he had to get the infection out of Washington’s body as fast as possible....

Medieval sword found in sewer, secrets of Stonehenge’s construction revealed, WWII American shipwreck uncovered. Medieval Sword Pulled Out Of Danish Sewer With Blade Still Intact The Historical Museum of Northern JutlandJannick Vestergaard and Henning Nøhr proudly holding the medieval sword they pulled out of a Danish sewer. As pipe layers and engineers, Jannick Vestergaard and Henning Nøhr are likely accustomed to their day-to-day operations in Denmark’s fourth-largest city, Aalborg. So, pulling a medieval sword out of a sewer earlier this month was quite a surprise....

“Monumental” Roman city uncovered in Spain, England’s oldest shipwreck found in Dorset, decades-old murder case solved in New Jersey. Archaeologists In Spain Just Discovered A “Monumental” Roman City That’s Totally Missing From Any Historical Records University of ZaragozaArchaeologists had been digging in various places in the area for more than a decade, thinking they were excavating unrelated sites — but they just realized they’d actually been uncovering one massive, interconnected city all along....

Secret JFK assassination records to be released, ancient Black Sea shipwrecks found, and Paul Revere’s outhouse uncovered. Who Really Killed JFK? Soon-To-Be-Released Government Documents May Have All The Answers Decades have passed since President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas on November 22, 1963, yet the truth behind what happened is still mired in secrecy, and conspiracy theories abound. Everyone from the C.I.A. to the U.S.S.R. to the Illuminati have come under scrutiny from conspiracy theorists....

The now-150-year-old Army base will hold 1,400 migrant children who’ve been separated from their families at the border. TwitterFort Sill once forcibly housed some 120,000 Japanese-American men, women, and children. It will now hold 1,400 migrant children separated from their parents. The internment of Japanese-Americans during World War II has always remained a terrible blemish in the U.S. history books. According to Time, 120,000 men, women, and children were forcibly held across several of these facilities between 1942 and 1946, when the U....

Urn ashes, turkey, smoked lamb. What do they have in common? They’re all flavors of strange candies that you couldn’t pay us to try. At some point, we’ve all looked at the candy at the grocery checkout line and wondered, “Who on Earth came up with that idea?” (We’re looking at you, Baby Bottle Pops.) While many of us have definitely seen some oddities, nothing could prepare us for the candy selection the rest of this world has to offer....

These animals are great at hide and seek. Over the course of millions of years of evolution, the inhabitants of Earth have devised some incredible abilities to ensure their survival. Case in point: The amazing camouflage that animals employ to surprise their prey or evade their predators. Below, we look at 27 incredible examples of animal camouflage in action: Viewing note: After each picture, the animal will be revealed in the following slide....

The world is full of exciting and exotic vacation getaways. Big skies, vast expanses, and vistas that will take your breath away if you’re ever lucky enough to see them firsthand. And then there are places you’d sell your watch to get out of. Some areas on Earth are so awful, so inhospitable to human life, that you’d swear they’re the result of a half-finished effort at terraforming by alien life forms....

If you’re ever finding it hard to put your feelings into words, take a cue from some people who’ve done it before, and use one of these love quotes for him. When you’re at a loss for words, check out these love quotes for him. Sometimes, when you’re in love, you just can’t find the right words. It seems that nothing could adequately describe how you feel, or convey your emotions properly....

Many of these raunchy images were drawn by bored scribes who were tired of copying out books by hand — and wanted to leave a profane surprise for readers. Like this gallery?Share it: Share Flipboard Email And if you liked this post, be sure to check out these popular posts: The Scold’s Bridle — How Men In The Middle Ages Dealt With Gossiping Wives The 8 Most Painful Torture Devices Of The Middle Ages...