History Uncovered

Each December, countless children around the world excitedly await the arrival of Santa Claus. If they've been well-behaved, he'll reward them with gifts left in stockings or under the tree. If they've misbehaved, he might gently scold them with a lump of coal. But it's a slightly different story for children in places like Austria, where their version of Santa Claus, St. Nicholas, is accompanied by a terrifying assistant named Krampus who will punish naughty children in ways that go far beyond giving them coal. 

https://allthatsinteresting.com/krampus

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In 2022, All That's Interesting published more than 300 news stories covering stunning archaeological discoveries, shocking crimes, strange animals, and scientific breakthroughs.

But of everything we published this year, certain stories stood out to us, the people who wrote them. And today, we're going to dig into our favorite news stories of the year, from the kangaroos that overran an Australian town to the discovery of the Oregon shipwreck that might have inspired Goonies — and many more.

https://allthatsinteresting.com/tag/news

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For centuries both before and after Europeans began colonizing the New World, countless Native American warriors did battle with settlers and each other as they defended their land, forged their tribes, and shaped the history of their continent. And while some of their names remain well known to this day, many of their stories have been all but lost to time. 

https://allthatsinteresting.com/native-american-warriors

credits: https://allthatsinteresting.com/podcast-credits

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Out of all the atrocities that Imperial Japan unleashed upon the Chinese people during their brutal occupation, probably none were as gratuitously hateful as the operations of Unit 731, the Japanese biological warfare unit that somehow plumbed new depths in what was already a genocidal war.

Despite innocent beginnings as a research and public health agency, Unit 731 eventually grew into an assembly line for weaponized diseases that, if fully deployed, could have killed everyone on Earth several times over. All this “progress” was, of course, built on the limitless suffering of human captives, who were held as test subjects and walking disease incubators until Unit 731 was shut down at the end of the war.

Led by Surgeon General Shiro Ishii, Unit 731 began its experiments in earnest after Japan invaded China in 1937 and started using the country’s civilian population as their guinea pigs — but it wasn’t until much later that the true horrors of Unit 731’s experiments would come to light. From dissecting captives while they were still alive to giving them syphilis and watching them slowly deteriorate, Unit 731’s experiments stand out as some of the most gruesome in human history.

https://allthatsinteresting.com/unit-731

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On the night of November 13, 1974, Ronald DeFeo Jr. burst through the front door of Henry’s Bar in Amityville, New York, screaming hysterically for help — because his family had been murdered.

His friends from the bar followed him back to his house at 112 Ocean Avenue where they saw the bloody aftermath. Five members of the DeFeo household lay dead in their beds, still wearing their pajamas and totally covered in blood. Each of them had been shot at close range in their sleep.

And the story only became more shocking the next day when none other than Ronald DeFeo Jr. himself confessed that he was the one who had committed these heinous murders — and when he eventually claimed that he’d heard demonic voices that told him to do it.

But the night that Ronald DeFeo Jr. murdered his family was only the beginning of the terrors that plagued what came to be known as the “Amityville Horror House” after the family who moved in afterward claimed that the home was haunted. And though that story has since been made into several movies and remains well-known to this day, the true story about what happened isn’t what you might think.

https://allthatsinteresting.com/amityville-murders

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Almost everyone has heard the urban legend of Bloody Mary. As the story goes, this ghastly, murderous spirit can be summoned through your mirror if you stand in the bathroom, turn off the lights, and repeat her name aloud. Some versions of the story claim that she'll drive her summoner insane — while others state that she'll kill or maim them.

Ever since this urban legend was first documented in the 1970s, it’s shown incredible staying power. For decades, children across the world have reported hearing the tale — with different variations — and enacting the ritual themselves. Some even claim to have actually seen Bloody Mary in the mirror.

But how did this creepy story start? Though its exact origins are unknown, there are several real women throughout history who've been linked with this terrifying ghost. They include Mary Worth, an alleged witch who was burned at the stake in the 17th or maybe 19th century, Elizabeth Bathory, a 16th-century Hungarian noblewoman who allegedly killed and tortured hundreds of women and girls, and even the English queen Mary I, who earned the nickname "Bloody Mary" for burning hundreds of Protestants alive in the mid-1500s.

Wherever and however this unsettling urban legend began, it remains one of the world’s most widely-known ghost stories to this day. Now, let’s explore the legend itself, its murky origins, and the women who just might be the real-life Bloody Mary.

https://allthatsinteresting.com/bloody-mary

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In July 1947, something crashed on the Foster Ranch in New Mexico. What that object was, what the government said it was, and what the public thought it could be has created a near-mythical confusion that has lasted ever since.

https://allthatsinteresting.com/roswell-incident

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Just three minutes before United Airlines Flight 175 crashed into the World Trade Center on 9/11, passenger Brian Sweeney left a final message to his wife Julie.

https://allthatsinteresting.com/brian-sweeney

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When Marilyn Monroe died on August 4, 1962, it was to many as if one of the world's brightest lights had suddenly been snuffed out forever.

To this day, the true cause of Marilyn Monroe's death remains controversial and a number of disturbing theories have proliferated over the years, with many claiming foul play perpetrated by everyone from the Mafia to her ex-lovers John F. Kennedy and his brother Robert. But where does the truth lie?

This is the story of Marilyn Monroe's death, from her bizarre final hours to the mystery that's lingered ever since

https://allthatsinteresting.com/marilyn-monroe-death

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Hours before her disappearance, Maura Murray packed up her dorm, withdrew $280, and bought an assortment of alcohol. She then crashed her car — and was never seen again.

https://allthatsinteresting.com/maura-murray

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