The Flint Sit-Down Strike, From the Inside
Americans in "The Great Resignation" and "Strikevember" are the heirs of the 1936-1937 sit-down strike by auto workers in Flint, Michigan.
How the Marshall Plan Sold Europe to Americans
Department-store bazaars let consumers see how glamorous and sophisticated imported goods could be. Ooh, la la!
How Retail Sales Became “Unskilled” Work
There's a big difference between how salespeople in traditional department stores and big-box retailers interact with their customers.
How Show Business Went Union
Since the nineteenth century, the IATSE union has organized behind-the-scenes workers, first in theater, then in the movies.
Joe Magarac, a Boss’s Idea of a Folk Hero?
The Paul Bunyan of the steel industry never went on strike. He was too tied up working the twenty-four-hour shifts that unions were fighting.
Why You’ll Never Get Lead Poisoning from a Pencil
Some of the greatest moments in international pencil history involve discoveries of a different mineral.
You’ll Never Believe Who Invented Curbside Recycling
Far from ushering in a zero-waste world, the switch from returnables to recycling provided cover for the creation of ever more packaging trash.
How the Beaches of the South Got There
The government funded beach construction for private developers, which displaced Black farmers from their coastal lands.
Boosters Used the Sweet Pea to Define California
In the late 19th century, Californians were eager to part with their reputation for wildness, so they adopted an "English" flower as their symbol.
Banks’ Own Private Currencies in 19th-Century America
Before the Civil War local banks issued their own money. It was totally legit, too.