Christopher Klein
Christopher Klein is the author of four books, including When the Irish Invaded Canada: The Incredible True Story of the Civil War Veterans Who Fought for Ireland’s Freedom and Strong Boy: The Life and Times of John L. Sullivan. His work has appeared in numerous publications, including The Boston Globe, The New York Times, and National Geographic Traveler. Follow Chris at @historyauthor.
Latest from this author
Despite the holiday’s Irish origins, many St. Patrick’s Day traditions were born in the United States. Learn why we celebrate in America.
10 surprising facts about the UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Explore eight surprising facts about the groundbreaking polio vaccine that Dr. Salk developed.
The bodybuilder built a global wellness brand around his chiseled physique. Then World War I derailed his career.
Using fame as a cover, the glamorous entertainer spied for the French Resistance against the Nazis.
Julius Caesar’s killers attempted to thwart a dictator. They inadvertently created an emperor.
10 surprising facts about Dr. Seuss, from his early setbacks and successes to his legacy today.
Talk about 'death by chocolate.' Drawings reveal Nazi booby traps made from everyday items, including a chocolate bomb meant for the British Prime Minister.
The first Super Bowl wasn’t exactly super. Explore ways the hastily arranged first Super Bowl differed from today’s modern-day sporting spectacle.
Olympic organizers through history have hired snow dancers, called in the military and helicoptered in snow to ensure the Games go on.
These were some of the Super Bowl’s most peculiar intermissions.
More than a century ago, Punxsutawney residents relied on groundhogs for more than just weather forecasts. They ate them as well.
Explore 10 surprising facts about the elite cold-weather competitions.
Few places in the United States rival the legacy of the three Virginia towns: Jamestown, Williamsburg and Yorktown.
Think UFO sightings are just a modern phenomenon? Think again. The Puritans were the first to record strange shining lights in American skies.
Explore 10 surprising facts about the civil rights leader.
A real-life black bear owned by a Canadian soldier serving in World War I inspired the famous children’s book.
Introduced in 1941, the strong, courageous and feminine new superhero had both pin-up girl looks and Rosie the Riveter spirit.
The United States has grown and shrunk throughout history.
The balletic sport developed in Europe thousands of years ago. But an American turned it into the spectacle we know today.
Lincoln was so taken with the new technology—which he called 'lightning messages'—that he sometimes slept on a cot in the telegraph office during major battles.
A staggering 25,000 workers lost their lives. Meanwhile, artificial limb makers clamored for contracts with the canal builders.
The British holiday, typically celebrated on December 26, has nothing to do with fisticuffs.
Rosa Parks, born on February 4, 1913, is known for her defiance against segregation. Get the details on her act of civil disobedience.
Some argue that Jesus wasn't an actual man, but within a few decades of his lifetime, he was mentioned by Jewish and Roman historians.
An FBI report suggested the beloved holiday film was subversive.
From its rebellious composer to one out-of-this-world rendition, learn surprising facts about one of the most popular holiday melodies.
A British rock legend’s unlikely fascination drove him to amass the world’s largest private collection of Alamo relics.
Forced from their homeland because of famine and political upheaval, the Irish endured vehement discrimination before making their way into the American mainstream.
Edward Hibberd Johnson added flash and color to Christmas trees when he introduced electric lights in 1882.
Explore the true history behind one of the most popular films of all time, “The Sound of Music.”
After a major expansion in 1924, Macy's decided to throw New York City a parade.
How an accidental call to NORAD's top-secret military hotline led to a Christmas tradition.
The annual Thanksgiving ritual of granting presidential pardons to White House turkeys is not as hallowed as you may think.
Some risked imprisonment or death to help win America’s freedom.
The cause of the 1975 wreck remains shrouded in mystery.
They banned the public celebration of Christmas for an entire generation.
Think the office holiday party got out of control? That was nothing compared to an alcohol-fueled Christmas celebration at West Point.
Look back at the moment when the holiday spirit sparked impromptu ceasefires along World War I’s Western Front.
Sixty years after the Gateway Arch’s completion, see the drastically different ideas that were considered for the St. Louis monument.
Charles Guiteau claimed God ordered him to do it.
Concealed from the public, Woodrow Wilson's medical crisis sparked constitutional questions that still reverberate.
The surprising maritime origins of New Year’s Eve’s biggest party.
A little-known chamber concealed behind the head of Abraham Lincoln was intended to contain a shrine to America.
The idea has nothing to do with farmers, for one thing.
The post-World War II trials marked the first-ever prosecutions for genocide and crimes against humanity.
Inventors rushed to patent escapable 'safety coffins.'
A day after George Washington’s death, a doctor arrived at Mount Vernon and proposed a procedure to resurrect America’s first president.
It wasn’t gasoline—but moonshine—that fueled the growth of stock car racing in Appalachia and led to the rise of NASCAR.
